We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Maximilian Haupt. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Maximilian below.
Maximilian , thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. Do you take vacations? Why or why not?
I do take vacations and I firmly believe it’s very necessary to do so. I have a van, an 1984 Vanagon Westfalia camper, and I’ve driven it all the way to Alaska and back and roamed around all west coast states. Since starting Maximilian Haupt Photography I have yet to go on a really big trip, however the six weeks of travel I allowed myself to make my way to Montana last summer were crucial to collect my thoughts about whether or not to start my own business and how to go about it. As a photographer I need inspiration and creativity from different environments. I need to meet people I would not cross paths with otherwise. And quite frankly, if I don’t allow myself a break every so often to recharge my social batteries, I cannot be the photographer people rightfully expect me to be.
Maximilian , 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?
All through 2023 I was asking myself is this it or is there more. I come from journalism and have worked as a sports writer and photographer for more than 15 years, with the fourth largest news wire of the world as my employer. I’ve covered multiple Olympics, Soccer World Cups, Super Bowls and NBA Finals – yet I wasn’t as excited anymore about what I got to do for a living as I want to be. So this year I took a leap of faith, reduced my contract and started Maximilian Haupt Photography.
My tagline is “It’s about you”. I put an emphasis on my clients truly feeling it’s about them, their goals and dreams and about how to solve their problems. I’ve worked in high pressure environments all my life and I’ve learned how to best perform relying on preparation, anticipation and quick decision making. I get excited to use those skills on wedding days just as much as I do when I produce content for my brand clients in a live environment with no chance for a redo. To put my customers at ease and not have them stress about the pictures they will eventually get delivered is very important to me. They have enough to worry and think about and the question if their photographer is going to do a good job must not take up any capacity. Same goes for my headshot and portrait clients: I create an environment that’s accommodating, allowing the sole focus to be on how to bring out their authentic personality.
I know I am good but I also know there is a ton I don’t know yet, so imposter syndrome is real. I am sure every creative services provider can relate to that feeling…. Hence I am super proud that since day one, one of the most popular and established German beverage brands trusts me with their content here in the U.S. – to have this kind of a boost from the start has been incredibly valuable to how confidently I can talk about what I do and how I can help my clients.
In this early stage of my business I enjoy testing out and exploring different fields of photography to see how I can best transfer the knowledge and the skills I have to different scenarios. Getting to work with different people and vastly different needs is a challenge I love.
I grew up in Germany and lived in many different cities, including Berlin, Stuttgart and Munich. There’s been a short stint in Brussels, Belgium. Los Angeles is my home since 2020. I have four siblings and a passion for beach volleyball and swing dancing.
Can you tell us about a time you’ve had to pivot?
There’s been two major pivots in my life. 2020 I decided to leave Germany and take the job as US sports correspondent for a German news wire. 13 days after I had arrived the borders where closed because of Covid and life in sports essentially came to a full stop. So not only did I have to adjust to a new environment in a new city and country but I also could not do my job like I anticipated, let alone meet people, make friends and start networking. Having made it through this time of my life is something I take pride in. Yet in 2023 I started to feel I was loosing the passion and being excited about what I got to do for a living was not the norm anymore. The second big pivot consequentially was to give up a full salary to open up my own business – something I am certain I would not have had the faith for had I not lived in Los Angeles before. Throughout my time here I have met inspiring people doing their own thing, seeing the chances rather than the risks. I needed this nurturing to believe I could do it myself.
Let’s talk about resilience next – do you have a story you can share with us?
This is a classic turning a bad situation into a good one story. Just after I had decided to start my own business someone broke into my car and stole all the gear I had accumulated for years. I was devastated and thought this was the end of my dreams of being an independent photographer before I ever had a chance to really get started. The insurance was acting up and for a long time it seemed as if I needed to fund new gear myself. Friends offered help, family offered help. I lost a lot of time I thought I would have to build a portfolio. After months of fighting however the insurance paid and I had the funds to invest into state of the art gear, allowing me to take off running without being restricted by older equipment.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.maxhaupt.com
- Instagram: @maxhauptphoto & @ethyl_on_the_road
- Facebook: https://Facebook.com/maximilianhauptphotography
Image Credits
Maximilian Haupt
Alexander Haupt