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

Rebecca, appreciate you joining us today. Let’s talk legacy – what sort of legacy do you hope to build?

My grandmother was an artist and the paintings, prints, drawings and collages that she has left behind have brought so much joy and happiness to myself and my family and it is my hope that my legacy is similar to my grandmothers. I hope my photographs and artwork stand the test of time and that the moments and memories captured will bring joy and happiness to my clients, family and friends for years and years.

Rebecca, 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?

My name is Rebecca McVay and I am a photographer and graphic designer. I first started taking photos as a teenager, after the so-called “shutterbug” bit me when my Dad gave me my first camera for my 16th birthday. I’ve been taking photos ever since. Graphic Design was a natural progression with my love for photography, so I decided to pursue my undergraduate degree in Graphic Design. For 20+ years I’ve been working as a photographer and graphic designer, photographing families, weddings, senior portraits, events, corporate headshots and more. As well as designing logos, business cards, T-shirts, publications/magazines, websites, products, and so much more. I have two websites, www.rebeccamcvay.com is my photography website and www.mcvaycreative.com is my branding website. My main goal and my passion in both photography and graphic design is to capture/describe my clients story/mission/vision minimally and beautifully. I want my work to say as much as possible, to say everything in one photograph, or one logo. I want the person looking at my work to say, “Wow. I can feel/tell who this person/family/etc is, and/or I know exactly what this business is about and what they do.” Simplicity is paramount in my work. Essence matters and less is always more.

Have you ever had to pivot?

In 2020 after Covid hit my photography business came to a screeching halt. It was devastating on so many levels. But I learned a valuable lesson on how to pivot. How can I keep shooting and designing while the world has shut down? In my community there is a non-profit called Hands-on-Nashville and its essentially an organization that gathers volunteers for the Nashville community that need help. For example, In March 2020 and at the same time of Covid. Nashville was hit with multiple tornadoes and the impact was devastating. A lot of Nashville businesses and organizations turned to Hands-on-Nashville for help with clean-up etc. and I saw an opportunity to help by creating The Porch Project. I asked other photographers in my neighborhood if they’d be interested in photographing families on their porches in exchange for a donation to Hands-on-Nashville. It was a win-win! Families were able to get a family photo during a pandemic and The Porch Project donated almost $13,000 to Hands-on-Nashville. This project was incredible and one of my proudest moments as a photographer. It was so much fun to get to meet neighbors, even if from a distance, and it seemed to bring people together, despite having to be socially distant.

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

The most rewarding aspect of being an artist/creative is that my work can be enjoyed forever. Photographs are time capsules, they speak 1000 words and bring joy to the viewer, at least that is my hope. A photographer friend of mine recently passed away and he photographed my family 10+ years ago. These photographs are incredibly valuable and a gift that I will treasure forever. I will never get an opportunity to have him photograph my family again and this makes these photographs even more valuable. I hope my clients feel the same way when I’m gone. I hope they treasure our time together capturing moments and memories and I hope these photographs bring a smile to their faces, forever.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.mcvaycreative.com. www.rebeccamcvay.com
• Instagram: @mcvaycreative, @rebecca_mcvay_photo
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/rebeccamcvayphotography, https://www.facebook.com/mcvaycreative

Image Credits
Amy Allmand Photography