We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Robin Elise Maaya a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Robin, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today Are you happier as a creative? Do you sometimes think about what it would be like to just have a regular job? Can you talk to us about how you think through these emotions?

I would say that I am more than happy to be working in a creative career. I have been taking photographs for what seems like my entire life and other than a few months at one service industry job and one retail job, photography is all I have ever known.

Since 2022, photography has been my full time job and what has paid the bills and I am truly thankful every single day that I get to do what I love for a living. From photographing kids, events, and the businesses I love, I am constantly reminded of how lucky I am that my job is centered around telling stories and documenting people. I truly cannot see myself in any other career path and I love that my job always stays interesting with a variety of clients and I am always growing and learning from every shoot I am hired for. Also, having my own freelance business gives me not only creative freedom but freedom and flexibility in my calendar. Making my own schedule is the reason I have been able to travel for work so often and continue to add new experiences to my life both professionally and personally.

I often wonder what it would be like to have a “regular” job but I wouldn’t say I have ever wished for it. Having my own business definitely has its downsides when it comes to the nitty gritty things like keeping up with finances, an inconsistent paycheck or the stress that builds up as someone who is self employed during tax season but still I wouldn’t trade this career for any “normal” job. To me, the only thing that is appealing about a regular job is not having to wonder when the next check will come and not having to deal with freelance taxes! Other than that, I am pretty happy with the I have built with my unconventional job!

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.

Hi! I am Robin Elise Maaya and I am a freelance photographer and artist of sorts! I consider myself a documentary photographer with an eye for fine art imagery. My goal from every session is to capture the authenticity of my subjects – whether that be through portraits of children or polaroids at my favorite bar. Having had a camera in hand since the ripe age of eight years old, I have developed a keen eye for documenting the magic in the mundane through visual storytelling.

Since 2022, I have grown my self-owned and operated photography business and established myself as not only an intimate family photographer, but a fine artist able to tell vulnerable stories through lens-based art. I live and work in Savannah, Georgia but I have had the incredible opportunity to work across the United States in Georgia, Florida, Mississippi, Louisiana, Alabama, Texas, New York, Virginia, California, and overseas in Paris and South Africa.

My photography business really began in 2012, at the age of fourteen, when I received my first professional camera. I began photographing fellow dancers at my studio and my little cousins along with friends at the magnet high school I attended. I soon found a deeply rooted love for the art of portrait-making and the documentation of the human experience.

I am inspired by life, grief, and vulnerability, and have learned to blend a love for documentary story-telling and fine art expression through stark, intense, and often emotional photographs.

During my time at the Savannah College of Art and Design, I fell head over heels for darkroom practices and making tangible objects with photographs. Printing processes such as cyanotypes, Mordançage, screen printing, and photographic etching have further pushed me to explore other mediums that can enhance any given photograph.

Now, as a professional in the industry, with years of experience under my belt, I am able to offer an intimate and authentic experience to my clients. I think this is part of what sets me aside from others in the photography industry. Not only is it my goal to capture authenticity over aesthetic, but I also pride myself in my ability to connect with my clients and make them comfortable every step of the way.

I would say that I am very proud of myself for creating imagery that makes parents come back time after time for more. Watching kids grow up from the other side of the camera will forever be my favorite part of this job and it wouldn’t be possible if the parents didn’t continue to hire me. I hope that when parents look at my work with interest in documenting their children that they know I will photograph their kids from a place of love and that they will leave with images that are a genuine testimony to their current reality.

Is there mission driving your creative journey?

Right now, what is driving me creatively is my upcoming solo exhibition “E X O D U S”. This body of work has been in progress for a little over three years and has been my siren song, my light at the end of the tunnel, my driving force of sorts! Although there have been times in which I wished I was done with it already, I am very thankful for the journey it has been fro start to (almost) finish. The past few years have been so dedicated to growing my business and getting my name out there that I often feared that I would forget my love for fine art work or lose my drive to even make that kind of imagery again But, having “E X O D U S” beneath everything gave me something to put all of my emotions into and continue my love for making vulnerable imagery.

For you, what’s the most rewarding aspect of being a creative?

I definitely think it is the people I get to meet through the industry. I am constantly inspired by those around me and I am so thankful for the input and insight I have at my fingertips from other lens-based artists and fellow friends in the art world.

Also, like I mentioned before, the chance to watch kids grow up from the other side of my camera is the most rewarding part of my job. Photography has given me the priveledge of having a front row seat to their childhoods and I will never take that for granted.

Contact Info:

• Website: robinmaaya.com
• Instagram: @robinbirdy

Image Credits
Portrait of Robin Elise Maaya : Jaycen Brooks All other imagery : Robin Elise Maaya