We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Mike Pope a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Mike, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today Can you recount a story of an unexpected problem you’ve faced along the way?

First and foremost, I would like to state that the past 2 and a half years have hit each and every one of us in significant ways, many people have lost loved ones, and have had their lives changed forever in some form or fashion since the onset of Covid-19. I am grateful to be alive and well, so the effect that Covid-19 had on my business is but a small part of the larger picture; however, I had to completely redefine how I do business, and that is still a work in progress. My line of work predicates itself on my interaction with people, so with the onset of the virus I immediately lost all of my planned shoots, I had to be cautious because I did not want to put myself, others, or my family at risk. As time passed I started booking shoots again, but it was not the same, and tension was everywhere because there were conflicting messages coming from voices that were supposed to have our best interests at hand. When you have a business that relies on the willingness of people to engage, and there are no people to engage, the business must adapt, or it will die. It has been tough not being able to do what I love to do as frequently as I would like. I have always been willing to try new things, so I have recently decided to expand my horizons and start taking up real estate and product photography to supplement the void of not shooting people as much lately. I will forever love having photo sessions with people, and capturing important life events, however a business must continue to try new things creatively to grow and to continue to be able to viably operate. I am excited for what the future holds, and I am looking forward to expanding my artistic visions to reach new goals!

As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?

I am a photographer based in Tampa Florida, that focuses on emotional and authentic works of visual art. My primary work over the years has been in various genres of portrait photography, however I am a fan of all sub-categories of photography and have began working in real estate, and product photography as well. I stepped into the industry initially by being a performer in a music video, and I noticed the director shot with a DSLR camera as opposed to a traditional video camera. After the video I talked with a friend about it, and he ended up getting his own DSLR, and showed me the basics, I purchased one soon after and began by shooting my friends initially, and then moved on to my first paid gig with a local music group. Soon others saw my work, and I began to have a steady stream of clients, who in turn told their friends about my services. I allow the people that work with me to be themselves, many people that I have shot with had not done professional photos prior to working with me, so I try my best to create a comfortable and fun atmosphere by providing levity and humor; letting them know that the first and only rule is that we are going to have a fun time. I take pride in showing my clients the best version of themselves, and I do not believe in overly processed or manipulated photos, it is my duty to find the light and beauty that exists naturally in everyone that gives me the honor of capturing them with my camera. I don’t spend my time or energy comparing myself to others in my field, although I maintain a jovial presence will shooting I take my art very seriously and just focus on creating amazing experiences for my clients that stand the test of time. I am proud that many clients trust me enough to continuously shoot with me, and that the people that I have had the pleasure of working with tell others about their experience with my brand, and how together we were able to capture something magical, that they will be able to keep with them for a lifetime.

How did you build your audience on social media?

When I first started social media, and before I made the deep dive into photography, my content consisted of posts about music in general, and my own music specifically. I have always been interested in expression, and over the years I have used different means to get my message out. I slowly began to gather a following of individuals that loved music, and those people gave me massive support and fellowship. I was able to garner great relationships, many of which I still have today. Although I have always loved the visual arts, it took me some time to actually become a visual storyteller myself, however after I picked up a camera, it became impossible to put it down. The following that I had initially started to grow at an increasing rate once I started to post photos. Luckily, I was able to work with amazing models early in my photography journey who had good followings, and they were able to help increase my reach. There were no magic tricks, or massive overnight jumps in numbers, just a steady stream of people interested in my work that continued to motivate and inspire me to keep pushing forward. Social media has changed so much since I started doing photography, and unfortunately what was organic has become tainted by cryptic algorithms and pay for play processes. My advice to those going forward is to just to put out good content consistently, despite what the numbers say, there is always someone watching, and in the end, you will be where you are supposed to be.

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

The most rewarding aspect of being a creative is freedom. Freedom to do what I want to do, when I want to do it, and how I want to it. There is no doubt a form of collaboration in everything that I do, but the freedom that I have is equally extended to those that I have the pleasure of working with. Another amazing aspect of the creative process is formulating an idea, going through the process step by step, covering all of the angles, nuances and dependencies, then going out into the field to put action behind the thoughts. Seeing an idea brought to life is a miraculous feeling, knowing that the hard work that was put in, reveals itself in the final production is wonderful thing. Seeing the faces of the people that I work with after the finished product is delivered is an even better feeling, that is creation…. that is freedom.

Contact Info:

• Website: theartofpo.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/theartofpo/

Image Credits
All images taken by TheArtofPo All users @instagram @Ashontifordreports @Miraclefaithe @Taelorlackey @Curlyheadkay_ @Nyolie_baby @_crystalrich_2.0 @TAKEO @Justbriana_