Rising Stars: Meet Mark Kimura

Today we’d like to introduce you to Mark Kimura.

Hi Mark, we’re thrilled to have a chance to learn your story today. So, before we get into specifics, maybe you can briefly walk us through how you got to where you are today?
I came across a band and started doing a lot of film work with them. I was introduced to a few people in the film industry (Shea Windley Johnson and Alden Allen). They helped me with a few projects and I started filming music videos for local artists. I ended up going on tour with a band from LA back to Nashville doing a lot of film and photography from the eyes of the tour life.

When we got back to Nashville they announced a larger tour with the Dixie Chicks where I came along and did some photos for them as well (for one particular show). My portfolio was growing along nicely with my client list and I started to get steady jobs shooting local shows. I became obsessed with live music photography and one of the things I tell people when they’re getting started in photography is “Consistency is everything.

Your knowledge is worthless if you don’t know how to apply it in the field.” With that in mind, I wanted to become one of the greatest live music photographers Nashville has to offer so I decided to take my own advice and started a project called “52 Weeks of Music City” in 2018. The concept is simple, I would go to shoot a different band’s set once a week for the entire year and I would write a short review on their performance/technical skills/writing.

It started small and took a few months to gain momentum, but soon enough I’d be booked months ahead of time and ending my journey with Robert Earl Keen at the Ryman Auditorium. This was by far the hardest project I had ever accomplished. I was still working full time at my day job and then editing/writing/shooting at the same time, working about 100 hours a week.

After the project was complete I found myself in a depression, not knowing where to go from there and I wasn’t doing as much photography/film as I had wanted. I had planned to turn this project into a photojournalism book but that turned out to be an entirely new project. In the year 2020, during the pandemic shutdown, I decided to focus on that time to self-publish it, finally completing it into the physical format, but only having one copy since the cost of production was much too high and risky.

I started doing a cooking series for a new client for the remainder of the year for one season of (youtube) 8 episodes. As 2020 started to come to a close I wanted to expand on my creativity and decided on my new project for 2021 which was called “Project 365.” This concept was also pretty basic, I would take a different photo every day of the year. There was no theme and no direction.

Every day was different. The purpose was also to be consistent with shooting, but also stretch from what I know as a live music photographer to a creative photographer. I was incredibly happy with the final product that I decided to create another photojournalism book that I am currently working on putting together.

A lot of people have asked what my next project will be and I thought it was best to rest and do more writing for a TV comedy that I have been wanting to put together, so this year’s project is the writing process and putting that together.

Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall, and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
It has been anything but a smooth road. Looking at the journey, I wouldn’t recommend my “past self” moving forward with it. But where I’m at now and with the experiences I’ve been fortunate to have, I’d do it all over again. Most struggles have come from a lack of time.

When working on “52 Weeks of Music City” I didn’t have any personal time and relationships failed. I was very stubborn in completing this project so my focus was all on that. It was a time of extreme loneliness. I would go into the office at 6 am and leave the office at 4 pm to go home and edit photos or write the review, and then I would go to the show alone where I knew nobody and then go home, sometimes at 2 am, just to go to bed to wake up at 6 am again.

Sometimes, I would be editing and lose track of the time it would be 4-5 in the morning and I would think “Do I just stay up? Or try to get an hour of sleep and probably be more tired when I wake up?” It’s hard to be in a relationship with a lifestyle like that and it wasn’t really fair for the people around me.

Project 365 was a challenge in a different way. I was shooting something different every day. But sometimes I just wasn’t inspired and looking, driving all around the city, finding nothing and wasting time. Sometimes I found something within 15-20 minutes. Other times I would drive around for a few hours and come back with nothing.

The biggest struggle was knowing that there were other things I wanted to do, hanging out with friends, etc, and not being able to. That and when the time changed and it started getting dark at 4 pm was incredibly difficult with the limited amount of time (as I was also working full time).

But through all the struggles I wouldn’t change anything about these projects. They are a part of who I am.

Thanks for sharing that. So, maybe next you can tell us a bit more about your work?
I wanted to include my full-time job since it has been such a huge impact on my life. I first moved to Nashville in January of 2010 and started my professional career at Dell, which is where I am currently employed. I am an Account Manager currently and have had multiple roles throughout my 12-year tenure there.

One of the reasons I wanted to include this is because of how supportive Dell has been of my dream. Management has always been aware of my side projects and has been very supportive, specifically during “52 Weeks of Music City”. It’s not often that an enormous corporation like Dell will support the same amount of hours at a different business.

They went beyond that where they hired me to do multiple other videos for the company and even tried to hire a specific position dedicated to that specifically. Unfortunately, it went away during the pandemic, but I have been in touch with the team to make that dream come back to life.

Do you have any advice for those just starting out?
You have to determine if this is a hobby or a profession. Photography and film get incredibly expensive so when you are getting started you will need to have a regular job to support your vision. During that time you also need to develop a solid portfolio as well as a client list. There’s a long time where money isn’t coming in and you HAVE to treat it like a business.

Once you have a portfolio, you need to start charging. I have friends who ask for photo sessions all the time and they all get charged. I appreciate them coming to me to support me and my business, but also I have a product and service that is separate from people who are just getting started, and that quality is priceless. If you treat this as a hobby, there is absolutely nothing wrong with that.

I came to Nashville for music and I quickly realized it was not the life for me and it is now my hobby. I felt like I was forcing it too much and lost my passion for music, and when I treated it as a hobby I fell in love with it again. Photography/film is different for me. It makes more sense to me and I understand it better.

My mind is always coming up with new ideas and it’s impossible for me to step away from that. So first step, find out if this is a hobby or a profession. The second step, regardless of the first step, never stop!

Contact Info:

• Email: [email protected]
• Website: www.kimuraproductions.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/kimura_productions/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/KimuraProductionsLLC