We had the good fortune of connecting with Tony Lam and we’ve shared our conversation below.
Hi tony, we’d love to hear about how you approach risk and risk-taking.
i feel Risk is always in the cards in doing anything, seeing that I try my best to come prepared and ready for anything. I won’t charge for work unless I’m confident in the work I bring to the table. it’s always good to be prepared!
Let’s talk shop? Tell us more about your career, what can you share with our community?
I don’t think anything someone can ever do is easy, so I wouldn’t say what I have done so far is easy. But something that is important, though, is how I started. I came with a plan of action, not releasing myself from the work I’ve done instantly as I’ve done it. I took time; I made sure to build a portfolio before I could ever truly release or charge for anything I’ve done. I think this helps me gauge the market and also truly bring to the table quality work instead of expecting work even though I can’t guarantee it. I do feel that what I bring to the table that is different from others is my style of editing. I try not to replicate all my work and stay in this circle or box for console work specifically. I try to cater to the band and really cater to their sound. I don’t try to do the same thing again and again; I think that’s what really draws people into the kind of style of work I offer. For commercial work, it is very general, but I still try to add my own twist on it and pursue other forms of photography styles, hoping that something sticks and connects with the client, and really brings out a concept that would hopefully never have been seen before.
If you had a friend visiting you, what are some of the local spots you’d want to take them around to?
I feel that if my best friend were to come to visit, I would want to take him to some of my favorite spots. One of my favorite places to go in the morning is on a nice walk around the park. There are plenty of parks around, like Herman Park and Levy Park. My favorite one, though, is a really small park near my home. It’s like a little secret spot for me. It’s about 2 miles long, around a lake, and it’s really nice.
What I think we would do is grab coffee. My favorite coffee shop personally is Pearland Coffee Roasters, so we’d probably go there to get our daily dose of caffeine. For food, one of my favorite fast-food spots is In-N-Out. If we were looking for something a little more expensive, Burger Bodega is always a good option.
In the city, there are plenty of hiking spots in Austin and College Station. So, if driving wasn’t a problem, I’d probably go to one of those. I’d probably end the night at Moon Tower, my favorite spot to eat. They have the best hot dogs and burgers, in my opinion, and they’re all fairly priced. That’s a whole week’s worth of plans for me to take somebody on!
Who else deserves some credit and recognition?
Darren Hurst deserves a shout out he shepherds me and also is a good photographer to go too when I need tips and advice for the work I do
Website: https://tonylamjpeg.myportfolio.com/lamb
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/tonylam.jpeg/