We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Anthony Soares. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Anthony below.

Hi Anthony, thanks for joining us today. We’d love to hear the backstory behind a risk you’ve taken – whether big or small, walk us through what it was like and how it ultimately turned out.

After jumping from name tag job to name tag job, I found myself in auto-pilot mode. After moving between various unfulfilling jobs, I realized that I was just going through the motions of life and it was time for a change. Despite working for the Walt Disney company for 12 years, I didn’t find true satisfaction within my role anymore. However, I had rediscovered my old passion for photography a few years prior. In my off time I would study and go out and practice shooting and eventually started covering larger musical artists. Then, an amazing opportunity presented itself – I was offered the chance to go on tour with a The Offspring & Sublime with Rome and document their journey during their summer tour through Canada. That opportunity ultimately lead to me being offered a chance to go out on tour with Dirty Heads for two and a half months on a co-headline tour with 311. It was a difficult and risky decision (to leave behind the stability of my job, its full benefits and 401k), but I ultimately decided to take the leap and pursue my passion. Looking back, it was one of the best decisions I’ve ever made.

Anthony, love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?

Of course! I’m a 6’7 tall giant that understands how short moments are and I love to document life happening around me. I was born and raised in Orange County, CA and now am happily living in Las Vegas. As I reflect on my journey, it’s amazing to think that my first hobby at 7 years old was photography and my first job at 15 was in website design. I feel incredibly grateful to have turned my passions into a successful career that allows me to work with such a diverse range of clients. It brings me joy to use my expertise and creativity to help businesses achieve their goals and elevate their online presence. From designing websites to capturing the perfect shot, I’m constantly inspired by the clients I work with and the projects we undertake together. I look forward to continuing to serve my clients and pursuing my lifelong passion for art.

I can’t take all the credit. I partnered up with my long time friend, Alex, who is basically a brother to me. We met while both working at Disney back in 2010. Having similar passion for music, art, business and most of people! We bring a family approach to the digital world that has built Gentle Giant Digital into what it is today!

Is there a particular goal or mission driving your creative journey?

As a artist, it is crucial to ensure that my projects are both fun and fulfilling. I strongly believe in maintaining a healthy balance between taking on opportunities and staying true to my values. I have found that it is essential to weigh the desire to work with clients I genuinely connect with, as this fosters a collaborative, positive and enjoyable professional relationship. In order to maintain a successful and thriving career, I practice making conscious decisions about who I choose to create with, even if it does not result in financial gain, it is crucial to prioritize mental health.

We’d love to hear the story of how you turned a side-hustle into a something much bigger.

Already working a full time job typically working from 8 pm to 6:30 am, I would find myself going from that job (working a 10 hour shift) in Orange County to then sit in traffic to make it to LA to cover band rehearsals, studio recordings and more and then rush home in LA traffic to sleep for a couple hours before going back to my full time job. Finding ways to get creative and edit during slow times at work allowed me to continue to grow my business. Also, having the added help of Alex allowed us to keep up with the demand. My days off were normally spent shooting concerts, weddings, product photos, merch shoots all throughout the day and then staying up until 4-5am editing to have images ready for clients and bands first thing in the morning. I did this for a few years as my “side hustle” until I ran into my fork in the road moment: to take the leap and make content creation my full time career and I’m so glad I did. As you can imagine, mental health was not considered when making these sacrifices. I have hit every milestone I could ask for. I have gotten to cover and work with some of my all time favorite bands like The Used, Sum 41, 311, Blink 182, Rise Against, Social Distortion, Unwritten Law, Andrew McMahon and so many more! Life goes by so quick, so stop reading and start pursuing your own passion 🫶

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.gentlegiantdigital.com/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/gentlegiantdigital/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/gentlegiantdigital
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/anthonyduty/
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCzSskEwzmqEp-yuMr58XIyQ/featured

Image Credits
Gentle Giant Digital