We recently connected with Josh Pruitt and have shared our conversation below.

Josh, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today Earning a full time living from one’s creative career can be incredibly difficult. Have you been able to do so and if so, can you share some of the key parts of your journey and any important advice or lessons that might help creatives who haven’t been able to yet?

I am very grateful to be able to do what I do full-time. I learned fairly swiftly that there are no shortcuts when it comes to turning your hobby / passion into a career, but there are certainly things you can do to help you move forward at a steady rate.

In my case, photography was something I had grown to love, but never had the intention of turning it into a career.
After spending a few years obsessing over the craft, I began to develop a confidence in my art form that then informed how I would turn it into a viable business. It was and will always be about people and their stories. Once that was established as my motivation, the business side of it began to make more sense.

It’s difficult to offer universal advice when it comes to this, but one of the most important things for me was to prioritize finding your own voice, showcasing that voice, and then putting yourself in front of clients that would not just benefit from what you have to offer, but would genuinely find value in what you bring to the table. If I had to do it all over again, this would still be a fundamental rule that would dictate my approach.

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 am a freelance photographer who has not confined myself to WHAT I shoot, but rather focuses my attention on my aesthetic (which has become my brand) and creative eye to help bring stories to life.

I have had the privilege of working with a wide range of brands who value storytelling, as well as editorial projects that embrace diversity, culture, and collaboration. I’m a firm believer in delivering aesthetically consistent work that aligns with the vision and heartbeat of whoever it is I am coming alongside. Not only does visual consistency serve in enhancing any brand’s identity, it also communicates intentionality which is such a powerful and indisputable attribute.

My work is heavily influenced by cinema, and so my photographs incorporate rich and deep tones paired with a soft yet punchy texture. Having dialed in and established this look, I have been able to avoid being hired just because I have a camera, but rather clients who are already after the aesthetic that I offer, thus avoiding any pressure to alter who I am in order to fit someone else’s expectations.

More recently, I have stepped into filmmaking with creative direction, DP and directing work, and editing, which has provided a lot of joy for me as I get explore a different medium of storytelling.

Ultimately, my goal is to avoid mediocre and unintentional work by always placing the people and their story above anything else. In doing so, you will always have an impact.

What do you think helped you build your reputation within your market?

With any craft, there will always be a spectrum of variation. With photography, there are many niches and styles that it can often be intimidating to navigate your way through and find a place in the midst of it all.

What helped me find my place was my decision to not limit myself to WHAT I shot, but HOW I shot. This opened up opportunities while simultaneously limited my audience to those who were drawn to my aesthetic. This was a risk I was willing to take. I wanted people who saw my photographs to know who took it before they saw my name attached to it because the work spoke for itself.

Once I honed in on this approach, it helped establish my reputation within the market as it seemed as though not many others were approaching their work this way.

I’m very proud of how this has played out, but more importantly, of how many connections and relationships I have made during this process.

What’s a lesson you had to unlearn and what’s the backstory?

I really had to unlearn this notion that whatever I produced had to be perfect and polished before releasing it.

In order to do so, I began telling myself that I’m the best I can be today. Releasing certain work was an act of showing myself that I was proud of how far I had come and was a way of celebrating little victories in my journey.

Doing this has changed my mindset entirely and has helped me avoid getting stuck in self-criticism and doubt.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.ivywildvisuals.com
• Instagram: @ivywildvisuals