Meet Mekahaliah Raindance Brown | Photographer

We had the good fortune of connecting with Mekahaliah Raindance Brown and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Mekahaliah Raindance, what was your thought process behind starting your own business?
I decided to start my own business because I wanted to pursue my dreams. I wanted to have control over my own life and enjoy doing what I love. I was in college and feeling like I was going nowhere with my major. Then one day I decided to drop out, go to work to save some money and invest in myself. I started doing photography as a hobby, taking pictures on my phone and I loved doing it. So I took a chance at doing it professionally and here I am today!

Alright, so let’s move onto what keeps you busy professionally?
I have always been that person that loves color. Wether it’s a painting, a drawing, a picture or even something cinematic. Color has always been something to catch my eye. I incorporate color into my photography. People might just be like, oh well of course there’s color in your photos. I take my time and direct the shoot wether it comes to the outfit, the setting, the model etc. I bring all of this together and with my editing style, my photographs pop. I would say that editorial styled shoots are my niche because I have more creative freedom in my shoots. So I would definitely say that is what sets me apart from a lot of photographers. And if you see my photos you’ll understand that there is a similarity or as some people have called it “the Rain aesthetic” lol. There are a lot of photographers that have their own style and if I see someone’s photograph without even looking at the name of the photographer, just by their style, I can tell who took that photograph. And that is what I strive for.

It was a surprisingly smooth transition going into my business. At first I was doing free photoshoots because I had no experience photographing people on that level. I actually had my own little travel studio, setting up at peoples houses to shoot because of the pandemic. Once I got a hold of it I started charging for my shoots and I actually was making an income. That’s when I started building my skills and definitely building skills with communication with clients and customer service. I am actually a very introverted person and I think the hardest thing was my nervousness and my inability to open up to people. But, I did overcome it and I absolutely love my clients and having conversations with them comes to me like a breeze now.

I want the world to know that Mekahaliah Raindance Brown is coming. It will take time but I am going to strive to be one of the big name photographers in this industry. Especially as a young black woman, there’s not many of us up there. This whole industry is so male dominated that many of us talented creators aren’t even noticed. And one day that will change and hopefully I will be one of those creators who people will come to know and love. This is a huge passion of mine and I am so blessed to be able to pursue it.

Any places to eat or things to do that you can share with our readers? If they have a friend visiting town, what are some spots they could take them to?
Well, you know growing up in Houston there are still things to this day I have never even heard about. But here are my go to places. I would definitely suggest the museum district. And if you want to grab a drink then you can go somewhere in downtown. I personally like going to the Voodoo Queen Bar or Numbers nightclub for going out. If you have family, then definitely the Museums, Houston Zoo, and Hermann Park. The Children’s Museum is elite. Your kids will love it, I have had the best memories even up to adulthood in that museum. If you want to go to the theater I suggest Ipic, they have a full bar and they serve food while you watch your movie and they have the comfiest seating. There’s also The Truck Yard, and down that whole street, actually that whole area is very lively with bars and restaurants. I would definitely suggest checking that out. If you’re more in the Katy area, they’ve got several things like the Seismic museum which is very trippy and they have Top Golf and Andretti which is a go-cart place. Now if you’re more into country activities, they have the mud park over in Crosby. They actually have a few and it’s not necessarily in Houston but if ya wanna get your drink on and ride four wheelers and bikes that’s the place to be. And then more North of Houston they have the Big Rivers water park which is this huge water park and they have a petting zoo, axe throwing, bow and arrows, fishing, all types of fun things. Those are my suggestions if you were to ever come to Houston!

Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?
Yes, his name is Michael Rebner and he is an incredibly talented stylist that I have worked with on multiple occasions. His instagram is inhaleexhale_peace

Website: Raindancephotography.com

Instagram: @rain.dance

Image Credits
Trenkell Reeves, Ashtyn Duncan, Mendel McCoy, Kellida Jokudu, Jobe Ondijo, Joshey, Cheyenne Borden, Ausha Simone, Asia Allen, Michael Rebner, Nique Rose, Shan Styles, Brianna Mak, Jayling Rose