We recently connected with Preston Huey and have shared our conversation below.
Preston, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. Can you talk to us about how you learned to do what you do?
I went to the Columbus College of Art & Design and we only had one photoshop class. We went through the entire instruction book from first to last page. This helped me learn a basic foundation for my career. From there I learned through trial and error when I worked on images and another chunk was from coworkers. I am still learning new skills as technology advances in the Adobe products. I think this could have been sped up with more in-depth post production classes in college.
Great, appreciate you sharing that with us. Before we ask you to share more of your insights, can you take a moment to introduce yourself and how you got to where you are today to our readers
I started my career through freelance work with Lane Bryant in spring 2013 which helped me land a full time job at Abercrombie & Fitch Co. in fall 2013. I was brought onto the marketing team to help with photoshop and telling the story of the brand through images per season.
I mainly provide retouching services and product photography.
I am proud to work for such big companies like Abercrombie & Fitch and Todd Snyder. My retouching work has been seen on shopping bags, catalogs, in-store, barricades, billboards in Time Square, etc.
What do you find most rewarding about being a creative?
I feel the most rewarding aspect is seeing my work come to life and help bring beauty to the world around us. Knowing that thousands of people see my work daily on websites, catalogs, etc is very rewarding and a great feeling. I love the fashion industry and glad I could make some type of impact in it.
How about pivoting – can you share the story of a time you’ve had to pivot?
I had worked for Abercrombie & Fitch for over 4 years until I had a meeting with HR to be laid off. This was a devastating moment since it was my first big job. I had to move closer to home and work for my parents business for almost one year to for financial reasons. It was refreshing to take a break from the creative world and helped me reset. I began to apply for jobs in NYC for a brand new start. I eventually landed a job with Todd Snyder in post production which has helped me grow my skill sets. I am now doing more work on the photo studio side, managing/art directing a freelance team with product flat lays.
Contact Info:
- Website: PrestonGainesHuey.com
- Instagram: PrestonHuey
- Linkedin: Preston Gaines Huey