Today we’d like to introduce you to Matthew Hamilton.
Hi Matthew, so excited to have you with us today. What can you tell us about your story?
From a young age I knew college wasn’t going to be for me. What I did have was an interest in video editing that started in high school, and once I got my hands on my first camera I started shooting music videos for musicians around Philadelphia.
Those artists needed photos too, so they started asking me to shoot those as well. Then they referred their friends. Before long I was doing more photoshoots than I was music videos (which I didn’t see coming).
The moment it clicked for me was when a client asked to buy seven images from a shoot. That was the first time I thought this could actually be a real source of income and not just something I was doing on the side.
Around that time I came across the work of Peter Hurley, a headshot photographer in New York, and read his book The Headshot. That pretty much changed the direction of everything. I started focusing on headshots specifically and have stuck with it ever since. Peter ended up being a mentor to me, and a lot of how I work with people in front of the camera today comes from what I learned from him.
That was about 12 years ago. Today I run a headshot studio in Philadelphia working with business professionals, actors, models and companies. It hasn’t always been a smooth ride (running your own business rarely is), but most of my new clients still come from referrals from past clients. That is probably the thing I’m most proud of.
We all face challenges, but looking back would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
Not always. When you run your own business there are busy stretches and slow stretches, and it took me a while to get used to that. Some months the calendar is full and some months it isn’t, and you have to plan for both.
The hardest stretch by far was the pandemic. I went from photographing people almost every day to not working at all, pretty much overnight. And there wasn’t anything I could do about it.
That was more of a mental adjustment than I expected. My days had been built around being in the studio, working with people and getting them comfortable in front of the camera. Then all of that was gone. I did find things to fill my time with, but it wasn’t the same as doing the work I actually love. Slow periods are one thing, but going from every day to nothing (with no idea when it would come back) was a different kind of struggle.
As you know, we’re big fans of you and your work. For our readers who might not be as familiar what can you tell them about what you do?
I’m a headshot photographer. Most of my clients fall into a few groups. Actors who need new headshots for submissions, professionals who are looking for a new job or updating their LinkedIn, and companies that want consistent headshots across their whole team.
The thing I’m most proud of is seeing where my photos end up. I’ve had images show up on billboards, book covers, album covers and in random published articles I didn’t see coming. It is a little surreal to walk past something out in the world and see a photo I took.
As for what sets me apart, a lot of it comes down to how I work with people. Most people don’t love having their photo taken (a lot of my clients tell me that within the first five minutes). So a big part of my job is getting them comfortable and coaching them through it, not just pointing a camera at them. Before we start shooting I talk with my clients about what the photos are for and what they want to get out of them. That conversation shapes everything.
What were you like growing up?
I was always a creative kid, but it was mostly through music, not photography. I played bass and piano, and music was a big part of my life growing up. Looking back, that is probably why my first real camera work ended up being music videos. It was a way to combine something I already loved with something new.
I was also very active and played a lot of sports. I was never really someone who could sit still for long. That probably carries over into how I work now. Headshot sessions are pretty active (I’m moving around, talking, giving direction the whole time). So that definitely still stuck with me.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://mhamiltonvisuals.com/
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/mhamiltonvisuals/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/MHamiltonVisuals
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/matthew-hamilton-5a382611a
- Twitter: https://twitter.com/HamiltonVisuals
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCinxyDBD-RjygslEx3W7RTg
