Today we’d like to introduce you to Saad Hameed.
Saad, please share your story with us. How did you get to where you are today?
I started doing photography when I was young, especially shooting with my dad’s old 35mm Pentax camera in high school photography class. Eventually went to film school where I loved operating a camera. This coupled with me buying my first DSLR started me on the road to doing photography professionally. Soon enough I upgraded my camera and got better lenses and began to see this as a possible career. Now I do photography for a living and I love my job.
Has it been a smooth road?
Definitely not a smooth road, and it’s still a struggle. After film school, I thought I was gonna be a camera operator and it wasn’t really until I upgraded my camera did I start doing more photography. And at first, it was just trying to find anyone who would let me shoot for them, lots of aspiring models who needed shots or corporate events that barely paid me enough to cover parking. But now I think I’ve found what I really wanna do, shoot fashion, and have been doing that more and more.
What moment in your career do you look back most fondly on?
Probably my proudest moment or moments are when I’m published. All the hard work of you getting together a concept and a team and it all mixes well and you create something great and a publication notices and not only post it online but in print, that is great. That reward of seeing my images in a tangible magazine in front of me is very rewarding. My latest editorial to be published was for 7Hues Magazine.
Every story has ups and downs. What were some of the downs others might not be aware of?
Struggling is common if it’s getting rejected to when work is slow and things become stressful. One recent struggle I had was with my latest editorial in which the initial round of me submitting it to various magazine, I was constantly getting rejected for a myriad of reason, and I was having doubt I would even get it published. But I kept submitting and finally found a great magazine who liked my vision and we got it published.
Is there something we can do as a city to improve the outlook for professionals like you?
I think LA is a great place for an opportunity but it’s not without its qualms. It’s saturated so while there is work here, there is lots of competition. You gotta find your calling or niche and build, build, build. If someone was just starting out, I’d say LA is a good start, but realize you might have to work a second job to help you financially until the photography begins to take off. As for what the city can do to improve, just the people being better about appreciating the talent, as I think there are some people who have good intentions and some who might try to abuse you, especially if you are just starting out and need experience.
Contact Info:
Website: www.saad-hameed.com
Phone: 510-333-0497
Email: saadhameed1@gmail.com
Instagram: @saadhameedphotography
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/saadhameedphotography/
Image Credit:
Models: Kwaumain Higgins, Christopher Francis, Kallie Biersach, Noel VanBrocklin, Stephanie Turek, Josh Hardwick, Abigail Kuklis and Natacia Mariott
