Life & Work with Edward@carreonphotography.com Carreon of Los Angeles

Today we’d like to introduce you to Edward@carreonphotography.com Carreon.

Hi edward@carreonphotography.com, please kick things off for us with an introduction to yourself and your story.
I grew up in the business as a photojournalist, initially working for newspapers and then all the major magazines, including National Geographic, Time, Newsweek, US News and World Report, New York Times, Life, Forbes, Fortune, etc. I shot mainly portraiture, the Middle East, and Latin American news for the magazines. Then, I started asking my New York Times subjects if I could trade industrial photography for access to their facilities to build up my portfolio. I did the same with the business people whom I photographed for them. So, I use my NYT credibility and charm to photographed people and factories for free until I had enough mages to create a new portfolio that got me paid work and, eventually, a reputation. Now, I would say I am one of the top three corporate/industrial photographers in Los Angeles.

It was not easy, and I made many mistakes more than once before I learned to talk about money and what my value was to my clients. I learned that people hire me because I make them feel bulletproof. People keep hiring me because I demonstrate that I can deliver more than they ask for.

We all face challenges, but looking back would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
Absolutely not. One doesn’t know what one doesn’t know, so I assumed many absurdities. That clients were my friends, that people would just pay me what I asked, that I did not need to learn to negotiate fees, that it would be easy, and that if I built it, they would come.

Now I understand what creatives with real budgets need when we have conversations. Besides what your fee is, they need to know that you understand enough to ask the right questions so you can build a picture what what they are seeking. They need to see that you can be flexible and creative by proposing solutions to problems during initial phone calls. They need to feel their projects are safe when they hire you, and you won’t make them look bad to their clients.

In the end, cost is only a question in the absence of value.

So, I lost a lot of clients along the way before I learned to read them and understand their needs before asserting myself. You can say that I learned enough humility to make it about the client and not myself. I learned to understand others before I sought to be understood.

I also learned to live within my means and never spend money on the most expensive equipment when something less costly would do just fine. I learned to do as much as necessary but as little as possible for my assignments so I could be more efficient and move with less friction.

There were hard times when work was not coming in, and there were flush times when work was just raining down and I learned to weather it all.

Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know about your work?
In general, the difference between very successful photographers and not-so-successful photographers seems to be how they view themselves. One does it because he sees what he does as a form of art, which compels him to do it, and the other sees himself as a technician who is compelled by the money.

Eventually, the artist finds his footing in a style that becomes successful and from which he or she can evolve. This is what preserves the artist’s unique vision. The technician is just following other people’s styles.

How do you think about luck?
Luck plays a major role in everybody’s lives, and only entitled narcissists believe their hard work was the primary factor in their success. Yes, hard work does play a role, but luck plays a bigger role.

There is are almost impossible odds that any given person is ever born because any given spermatozoon has a 1 in ~100–300 million chance of fertilizing an egg.

I got lucky every time I did not die many times as a photojournalist. I got lucky when the conditions were perfect for an assignment that got me notoriety. I got lucky when I got my first newspaper job, and I was not even looking for it. They called me because a friend just happened to show the editor my work.

I got lucky that a friend got a job at the Discovery Channel and brought me on board as one of their primary photographers.

I got lucky when I turned down a job offer at a newspaper, only to have the editor who offered me the job hire me when he took a more important job that allowed me to travel the world covering the military.

I got lucky when I met a therapist who offered me psychedelic therapy for the treatment of PTSD, and it saved my life.

I got lucky when I met my wife, arguably the biggest influence in my life.

I got lucky when Voyager asked me for an interview.

Pricing:

• $3000-$4,000 Per day for Industrial /Corporate Work
• $1,000 – $1,500 per day for editorial work
• $1,500-$3000 per day for architectural work depending on the requirements.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://carreonphotography.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/edwardcarreonphotography
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/eacarreon/about/
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/edcarreon

Image Credits
@edcarreonphotography