Today we’d like to introduce you to Eric Luna.
Hi Eric, thanks for sharing your story with us. To start, maybe you can tell our readers some of your backstories.
My name is Eric Luna and I’m from Dallas Texas. I began shooting photos and videos in high school after purchasing my first camera. I worked a bunch of jobs as a 17-year-old just because I was in love with the idea of creating cool content. I didn’t even have a computer to edit on but I was so in love with the idea that I pulled the trigger anyways and spent my entire teenage life savings of $763.67 on a camera. My parents were furious because they thought it was a phase and my life savings would end up collecting dust somewhere in my closet.
Fast forward a few months later I was offering free shoots for people left and right. I wanted to create as much content as I could possibly get my hands on. You wouldn’t believe how many people turned down free photoshoots or even $10-25 shoots. Maybe it was because I was terrible, and boy… was I terrible. I was really bad and that might have been the reason lol. However, I was so passionate about creating that I couldn’t give up even if I wanted. I flooded my time with countless tutorials on YouTube on how to do anything and everything that involved a camera.
Soon enough I was bearable enough to take photos for my local church and that is where I saw the most progress. Shooting for something bigger than myself gave me a sort of credibility from others, and although my work was still bad, it was good enough for people to start trusting me to shoot stuff for them.
Photography and videography were just one of those things that you pick up and literally never put down ever again for the rest of your life. Kind of like a marriage, you meet someone, and then all of a sudden, you’re 10-20 years deep without even realizing it. However, along with any relationship, there’s always distractions. Mine happened to be soccer, I played soccer for most of my life and played for my local youth club team (FC Dallas). Fast forward after Highschool I was recruited to play collegiate-level soccer and that took up most of my time as a freshman in college. What little was left of my free time was still consumed by tutorials and courses on how to become a better creative, and soon enough, I found myself at a fork in the road. I could not continue playing soccer knowing that I would spend every waking moment thinking of what could be or what could have been had I pursued my passion for creating.
sophomore year came around the corner and I chose soccer, however, one week into that I realized what a grave mistake I had made and I quit the team and decided I would focus on being a better creative. It was the most ridiculous thing my teammates and coaches had ever heard. I was the weirdo on campus who was always in his room on his computer.
2020 came along, and my career seemed like it could finally become something because I had stocked up on so much knowledge and was ready to conquer the world. That is until the world completely shut down. I was sad… until I realized that this meant I would spend all the time I had indoors, and classes were canceled. I had more time to work on my craft than ever before. Soon enough, I heard about an app called TikTok, and it was what all the younger kids were using. Everyone forgets this but at one point being a tiktoker was so cringy and it wasn’t cool no matter you’re following. I decided I was far from my friends at school and if I were to be cringey, I wouldn’t face any direct backlash because everyone was in their rooms anyways. I began creating tutorials on everything I learned and built a small following. The cool thing about social media is that you never know who is watching your content. One of my followers by the name of Matthew Gonzalez reached out and told be about how he worked with tiktokers in LA and was frequently at the Hype House in Los Angeles. I quickly became friends with him, and soon enough he asked if I could help create content with him for @Justmaiko aka Michael Le. At the time, he was top 5 tiktokers in the world with about 40 something million of followers. This was my first big break because I was introduced to a whole new world.
I began to be in the room with the top creators on the internet at the time and that brought the opportunity to showcase my work on bigger platforms. Since then, I have been able to work with people like Justin Bieber, Drake, The Chainsmokers, DJ Marshmello, The Kid Laroi, Hillsong United, and so many others.
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?
Following what you love is never easy and always comes with its own sacrifices. I think for me, the hardest part of getting to where I am now is understanding that good things take time. Saving for gear was hard because I didn’t know for sure that things would pay off but I knew I would work as hard as I could for them to pay off. In college, I didn’t have a job while focusing on my craft because I knew the time investment would be worth more in the long run. My now Fiance Stefany Castellano would buy me subway sandwiches and pay for most dates because I was broke and my parents kept telling me to get a job because they didn’t see any money coming in. There is also nothing cool about working to become or create something because everyone thinks it’s corny till they see you make something out of it. College was alright but there was definitely people who didn’t understand social media that thought I was the corniest person alive.
Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know about your work?
The thing that really put my work on the map was 3D photos. Most people don’t really get what they are until they see them. Essentially, I take a normal photo and create a video animation out of it, and it looks like the subject is moving with a bunch of other cool effects. I made these for people like Justin Bieber, The Chainsmokers, and a few others! There’s a lot of people who can take a great photo, but I found that these animations bring a new aspect to photos and create a feeling of excitement for many people.
What would you say has been one of the most important lessons you’ve learned?
The most important lesson I’ve learned along my journey is NEVER be afraid to look stupid. Sometimes looking stupid sets you apart. Sometimes asking what may seem like stupid questions can make all the difference. Some of the biggest world changers asked stupid questions that changes the world. Looking stupid still gets you noticed, and no one who ever started anything was the best at it.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://ericluna.art/
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ericluna_/
- Other: https://www.tiktok.com/@ericshoots
Image Credits
Eric Luna
