Today we’d like to introduce you to Kevin Scanlon.
Alright, so thank you so much for sharing your story and insight with our readers. To kick things off, can you tell us a bit about how you got started?
I took a printmaking elective as a freshman in high school with a skateboarding friend of mine. Our teacher told us to shoot a roll of film as homework. We half-jokingly asked if we could shoot ourselves skateboarding, and he said yes. Best…homework…ever. I was hooked. I took more photography classes and studied in college as well. After attempting a career in rock n roll in my 20s, I moved on to do photography full-time. I got connected with the art dept at LA Weekly and some of the photo editors at The New York Times and shot hundreds and hundreds of assignments for them. A lot of the assignments included musicians, actors, and artists. My work now consists of advertising assignments, publicity shoots for actors/directors/writers, and fashion stories.
We all face challenges, but looking back, would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
Being a freelancer is seldom easy. The hustle never ends. I have to constantly market, network, and promote. We all know what a Budweiser is. That doesn’t stop them from running new campaigns to keep it top of mind. If Budweiser has to promote, I probably do too.
Thanks for sharing that. So, maybe next you can tell us a bit more about your work?
I’m known for my celebrity portraits. In all my portrait work, I strive for sincerity. I love nice light, I love a beautiful environment, and I love a clean canvas backdrop. All of that can help make a great portrait, but most of all, I love an authentic moment. The moment transcends all else. Hard stop.
Where we are in life is often partly because of others. Who/what else deserves credit for how your story turned out?
I’ve had a lot of help along the way. An early influence was someone I met in high school named Ben Stechschulte. He went on to become a brilliant photographer and filmmaker. The entire art staff at LA Weekly from 2006-2013 was incredibly supportive. They included Shelley Leopold, John Curry, Debra DiPaolo, Ryan Ward, and Darrick Rainey. At the New York Times, Philip Gefter was the first photo editor to reach out to me, which was followed by many other supportive PEs who assigned over 160 shoots to me. Probably no other single person was and still is more supportive in so many ways than Michael Kaminski at Juice Pharma. No only does he recommend me for many productions, but he is a valuable advisor on a broad range of business questions and is personally a great friend with a contagious smile.
Contact Info:
- Website: kevinscanlon.com
- Instagram: @kevinscanlon
Image Credits
Karl Clinger
Kevin Baldes
