Today we’d like to introduce you to Sean Michon
Hi Sean, please kick things off for us with an introduction to yourself and your story.
I’ll try really hard to keep this short and digestible, but this has been an experience with so many layers and nuances.
My journey through photography started in about 2006, when I was in high school. My entire life revolved around skateboarding and that’s what I started shooting.
A couple of years after I graduated high school I moved to Boston to further pursue shooting skating. We’d take the train into the city almost every weekend at one point so it only made sense. Living there was tons of fun.
After spending a brief amount of time living in Boston I moved to LA with a group of friends with the hopes of taking it even further. I stubbornly shot nothing but skateboarding all the way up until about 2016 or 2017. Around then is when I started a new 9-5 at a respected studio and production rental house in LA where I worked for a year. I learned what all of the gear was, and how to use it. It opened up my mind to shooting something else for once. I started experimenting with fashion photography, and just like with skateboarding I became obsessed with it. Mostly the technical stuff.
When I was really into shooting skating, I would dissect the images in the mags and try to guess what they did to light them. I could have never guessed that eventually I’d basically be doing that for a living.
Through that job, I met some awesome people that started bringing me onto real sets to photo assist. One person in particular who really kicked it off for me in the beginning said “Hey are you available on such and such day?” A couple of seconds of silence while I thought about if I was available was interrupted when he said “Just say yes and make it happen”. That always stuck with me, when opportunities you’ve worked hard for present themselves you just have to be ready and make it happen. The things I learned are overwhelming, and I was lucky enough to learn from some of the best stills lighting techs and photographers in town and around the world. All of that experience has granted me unique knowledge that no school can teach you, and I feel blessed and hopeful to be able to put it toward my own photography.
Now, here I am. Still assisting and doing lighting because I simply love it, and shooting any chance I get.
We all face challenges, but looking back would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
From beginning to end it never was the smoothest of roads but it builds character! In fashion photography, one of the biggest challenges that I face is to create work that feels authentic to myself. You hear so many things from different people about what you should and shouldn’t be doing. A lot of that noise can be distracting and veer you off course now and then. When I don’t feel distracted by all of that and get my sleep, I tend to make work that feels good to me. The challenge that I face now is the current state of the production industry in general. Work has slowed for everyone, and it is unclear what the future holds.
Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know about your work?
It’s funny because I originally became known for my skate photography, and once I started shooting fashion it’s like I was starting over in a way.
Currently I am a freelance fashion photographer, stills lighting designer and photo assistant. I feel what currently sets me apart from most other photographers is my in depth experience as a lighting tech and photo assistant. I think that experience will help me greatly through my new journey in fashion and advertising photography. I can confidently take on just about any type of job, knowing that I have truly developed all of the skills needed to pull it off.
In all honesty, I’m equally proud of each and every achievement that I’ve made. None of it was easy.
Is there anyone you’d like to thank or give credit to?
So many people deserve credit. Definitely Jason Behen at Edge Studios, the facilities director there. He not only gave me the job but allowed me to take on clients and expand into a freelance career. The next person I have to say is Nick Dodge, someone that I met through working at Edge. Nick is a career first assistant and he was the very first person to bring me onto real photo sets. Mario Sanchez, owner of Dust Studios in LA is another one. Mario mentored me a lot, and taught me so much about photography, and lighting. I met him by covering Nick on a job that he couldn’t do. Mario was the lighting designer for a big video game key art shoot. Since that day, I started second assisting for him all the time.
If it wasn’t for these three people, I wouldn’t be where I am now. None of this would have ever happened because I did in fact almost move back to Boston while working at Edge… Timing was everything I guess.
Contact Info:
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/seanmichon/
Image Credits
All images are shot by me (Sean Michon)
1:
– Talent: Janelle Brosnan
2:
– Talent: Anna Siddiqui
– Styling: Anna Lakatos
3:
– Talent: Parker Hupf
– Styling: Anna Lakatos
– HMU: Meg Navas
4:
– Talent: Parker Hupf
– Styling: Anna Lakatos
– HMU: Meg Navas
5:
– Talent: Elena Chenguayen
– HMU: Gabriella Mancha
6:
– Talent: Laura Dennis
7:
– Talent: Brajohn Hicks
