Michael Marquand
Q What do you do?
“I’m a Freelance photographer based in NYC. I do commercial and editorial work with a strong focus on people, travel, interiors and food.”
Q What steps did you take to get to where you are now?
I got into photography in high school and managed to take a few classes at the local community college. From there I applied to the commercial photography program at the Art Institute of Seattle. After graduating I stayed in Seattle working in the photo industry for about a year before moving to New York City. I started out in NY assisting photographers and doing a lot of retouching work for other photographers and agencies. After being immersed in the industry for a bit I was able to leverage those skills and connections into getting my own shooting jobs.
Q How do you stand out in your field?
I shoot in multiple categories which is somewhat unusual for photographers as so many people are hyper specialized. However I don’t shoot everything and the subjects I shoot often tie together. I might get a food job that also requires people/lifestyle shots. Or a hotel gig that involves shooting interiors and food, or a travel feature that involves shooting food, hotel interiors, and portraits. Many of my clients hire me because they have a job that involves shooting some intersection of those subjects. I like to think that my work also ties together stylistically.
Q What are you working on right now?
I’m currently working on a food/travel feature on lesser known restaurants in Brooklyn.
Q What’s your style?
I think my work is compositionally clean and graphic. I tend to use a lot of color and texture and I like to incorporate the environment into what I’m shooting whether the subject is a person or an object or the place itself. Hopefully all of my work represents this aesthetic but I have a recent project from Bhutan that I think is a good representation.
Q Out of all your slashies, which one do you wish you could do more often?
I’m trying to learn more about video, both shooting and editing. More and more of my clients are asking if I shoot video and it seems the lines between the still photography industry and film are being blurred.
Q What is frustrating you right now?
I’m writing this in the time of Covid. I’ve been lucky enough to work but there are so many more hurdles to navigate for a lot of shoots. The travel and location gigs are also much more rare. I would like everything to open up again. I also miss traveling.
Q If you could hire someone for $20/hour, what would you have them do to make your day easier?
Literally anything they could do related to marketing/finding new clients. As well as keeping track of receipts/bookkeeping/invoices/prepping all the financial docs for my accountant. All my least favorite parts of the job. If there was time leftover they could vacuum my apartment.
Q What do you wish you could have told yourself, when, and why?
I would have been more experimental with different aspects of the photo industry earlier in my career. I had a somewhat rigid view of what type of photographer I wanted to be and over the years that has evolved as I’ve done different types of work
Q If you could talk to an expert to gain more insight on something, what would it be about?
Marketing, video editing, or bike maintenance.
Q What kind of opportunities/projects are you looking for?
Anything and everything. But I love shooting jobs that include some aspect of storytelling.
Q Describe your ideal job/client/collaboration.
I love collaborations that are actually collaborative. Where I can talk to the client or art director and get a feel for what they want and we can bounce ideas off each other until we find something that works. I find it so satisfying when there’s a bunch of people on set (art directors/stylists etc…..) and we’re all trading ideas and in sync with each other and come up with something that we all love.
Q: What is your rate?
My rate varies widely based on the usage and the work involved. Plus there are often additional costs of a shoot independent of my rate (location/stylists/props etc….). When I talk to new clients I often give them the option of telling me what they want so I can give them an estimate or telling me what their budget is so I can work backwards from that and tell them what I can make happen within their spending limits.
Q How should someone approach you about working together?
Just email me. I’m quick to respond and easy to talk to - Michael@Marquandphoto.com
Q Who is a creative you admire?
There are so many people that I would recommend. Here’s a couple of great stylists I work with-
Marilinda Hodgden - A very talented food stylist and a good friend. She's one of the first photo industry people I met when I moved to New York.
Michaela Hayes - Another talented stylist I’ve been working with in recent years. She has a real talent for pulling things together on hectic shoots.
Q Oh! and… how do you stay creative?
Art, cinema, and the outdoors.
This member profile was originally published in November 2021.