We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Matthew Mahlstedt. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Matthew below.
Matthew, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. Being a business owner can be really hard sometimes. It’s rewarding, but most business owners we’ve spoken sometimes think about what it would have been like to have had a regular job instead. Have you ever wondered that yourself? Maybe you can talk to us about a time when you felt this way?
Incredibly happy!
Well, I’ll listen to family members and friends talk about their jobs, particularly coworkers and bosses, and that’s usually enough to have me feeling secure that I made the right call starting a business. However, I have done some grunt work for friends who are also business owners. Once during the Pandemic, as there was no photography work, and to help an expecting mother/businessowner. The experiences were extremely useful, though. It helped me refine my business operations and how I engage with customers.
Great, appreciate you sharing that with us. Before we ask you to share more of your insights, can you take a moment to introduce yourself and how you got to where you are today to our readers.
I’m a photographer, and these days I specialize in Dog Sports thanks to my sister.
She got a border collie puppy, realized it needed a lot of stimulation and physical activity, so the two of them started doing various dog sports. Fast forward a bit, and she suggested I photograph a dog sport event she was competing in, and now
Barn Hunts and Dock Diving are my primary sources of income. I’m also the regular photographer for Barn Hunts at Branchwater Farms in Reisterstown, MD, and one of two at Carousel Diving Dogs in Mt Airy, MD.
Is there mission driving your creative journey?
Oh yes, to be a Nikon Ambassador. It’s not a prestigious title or something that most people outside of photography would care about, but Nikon Ambassadors are the photographers who test the new equipment in the field and provide feedback to make the gear better for everyone.
How about pivoting – can you share the story of a time you’ve had to pivot?
Oh the Pandemic. I had only been in business for 14 months, and that whole situation came along. The worst part was that I had a lot of work on the books, and 2020 was looking to be a big jump from year one. But instead of building my photography business, I was working at my buddy’s motorcycle shop. That taught me two things. First, it is good to have other skills to fall back on, and second, it’s not about never getting knocked down, but getting up after you have been.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://thatbaltimorephotographer.com/
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thatbaltimorephotographer/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ThatBaltimorePhotographer
- Other: https://www.balteemoreapparel.com/
Image Credits
That Baltimore Photographer, LLC