Today we’d like to introduce you to Brenden Ingram.
Hi Brenden, thanks for sharing your story with us. To start, maybe you can tell our readers some of your backstory.
Growing up in a relatively small town in Jefferson County, there wasn’t a whole lot to do besides mess around and tinker with things to occupy yourself. That soon led me to snoop around and found my mom’s camcorder, which always fascinated me for some reason. She mostly used it to videotape all of my sister’s dance recitals. It seemed like every other day, I was sneaking that thing away to go record some silly video with my sister and friends. That is where my love for creating and cameras began.
When I started getting a little bit older (11 or 12), YouTube had become crazy popular, and I was watching all sorts of creators on the website like Smosh, RoosterTeeth, and Pewdiepie. Watching talented people like them did nothing but inspire me to wanna do the same thing. Now, don’t get me wrong, I didn’t want to be a YouTuber. I had this great passion I wanted to fulfill, but I wanted to go higher than YouTube videos. I wanted to create movies and shows. I had always loved watching movies and shows a kid, I mean, who doesn’t? The epic proportions, the high stakes, the crazy visuals, I wanted all of that. Fast forward to me graduating high school, I still loved movies and the same creators I grew up watching, but I had yet to start creating anything on my own besides a few Wedding Videos and a couple of abandoned YouTube channels. Eventually, I found a Photographer/Youtuber by the name of Peter McKinnon and he completely changed my life. Taking photos and the idea of being a photographer was always something I used to scoff at. If I thought of myself as anything, it was a filmmaker or Videographer. Period. But something about Peter McKinnon and his attitude about having fun and creating whatever you want really swayed me and brought me back to the days of using my mom’s camcorder. So one early cloudy Afternoon, I grabbed my t3i and went into my backyard and just started snapping pics. And quite literally, I have never stopped since. Three years later, I am a Full-Time Photographer/Videographer running my own business, and I get to travel to crazy places and see these amazing things! It is truly amazing!
Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way. Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
It has been great but at the same time, not easy. The biggest project and artist work on is their own mind. That is the biggest challenge of trying to be a creator. Your mind can be your biggest ally, but it can also be your biggest enemy, so sometimes, the only thing you can do is just keep creating. No Matter What. When you are feeling down about you or your work, just get up and create some of it. Why? You ask, for no reason at all, because that’s why a lot of us started doing what we do in the first place, for no particular reason besides that we liked it. So don’t forget why you started your journey. There have definitely been some bumps and detours along the way, but what is a good story with no conflict.
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?
When I used to think about what I would describe myself as I never thought I would use the word “Photographer”. Now, that is the first word I go to. I take photos of anything, and I mean ANYTHING. From portraits to weddings to landscapes to drone photos to product photos. If it involves a camera and a lens, I’m game. In my community, I would say I am most known for my portraits. I am always collaborating with new models and trying different concepts, which has resonated in my community more than I ever thought it could! That along with my versatility in my what I take pictures of, I am not your average local family photographer.
Can you talk to us a bit about happiness and what makes you happy?
Being able to wake up and do what I want and create what I want for a living makes me extremely happy. There is nothing more freeing than that.
Contact Info:
- Email: brendentingram@gmail.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/brendentingram/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/brenden.ingram.1
