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

Alright, Meena thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. Can you talk to us about how you learned to do what you do?

I have been taking photos since I was a child. My dad would always bring a camera to family vacations and events. Once we started being active in sports, he would bring them to different sporting events and take photos while we would play and perform. As a kid, I’d always go to my sisters soccer games and tournaments to support, and my dad would always bring his camera. He started handing his camera to me and I started taking photos of my sisters doing their different activities. After college, I decided to get my own camera to mostly document my family and our adventures, but over time I started to enjoy taking photos of moment, especially of my 2 puppies and my future husband doing his various activities. My friend suggested to focus my hobby on dance and movement, which started MKhay Photography. If she didn’t suggest it and help me with my initial photos, I probably wouldn’t have my own business today.

I don’t think I would have speed up my learning process as each photoshoot has helped me grow in confidence. I feel like I’ve learned so much, between lighting, and back drops and angles and even different types of edits, it’s difficult to say that speeding up my learning process would have gotten me to where I am faster. Even within just a year, reviewing my photos, my edits and the lighting are just so different. I wish I was more confident in starting this photography business years ago, but to be honest, I think I wasn’t ready until 2 years ago.

The skills that were essential was learning how to direct subjects and light indoor shoots. I was so used to taking photos of events, it was different for me to direct people for photos, but over the past 2 years, I have really enjoyed everyone I’ve met and work with them on their vision. For indoor shoots, I feel like outdoor I’ve had so much experience with, but indoor has been such a fun process. I’ve been proud of what I’ve been able to capture while also having fun and thinking about next improvements.

There haven’t been many obstacles that have stood in my way for learning more. I’ve been grateful for all of the opportunity and the connections I’ve made during this journey and I’m so excited to continue learning and growing.

Meena, before we move on to more of these sorts of questions, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?

My name is Meena Khayami. I am a photographer, performer, instructor and engineer. I got into Photography from my father. He’s always taking photos and documenting our family time and looking back at our family photos has gotten me to love and enjoy my art. I do all different kinds of shoots, family, senior portraits, dance, movement, furry friends, as well as shows, events and weddings. I love working with each client to generate their vision as well as come up with fun ideas with them. I think what sets me apart is that I am also a dancer and performer myself, so all of my shots I look for those moments you have, whether it’s with your furry friend or with your partner or your family, My goal is to capture the moments and save memories.

What’s the most rewarding aspect of being a creative in your experience?

The most rewarding aspect is capturing the moments, especially in shows, when a performer does a dynamic move and I end up capturing the float moment. It’s always so satisfying. Or just some small moments during shoots. My recent clients brought their dog, so I had them walking her around and at one point I ended up capturing their puppy looking up at them with a silly smile on her face. Those types of moments are just so rewarding and make every photoshoot and booking worth it.

What do you think is the goal or mission that drives your creative journey?

My goal is to make the world just 5% brighter every day. And if I can do that by sharing photos or capturing moments of people’s lives they can savior and cherish forever, I will have reached my goal. I started providing film photography which makes photoshoots even more special because instead of capturing hundreds of photos, we only get one shot, and that’s what really life is. We only have one shot in this world, so we need to make the most of it.

Contact Info:

• Website: mkhayphotography.com
• Instagram: mkhay.photography

Image Credits
Performer on the Hoop: Lauren Rubio from Out on a Limb Circus @outonalimbcircus Fire Performer: @charcoal_spins from Out on a Limb Circus @outonalimbcircus