Skill simply isn't enough...

...sometimes it's just dumb luck. How I stumbled into my first celebrity photoshoot, and four takeaways from the experience.

I had the opportunity to shoot my first celebrity client, Khruangbin & Leon Bridges, for the cover of Uproxx Magazine. To say I was absolutely stoked would be an understatement. But the kicker is…I did absolutely nothing to receive this opportunity. In fact, this opportunity belonged to someone else entirely.

Before everyone accuses me of pulling an Andy from The Devil Wears Prada, understand that I had about 24 hours notice before I knew I would be tasked with shooting this project. The IMMENSELY talented Jackie Lee Young was set to photograph them for this cover. She hired me on to do set styling for the shoot. She unfortunately tested positive for COVID less than 24 hours before the shoot and wouldn’t be able to shoot it anymore. With that, the team was in a complete scramble to pivot. Jackie calls me and says, “Hey, I know this is super last minute, but would you be open to shooting the project? If you’re down, I will put your name in the hat and see if they bite. You’re a photographer, and you’re already set up with everything needed for this shoot.” The way I wanted to say “ABSOLUTELY NOT”. But I got outside of myself and decided that, you know what…”Let’s do it”.

This experience ended up being a really influential one for me. It provided a few learning lessons that have shaped me to this day. Here are four major takeaways I took with me from this opportunity.

Sometimes skill simply isn’t enough.

As the title suggests, I truly believe that skill will never be enough to get the opportunities we think we are due. Bias, who you know, and being in the perfect place at the perfect time are HUGE factors. I say this simply to encourage any creatives who are feeling the weight of not getting visibility despite having STELLAR work. Timing is everything. And the opportunity you are waiting for has been in the works this entire time. So when the opportunity arises, how will you show up?

Committing to the work when no one is there to witness it is just as essential, if not more so, than committing to the work when there’s an audience. The team who approved me to move forward as the photographer for this project based that decision off of the work they saw on my website. The work on my website at the time was comprised of 95% passion projects that I did for free. Photoshoots I did with the intent of “shooting the work I want to be hired for”. And would you look at that, it worked.

Failing is essential.

I know this is the absolute oldest truth in the book, but the way this philosophy shows up time and time again within my career as a photographer is just so incredibly reassuring. I also think that instead of being vague about this truth, we all should provide tangible examples of how this has happened to us individually. As well as how it played out in the end. Real life examples are much more thoughtful and provide added context so that others can truly comprehend how their own failures can show up to be the exact thing that spurs their career forward.

There was a moment during the shoot where we had technical difficulties with the lighting remote on my camera. I won’t bore you with super technical details, but it wasn’t ideal. And to fix it, it would have cut into our shoot time by at least 45 minutes to an hour. However, I was able to pivot in the moment and switch gears completely to still get the shots I needed. I understood the limitations of what could and could not be done in the moment. My ability to go a different direction when the lighting remote gave up on us wouldn’t have happened if I hadn’t failed in the past.

Previously, I had a test shoot (essentially, passion projects that you do for free) where this EXACT same situation happened. And do you know what happened when the remote stopped working? I failed. My shots came out grainy and and were an absolute nightmare to edit. The team wasn’t stoked about the deliverables. It sucked. I took that experience of failure and decided to educate myself on what exactly happened and what I can do differently if it happens again.

The Khruangbin & Leon Bridges shoot just so happened to be the moment when it happened again. But this time, I was ready. And I executed. I committed to capture 15 more minutes worth the shots with no lighting just to see what we might get from it. Then I switched gears entirely, made the executive decision to photograph the final look for the shoot outside using natural light. I had no real set up for an outdoor shot. So I grabbed a set of silver streamers from the back of my car, set it up in a field, and went to work. I captured one of my absolute favorite shots to date by making this decision. And that never would have come to be if I hadn’t failed in the past.

Commit to the integrity of your personal style. At all costs.

One of the artists in the group saw the final images and said “These aren’t really the vibe.” To say that wasn’t at least a LITTLE disappointing would be a complete lie. HOWEVER, it stung for half a second before I came back to myself and realized, this wasn’t my project. This shoot was set around someone else’s vision and strengths. I began the shoot attempting to mimic the original moodboard that was provided. But quickly decided that I do no one any favors by shooting at 60% trying to be someone else.

This project wasn’t built around my photography style. I had to make the decision to reassess, and shoot what was authentic to me and my personal aesthetic. That was the only way I would be able to leave this project feeling 100%. So at the end of the day, no, the end result wasn’t what was originally planned. But it did end up being much more “me”. By acknowledging that truth, the initial feedback didn’t feel nearly as bad for long. I absolutely LOVE the outcome of this shoot. And I left feeling extremely confident because I photographed this set in a way that left my own unique thumbprint. From then on, I have decided to be firm in communicating to clients on the front end, that yes I will take your moodboard into consideration. But when you hire me, you are hiring me for the work you have seen that I can create. Not someone else’s photography style. Overall, the shoot ended up being a big hit and I’m SO proud of the results.

Trust you intuition. 

There were certain shots that felt really natural. Intuitive. And others that felt like I was forcing it. The shots where I had the feeling of being grounded and confident ended up being my favorite shots and the ones that came out the most visually interesting. Now, I chase that feeling at every shoot. I really lean into what’s intuitive vs. what feels like I’m trying to make something out of nothing. So instead of beating a dead horse for an hour with a set up that just isn’t working, I cut it off the minute I feel off balance, and move onto something more natural for both my subject and I. It has improved my confidence on set and increased my ability to trust my gut. Whatever that is for your own creative gifting, trust it.

As artists, I know we are all up against an ever changing climate and industry. We are struggling to keep up with the new demands required of us to “get out there and be seen”. But regardless of what your current state of being is, know that you’re where you’re supposed to be. Be true to your calling, your passion, and your overly specific niche. Take every failure as win, because you’re one step closer to doing it better. And know that your opportunity is on its way.

---

---

THE TEAM BEHIND THE COVER STORY:

WRITER: ADRIAN SPINELLI @AGSPINELLI

PHOTOGRAPHER: AFRITINA COKER @AFRITINA

PRODUCTION ASSISTANT: NATASHA WALKER @TASHIGOLEAN22

STYLISTS: MEGAN BOYES @MEGANJANEBOYES

OMAR LISANDRO @OMAR_LISANDRO

GABRIELLA TENA @LAGABSTYLE

CREATIVE CONSULTING: JACKIE LEE YOUNG @JACKIELEEYOUNG

DESIGNED BY: DAISY JAMES @DJAMESDESIGN