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

Alright, Evan thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. Let’s start with what makes profitability in your industry a challenge – what would you say is the biggest challenge?

Starting out as a photographer/videographer in the music industry can be tough because most of your clients are friends or referrals, and you probably don’t have a very diverse portfolio to show your worth. So a lot of the shoots or videos you end up doing are for very little profit, or probably even for free. Even as you gain experience and time under your belt, most local bands don’t have a big budget for photo/video, or they end up trying to do a lot of it themselves. Which makes it tough to justify the time spent on the shoot, and on-top of it, the time spent editing everything. I’ve been doing photo/video in the music industry in some kind of capacity for around 8 years now, and it’s still hard to land a paying gig. Most of the money is in touring, traveling the country as the band’s photographer/videographer. But, a lot of bands already have the people they like to use, or they have other bands that refer photographers to them, so it can be hard to break into. But, if you keep at it, talk to as many people as you can and network, some one is bound to send you an offer at some point.

It’s all about sticking with it, putting effort into it, and most of all, networking. You can have one increcible interaction with some one that might change everything for you. Meet as many people as you can, be personable and professional, and most of all, don’t gloat to make yourself seem worthy of attention/interaction. I almost never talk about myself when I meet new people. I leave it to others to inquire about myself.

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’ve been working in photo/video in the music industry since around 2014. I started by interning at a local recording studio back in NJ, where they asked me to take photos of the different rooms, and bands recording their records. It developed into them implementing full live video sessions for the bands, online recorded music lessons, and more. Of which I directed, filmed, and edited myself. About a year or two later I moved to a different studio, Backroom Studios, where I met Kevin Antressian. Kevin was and still is probably the largest catalyst for any amount of my success in the industry. He taught me so much about audio engineering, how to interact with artists, lessons about the music business, and has continually blessed me with opportunities to help me further pursue my passion. Without him, I can confidently say that I would not be where I am today. Since then, I have met bands/artists in the industry through various events and connections. Through my friendly relationships with these artists, I’ve been given lots of opportunity to photograph bigger and bigger bands. Now, I am a photographer for a local media outlet Jampak.IO. I photograph anywhere from 3-10 shows a month. Jampak.IO is a platform for local artists to book/plan their own shows. They’ve been awesome to me and I’ve had so many awesome

I feel like the main thing that you get from working with me, is that I am super down to earth. I don’t oversell myself and make a bunch of empty promises. I have never had a client dislike what I have delivered to them. I’m very honest and open with my process, and what I am capable of, and I think people really appreciate that.

At the end of the day, I am a photographer and videographer. I’ve done a variety of different projects aside from music/concerts, such as: weddings, portraits, real estate, product reviews, music videos, promo videos, etc. Contact me if you need to promote your band, your brand or business, sell your home, or want a moment captured forever.

How did you put together the initial capital you needed to start your business?

When I was first starting out I was using an entry level DSLR, Nikon D3200. I learned all the basics of how to shoot in manual with that camera. As my skills improved, I used what little money I made from the random photo gigs I had done, to upgrade to a Canon 80D and Canon C100 MKii (for video). And I have been doing the same since. I put whatever I make from my shoots into a savings account. Now, 10 years later, I shoot with a Sony A7IV and several different lenses. This setup has yielded me the best results to date.

What do you find most rewarding about being a creative?

For me, doing what I do, it’s making the artist look AWESOME. I myself am a musician (drummer), so I know what it’s like to see a photo of a show you’ve played and that photo just makes you feel great about your set, yourself, and the night as a whole. For drummers in particular, it’s really hard to get good, clear photos of them. They’re typically in the back of the band, the singer or guitar player stands in front of them, and they’re surrounded by all their drums and equipment. So a lot of photographers tend to neglect the drummer. And, as a drummer, we often don’t have a lot of decent actions shots of us playing. So I try my best to always get a really good shot of the drummer, and I’ve gotten a lot of love from different drummers because of this.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.erkmedia.net
• Instagram: www.instagram.com/grangatron
• Facebook: www.facebook.com/evankelly31
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCteq_hqp_AZ5UDmZPFDxZcA