Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Pep Williams. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.
Pep, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today To kick things off, we’d love to hear about things you or your brand do that diverge from the industry standard.
With my photography I speak all over the world at exhibits and colleges inspiring people with my work. Just bringing awareness on certain subject matters the people all over the world can relate to.
Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.
Coming up as a kid I was a pro skateboarder so I was being shot often by very popular and famous photographers. I always loved it but never had a camera. I had several sponsors some being clothing so they would use me for fashion shows all over the world. I became popular doing that a bit and from there everything changed and my path to photography started. this was in 1996. One day a designer was freaking out because his photographer booked another job. I found out the job paid $6,000. I immediately said “I’m a photographer.” Everyone looked and were shocked because I never mentioned I was a photographer before. They asked for my portfolio and I said “We don’t have time for that now, let’s just get it done!” I had never even owned a camera before, but for $6,000 I would become a photographer. So, I hired a kid from a local college from a photo class, paid him $250 for the day and asked what he thought we needed for the shoot. We went to Sammy’s Camera and rented equipment. He set everything up and I just pressed the button. I was hooked.
What I’m most proud of is how people get my work. When my clients describe my work to me while it’s on their walls and they say how it is always a conversation piece. I also love going to the museums when they are showing my work and I pretend I’m just an observer and I engage in conversations with the people looking at my work without them knowing I’m the photographer.
Can you share a story from your journey that illustrates your resilience?
Once I had an offer from a large camera sponsor and one of the employees there was jealous of my work and tried to kill the campaign and offer so Instead of sending a email I flew to Germany and confronted him directly. This is my work and my art so I don’t send emails when problems arise I show up. You can be anywhere in the world in a couple days so there is no excuses.
We often hear about learning lessons – but just as important is unlearning lessons. Have you ever had to unlearn a lesson?
Business is always changing every few years or so. If you want to be a success in what you do you have to keep up. You may have been a major business person in 2017 but now that format or style is irrelevant. You must stay currant.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://pepwilliams.com
- Instagram: @pepwilliams
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/PepWilliamsPhotographer/
- Twitter: Pep_Williams
Image Credits
Pep Williams portrait by Thorsten Overgaard