Today we’d like to introduce you to Matt Jylha.
Hi Matt, it’s an honor to have you on the platform. Thanks for taking the time to share your story with us – to start maybe you can share some of your backstory with our readers?
I grew up in a television news family. My father had a journalism background took me often on assignments. I was fascinated by the production and variety of day-to-day work. I’d hang around the television station and found myself really interested in the camera department and the guys who did that work. At the same time, my father was also a huge photography fan. We had books, cameras, and printed photos everywhere. He wasn’t a disciplined practicing photographer by any means, but it was a part of life and somehow along with that was impressed on me the importance of taking pictures and documenting the moment. My path towards a professional career started in the late ’90s as a United States Marine and one of the few photographers overseas in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. Photographing families on bases, portraits, and anything the community needed. After moving back to the United States and relocating to Orlando, Florida, my creative interests focused on capturing people and live events. Between the adapt and overcome mentally of the Marine Corps and the fast-paced life of TV news growing up, this all seemed very normal to me. I was able to focus on building experience and becoming a consistently dependable on-location photographer. My career now has branched out to several areas professionally and I couldn’t imagine doing anything else.
Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not, what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
Becoming a photographer is easy. Staying a photographer is hard. I’m very fortunate to be in the position I’m in, but I work hard maintaining the fundamentals of how things need to be done for a client. Creative types, in general always have inner struggles. Especially in this field because nobodies the best, you’ll never know it all. You’re always improving and never truly satisfied. It can become quite maddening. I’m quite good at handling the chaos of a gig, but it’s the expectations you put on yourself that you need to manage.
As you know, we’re big fans of you and your work. For our readers who might not be as familiar, what can you tell them about what you do?
I’m known for taking great images of live events—one chance to tell the story of a moment or event. Taking a good picture is expected, but knowing how to deal with large groups of people, tough situations, restricted areas, that makes makes you a professional. I can come into any event or commercial shoot with little or no instruction, and I know what to do. Make it easy on the client while meeting or exceeding their expectations in a professional manner. I also think a big part of what sets me apart from others is the experience I have behind a camera. I’ve shot weddings on 35mm film. No screen, no preview, you don’t even see your shot for a couple of weeks while it gets developed. You have to know what you’re doing. You need to understand photography. It set the foundation for my work today. I don’t rely on technology and features, is use them to assist me.
Have you learned any interesting or important lessons due to the Covid-19 Crisis?
I’ve had a lot of people contact me during this time to tell me they went back through old photos, weddings, concerts, moments of togetherness that made them happy. The feeling is that this is a temporary moment in time, but a reminder to me that documenting these things is important. Telling a good story or account through images really does mean something special to all of us. Being together in person is so much more valuable than simply staying in touch.
Contact Info:
- Email: matt@mattjylha.com
- Website: mattjylha.com
- Instagram: instagram.com/mattjylha
Image Credits
Matt Jylha
