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

Molly, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. What do you think matters most in terms of achieving success?

As a music photographer and vertical videographer, passion and commitment to my values are the most important things to be successful.

Let’s face it, the music industry has never been the easiest place to make a living; and while social media like Instagram and TikTok have made the high-quality work I do with artists more important than ever, there are also plenty of artists who rely solely on content they, or a friend, shoot on a smartphone. If I wanted to make a living in the music industry, I’d be better off focusing on a corporate job, like at a major record label or booking agency. If I wanted to make a living as a photographer, I’d be better off doing corporate photography for big ad agencies. But I don’t want either of those things. Long before I owned a professional camera or knew what a RAW file was, I was spending hours in art class each week, drawing my favorite musicians from photos I saw in SPIN, Rolling Stone, or Alternative Press; I’d bring my point-and-shoot camera to shows and capture what I saw then write in my art journal about the composition and colors of the image and how they represent the emotion expressed.

It’s that passion that keeps me working hard even when it seems circumstances are against me. I have chronic migraine and daily headaches; when you have a condition that’s worsened by movement, loud sounds, and bright lights, capturing photos and videos at concerts is no easy task. But at the same time, when my symptoms are at their worst, there’s nothing more I want than to be doing what I love – doing the thing that gives me purpose. Sometimes that passion means declining what could be a lucrative opportunity in another field, because it would mean less time to pursue the thing I actually want to be doing.

On the other hand is commitment to my values. My work has worth, and it’s important to me that I work with clients who see that worth. Authenticity is a huge core value to me; it’s easy to chase trends – and maybe that would be more lucrative in the short-term, but in the long run, chasing trends leads to burn out. I also take a lot of pride in the quality of my work, and I will never deliver work that doesn’t reflect what I am capable of. I think that helps further trust with current and potential/future clients.

Molly, 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 music photographer and vertical videographer based in Los Angeles, CA. What that means is, I take photos and videos of bands, solo music artists, and DJs – on stage at concerts and night clubs, backstage, in a rehearsal or recording studio, and on set for promo shoots. For the most part these days, I’m hired by the artists (or their management/record label) directly, though occasionally I’m hired by a promoter or venue.

Before I was doing this “professionally”, I was taking art classes in middle school and high school – more and more, my art projects would revolve around music, whether it was incorporating lyrics into a drawing, making an album cover as a graphic design project, choosing a photo of a guitarist I admired to re-create in my own painting/drawing style, etc. I got my first DSLR as a high school graduation gift. My sophomore year of college, I took a class called History of Rock and Roll where I found a love of writing about music. That inspired me to start a music blog in April 2011, and bring my DSLR to concerts – I’d photograph the band’s performance then include the photos with my written review on the blog. I met a lot of people that way – many of whom I’m still in touch with – but made no money at first. Eventually, I started getting opportunities to write or take photos for larger outlets, some of whom would pay me – my school paper, friends’ blogs with bigger followings, even getting photos published in the likes of Kerrang!, Substream Magazine, Idobi, and Alternative Press, and a regular contributing gig to AXS.com.

Even with the biggest of these opportunities though, I was struggling to make actual money. I’d sometimes get hired by local bands for a promo shoot, making about enough to cover my gas and parking to and from the venue – worth it for the experience at the time. Then in October 2023, I was laid off from my full-time music industry job of six and a half years. I hadn’t been happy at the job for a while but my photography business also wasn’t at the place where I felt “ready” to quit. Honestly, the turning point came ten days after I was laid off – I was paid to photograph one of my favorite bands for a feature, and while chatting with them after the set, I decided: “I’m not unemployed, I’m a full-time freelance photographer.”

And essentially that was it – I committed myself to making this work as an actual career. I did end up picking up a non-creative side hustle to bring in more income, but importantly, it gives me the flexibility to prioritize photography and videography and prioritize them. I spend a lot of time researching new artists and upcoming concerts in the Los Angeles area, and cold emailing people I’d like to work with. I also make it a point to network at shows I’m attending for fun – it’s always great to connect with likeminded folk. I started shooting video when I saw a need; as social media algorithms have evolved to prioritize video content, more and more artists wanted to hire me for that.

When I’m hired by an artist to photograph and/or film their concert, they’ll walk away with a curated gallery of high-quality images/videos that document the performance. I try to capture a variety of angles – close and wide shots, horizontal and vertical – and it’s imperative that I capture every band member. As a business owner, it’s important to me to know what clients want – a common request I get is a variant of, “please make me look cool so I can post this on Instagram”. Shots that show the crowd and the unique architecture of a venue are the most frequent ask, and I’m proud that clients have come to trust that this is something I will capture. I’m really active when I’m capturing live content – if the venue has a balcony, you can bet I’ll be up and down the stairs throughout the set. Lots of clients have said “Everywhere I looked, you were there!”. It’s a similar approach with shooting behind-the-scenes content, or even for promo shoots – of course promo shoots allow me more control over setting and lighting, but I still aim to get a variety of different shots, so that the client is confident I didn’t just press a button, I really *captured* the moment.

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

Do what I love, do it well, and be proud of the work I create. That’s what it all comes down to.

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

Clear, timely, and professional communication has been a big part of how I’ve built my reputation. Yes, it’s important to consistently deliver high-quality work, but just as important is being clear on what you’ll do, and making people feel heard. I use contracts for every shoot I book, but before I even send over a contract, I outline the main points (rate, payment timeline, deliverables, usage rights, etc.) in plain, written language via email or text. Once a contract has been sent, I follow up with a message alerting them to look out for an email from a certain email address, this is what the subject line will be, etc. There are also things I’ve come to pick up about certain venues that I make sure to communicate with clients from the very start (for example, some LA venues have restrictions on video recording) – I want to deliver content that fits their vision, and I’m all about finding creative solutions, but real-life limitations have to come into consideration, too.

You never know who is talking about you and who is listening. I’ve had referrals come from people who declined or were unable to hire me – I consider it a massive compliment on my communication skills and relationship building that even the people who weren’t able to hire me, are happy to pass my name along.

Contact Info:

• Website: http://mhudelson.com
• Instagram: http://instagram.com/mhudelson

Image Credits

Molly Hudelson, Jordan White, Ivan Hruska, Alie Krohn