We were lucky to catch up with Travis Perkins recently and have shared our conversation below.

Travis, looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. Before we get into specifics, let’s talk about success more generally. What do you think it takes to be successful?

I think it’s at first stab, beneficial to define “success” for yourself as it can look very different per each of our own industries, philosophies towards work life balance, baseline starting points, etc.

As of right now, I’m defining success as “having an abundance creatively stimulating work, a low stress work life balance, and financial freedom to experience life”.

In my personal experiences, I can boil down the “success” to the motto of “Be Consistent and Be Injury Free”

This is a motto that acts as both tangible and metaphorical that I adapted from my life as a rock climber pushing the limits oh what I could do in the mountains.

Part one (Consistency) can look like always delivering on time, always responding in a timely manner, and most importantly, having a 1:1 say:do ratio. Meaning I strive to do 100% of the things I commit to or say I will do. (this seems obvious, but we can all agree is lacking in a millennial social economy)

Part two (Injury Free) can look like doing no harm to clients, vendors, friends, colleagues. Finding the balance of standing up for yourself in a highly competitive creative space & not “injuring” personal and business relationships is key. In the creative arts space, the veil between personal and business relationships is usually gossamer thin, and I’ve learned that lesson the hard way, over the years.

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 work primarily in what you would call “Commercial Lifestyle Photography”. This is typically shot for a product-based company but occasionally for service-based brands as well. My most rewarding work involves creating and telling a genuine/authentic story for a brand via still photography.

This has a unique set of challenges in storytelling, as opposed to video, as you are truly capturing a moment in time that conveys a larger message. I think it’s the purest of digital mediums that requires not only technical skill but an artistry of mindfulness, observance, and reverence for authenticity (yes, even within the context of a staged scenario). I’m most proud of the photos that don’t just convey a message about a brand or highlight the function of a product, but the photos that convey a feeling.

From time to time, a photography client will pivot into a contract marketing client, for which myself and team will consult with and execute digital marketing / content marketing services (email, blog, social, web, paid ads)

Due to my personal passions, much of my lifestyle photography takes place in the mountains, rivers, and deserts of the American West, where the vast open spaces and extreme weather conditions, create a blank canvas with high risks and high rewards.

Are there any books, videos or other content that you feel have meaningfully impacted your thinking?

Most entrepreneurs or creative self-starters have what I call the “eternal fight” within them. The mechanism that pushes them, sparks interest and ultimately allows them to safely lean-in to the fear of the unknown.

This can also be simply defined as “inherent drive”.

With drive comes an internal push and pull that if successfully bridled, can lead to wild success. If unbridled, this can lead to a complete collapse of productivity.

I’ve found that the stoic philosophies of Marcus Aurelius & Seneca as well as contemporary Buddhism teachings from the late Thich Nhat Hanh have helped me immensely in navigating this journey of self discovery through vocation.

Any advice for growing your clientele? What’s been most effective for you?

Real & meaningful human connection continues to be the way. For many, networking comes easy but for some of us(myself included), it has become a learned skill. A true turning point for me was finally realizing that my true and authentic self has it’s own ways of connecting, that although don’t involve cocktail hours and industry meet-ups, has proven to be just as effective. It always starts with finding a shared interest, developing a friendship, and letting the work follow, whether that be weeks, months, or years down the road. This is a long game strategy, no doubt about it. There are definitely times where fast and quick networking has been necessary.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.ventanamediaco.com
• Instagram: @travperk_photo
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/travisperkins1/
• Other: Creative Writings found here: https://www.filledupfull.me/