Today we’d like to introduce you to Jai Mayhew.
Hi, so excited to have you with us today. What can you tell us about your story?
My name is Jai Mayhew & I’m a creative. The camera is my medium. Women are my subject. I started in photography by accident when I took some shots of a friend as a favor for her boyfriend. Zero technical skill was involved (or visible) in those images, but I absolutely loved the process. Creating something beautiful that hadn’t existed before was addictive. I photographed all of my friends and watched every YouTube video I could find trying to learn lighting and gear and camera settings. The first half of my career was focused on fashion and commercial work which gave me a love for creative expression and editorial imagery. After having a child, my focus shifted to work that could be done without extensive travel and I started creating editorial fashion shoots for contemporary women. Wives, mothers, students, CEOs, etc. I want every woman I photograph to feel seen, safe and celebrated. I want women to feel beautifully and confidently loud in my studio.
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?
I think Franklin D. Roosevelt’s quote, “a smooth sea never made a skilled sailor” is an apt answer to that question. Learning to run and operate a business, track margins, source products, learn your craft, learn your craft better, keep innovating, market on social, market off social, survive in a pandemic – it requires a lot of you, personally and professionally. But it will grow you as much as it challenges you, if you rise to meet it. One of the biggest lessons I’ve learned is to say no to the projects that don’t meet your vision / brand vision. It can be painful in the moment to turn away work, but no one else sees through the lens that you do. Stay true to the vision you have for your work and become the master of your niche.
Appreciate you sharing that. What else should we know about what you do?
I’m also a content creator, educator and occasional designer of pieces for my shoots. While I can’t sew worth anything (lessons may be in my future), so much can be created for shoots that is held together by clips, wire, even tape. I love the merging of reality and fantasy to create something editorial and unique. I build my concepts from the wardrobe up, so it’s always exciting for me to have creative pieces to play off of.
Can you talk to us a bit about happiness and what makes you happy?
A very successful entrepreneur I follow once stated that happiness is something that is earned, not deserved. I’ve found that to be true in my own life. For me, professional happiness is pride in myself. Whether it’s in new work, figuring our new lighting, a big commission, or kind words from a client. There’s always a next shoot, next challenge, next goal. But happiness comes to me when I can take pride in how far I’ve come.
Contact information:
- Website: http://www.jaimayhew.com/
- Email: admin@jaimayhew.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jaimayhew/
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