We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Lucas Smith. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Lucas below.
Alright, Lucas thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. Are you able to earn a full-time living from your creative work? If so, can you walk us through your journey and how you made it happen?
I’ve been shooting and editing videos since I was in 3rd grade. I started with photography and stop-motion videos and then got into VFX, compositing, and 3D modeling. It’s something I’ve always done for fun. I needed to shoot video to practice CGI work, so I shot short videos for fun with my friends. I eventually got better at shooting video and became interested in that.
Around 15 years old I started shooting and editing videos for some local clients. From 15-17, I worked at this one startup media company in Dearborn, Michigan that shot local commercials, product videos, and weddings. Which later expanded to bigger companies across the country. After that, from 18-19, I was hired as a full-time salary position at another media company in Detroit, Michigan. There I shot and edited commercials and short documentary series for multiple companies and schools. I also worked at a camera jib crane company as a jib tech and at various media companies as a camera operator on an on-call basis. I also worked at a camera rental house for some time.
Along the way, I ran my own business on the side. I shot music videos and commercials and edited some tv shows and various content from around the world.
I heard a lot of people talking about moving to Atlanta, Georgia but were tied down in Detroit. I wanted to advance my career and get into cinematography instead of videography, so I took a chance and moved to Atlanta in 2023. Here I got into narrative work and worked on countless short films and some tv shows. Recently, I’ve taken a break from editing and have become a 1st AC, cam op, or gaffer on set. I occasionally DP and want to pursue that full-time in the future.
Lucas, 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?
As of now, I specialize in the production and post-production side of films and videos. I’m usually brought on to a production by a director or producer to bring their and the client’s ideas to life. I could do everything myself, but it is more efficient to collaborate with other people in the industry.
We’d love to hear the story of how you turned a side-hustle into a something much bigger.
I started shooting videos for money around 15, but I worked at a restaurant at 16 as soon as I was allowed to legally work. I worked at the restaurant part-time over the summer and on weekends while in high school, while attending dual enrollment at the College for Creative Studies at night after school, while also editing videos for clients whenever I could find time.
Over the summer, video work picked up and when I’d get a video client, I’d take that day off work to shoot the video. Eventually, I was making more an hour doing video work than I’d get working a full day at minimum wage so I quit my part-time job and pursued video work full-time.
Can you talk to us about how your funded your business?
I actually started out with nothing but a used Canon T5i I got for Christmas at 15. Slowly I collected money from photo and video shoots to upgrade my equipment and bought a desktop computer to edit videos. For every shoot, I’d invest more back into gear and kept upgrading. If I needed a certain piece of gear, I’d buy it even if I lost money on the shoot, knowing that I’d have it for future use. I’d only buy gear if I needed it for a shoot.
While camping in the woods, I got a call that the 2nd cam op for a documentary was sick and they wanted me to fill in. I’ve never been on a “real” film shoot with a big crew at that point, and they were going to fly me across the country, but they needed me to have certain equipment. I took a risk and spent like $7,000 in the middle of the woods on camera equipment, but it paid off because, from that one job, I got so much future work.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.lucsmithmedia.com/
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lucsmith.media/
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCOlwvbpGAil_7zJjzSYXHNw
- Other: https://linktr.ee/LucSmith