Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Makai Conner . We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.

Hi Makai , thanks for joining us today. Can you talk to us about how you learned to do what you do?

I learned how to take photos from studying all things related to photography. I’m a self taught photographer and YouTube became my best friend. I would always watch YouTube videos teaching me about cameras, lenses, and editing tricks on a daily basis and I would practice by taking pictures of literally anything. When shooting I always felt like editing and shooting was equally important and I quickly learned you can’t be a GREAT photographer without both skills.

Makai , 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 a 23 year old freelance photographer from Flint, Michigan. I got into the creative industry in 2020 right before Covid after I injured my foot and had to give up my basketball scholarship. The doctors told me my injury could cause permanent damage if it got any worse and I decided to call it quits. 3 years later I’m finally entering into the professional space and I can bring all of my clients ideas to life. When I look at my brand and the accomplishments I have , my biggest accomplishment would be showing people from my city there’s more than a few ways to make it out and you can choose your own path to success as long as you stay focused and work extremely hard.

We’d love to hear a story of resilience from your journey.

Being from Flint, I feel as if we have some of the most resilient people on earth. After the doctor told me that my foot injury could be permanent and may never heal correctly again , I knew my basketball career was coming to an end quicker than I ever imagined. Over my life , I put thousands of hours into basketball to the point where I didn’t have much time to do other things and find other hobbies. I was always interested in photography but never had the chance to do it and I knew the only way for me to bounce back and stay relevant was for me to find my own path and go all in. The news of me not playing basketball again didn’t break me but it made me more determined to be great at something else. A few years later , I have worked with both NFL and NBA players , major college athletes , big time musicians, and important business owners.

Any stories or insights that might help us understand how you’ve built such a strong reputation?

I believe my creativity was the biggest thing that helped me grow within my market. Being a creative isn’t easy at all because you have to be able to bring your clients vision to life and a lot of times things are moving extremely fast around you. I also have my own unique style when it comes to taking and editing photos and it doesn’t seem to look like anybody else’s work. Also people have seen my work grow in real time and the constant growth in my work from the time I started to now has been immense and it shows people I work extremely hard, which in terms builds your reputation because every project is better than the last.      

Contact Info:

• Website: https://makai-conner.format.com/
• Instagram: https://instagram.com/810mac?igshid=OGQ5ZDc2ODk2ZA==
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/makai-conner-0400141a0