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

Macy, looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. Are you happier as a creative? Do you sometimes think about what it would be like to just have a regular job? Can you talk to us about how you think through these emotions?

I believe that the idea of being happy as a constant isn’t attainable, nor should it be as happiness is supposed to be fleeting, however I do believe in searching for eternal sense or peace. And ever since I started doing what I love as an artist and creative, I have found peace that cannot be taken away. Of course, there are times when being a creative, especially an independent freelancer, can get stressful, and trying. But I believe that those moments are also opportunities of growth in your journey to strive for peace in what you do. I don’t have to wonder what it would be like to have a regular job, because for a while, I was working three just to fund what I wanted to do. However, it was the moment that I surrendered to what the universe was calling me to do, that I feel as though, I was taken care of by powers higher than me. I have faith that as long as I am living as I should, making choices towards my higher self, and working in a way that would make my self proud, I will always be fruitful and find peace in what I do, and never have to wonder.

Macy, 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?

I’m 25 years old, and I am the middle child of 5 kids. I was born and raised in Stockton, CA, which has such a special energy to it, some of the people I look up to the most are from my neighborhood. I think growing up in such a small tight knit city, really helped strengthen my bond with my community, and value the village mentality that I still firmly stand in. It helped mold me. I come from a family where all the women at some point dabbled in photography or documenting moments in time in some way shape or form. My mom had scrapbooks on top of scrapbooks filled with family photos, tender moments, momentous, etc. Both my sisters also took photos. I started my photography journey 4 years ago and never looked back.

Now my primary focus is on sharing the type of artist I wanna be known as, focusing on longevity in what I’m sharing, and the images I want to create and present to the world. I want to continue to take very real people in very real and raw settings, and tell a bigger story with my eye and my culture as a young black woman/artist. I’m excited to work more with fashion brands, magazines, and companies to create worlds with my lens, and tell stories through the eyes of the people that surround our community everyday. For me, I don’t feel as though my life’s purpose, of uplifting and healing my community and the people in it, would be fulfilled if I didn’t move with that energy in everything I do. My work isn’t about championing myself, it’s about how I can show others the beauty in everyday people, in our culture, and even show my subjects a side of themselves they hardly get to show. That’s what keeps me going.

For you, what’s the most rewarding aspect of being a creative?

The most rewarding aspect of being a artist, for myself, is that I have the opportunity to create a world, a story, body of work, and a lifetime of achievements to share with my lineage, and leave something behind that will exist long after I do. I never want to settle for just being the social media famous photographer, or the one that happened to snap a picture of that one celebrity at that one party. Not that there’s anything wrong with documenting moments like that, but I feel as though I am being called to make my work, more meaningful, and personal, in every field, whether that be the music industry, the fashion industry, film industry, ETC. For me, what’s most rewarding isn’t a certain accolade, or a certain price point I reach. It’s knowing that when I transition off this earth, physically. I can look down and see my children/my children’s children, so on and so forth, having an opportunity to do the same.

We often hear about learning lessons – but just as important is unlearning lessons. Have you ever had to unlearn a lesson?

A lesson I had to unlearn, and one that I feel like it’s taught to a lot of us since we were children, Is this idea that we have to strive to be one thing, and master that one thing. Unfortunately, I grew up believing that was true, and felt as though I had to limit myself in order to shift focus to one career. And also that making a career out of being a creative wasn’t something that was possible for most. Now as I’m stepping into my artistry even further, I have learned that I have the vision for so many things. And the only obstacle that was in my way and holding me back from being able to take a shot at those new opportunities, was myself. I have acknowledged that my gift is not just being a photographer, it’s being someone who has vision and passion for telling stories. I can choose to do that in many ways, and have, such as photography, videography, documentaries, short films, and exhibitions. I have a gift that is able to be used for many different things, I never have to choose just one. The only thing I have to choose every time and be a master of is myself and my creativity.

Contact Info:

• Website: http://www.macyshotthis.com
• Instagram: @macybryant

Image Credits
for personal photo, image credit to Stef Sandoval (@95.stef)