We all have seen his pictures around on the site with the infamous Storm Trooper avatar. World, the man without need for an introduction: Tmronin.
TMronin: <blinks back tears> Thank you for this...I would like to thank the academy, my hair stylist, my mom...oh wait, I'm not getting an award?! man...really? This is like when I entered The Zivity Circa '63 Contest - me and GogoAmy shot an awesome disco ball set with "Staying Alive" blasting in the background...we thought it was Zivity Circa '73! oo...boogie ooogie ooogie...I, I I...stayin'...oh wait."
Uh...On to the questions...!
Where are you from and how has it affected your work?
Well, I'm from North Carolina but I moved around a lot when I was younger. By the time I had graduated college - I had attended 15 schools, I was always the shiny New Kid. I was raised on MTV and WWF wrestling (Charlotte, NC is a professional wrestling Mecca) - so I tend to believe in the Rockstar theory of talent: "when you don't have as much as you would like - Boobs, Backlighting and Bright Colors make up for a lot." hahahahahaha! I've been in NYC for a bunch of years now and pretty much can't imagine living anywhere else at this moment - the sense of purpose and the insane energy in this town is addicting.
When did you first discover that you wanted to be a photographer? How long have you been doing it since then?
Dad is a very enthuastic advanced amateur photographer (mom's an artist) - so I was surrounded by photography my entire life. To be honest, I'm kinda amazed that I can see today after all the flash bulbs that went off in my face before I was five. LOL! I've always had a camera of some sort and shot a bunch in college until I took my first real photography class. I realized that I'm not cut out to take artsy blurry shots with really impressive artist manifestos describing what you are supposed to be looking at. Should have realized then and there, I was destined for a life of commercial photography. But then I discovered the campus radio station (WKNC in Raleigh, NC). Fast forward to NYC 2000 while working in the music industry and getting a digital point and shoot camera in trade for a website design. In 2004, I got a DSLR and discovered that naked girls would sometimes jump in front of it. So, 8 years later - I am doing my level best not to suck on a daily basis.
What was your journey like at the beginning? What did you struggle with coming into your own as a professional photographer?
I was in a weird position when I started (still am, in ways) A lot of my music industry friends moved into other fields and figured it's easier to screw me on my rates than get screwed by someone they didn't know. LOL! I shot a lot of comic book conventions (shot a poker game at Kevin Smith's house for Wizard World Guide to Comics), night club events, Doggie Holiday Portraits, catalogs, lookbooks and other "Making the Doughnuts" type of shoots to make ends meet...actually still do. I have no ego when it comes to paying work. shoot, assist, paint cycs, whatever. better than a desk job. It's like that line from Office Space:
Bob: "Looks like you've been missing a lot of work lately."
Peter: "I wouldn't say I've been *missing* it, Bob."
What is one of the most important lessons you've learned during your career?
Knowing how to handle people is as important as being able to handle a camera. You can be the most AMAZING photographer to EVER pick up a camera and be forced to work a day job because you can't deal with the business/people/networking side of being a photographer - it's about the hustle. Opportunities very rarely come to you. Chance favors the prepared. In this respect, I'm a get-shit-done Boy Scout. I make sure that I'm ready for whatever I can hustle up for a gig. Oh! also...Bigger the hair, Closer to God. (so sayth my patron saint, Saint Dolly of the big boobs and bigger hair)
How did you find Zivity?
I got invited to the beta when I was a staff photographer for suicidegirls.com and when I saw that one of the first sets on the site was the awesome Missy shot Sash set (Sash just makes me melt as a photographer - lord, that girl needs to be in front of a camera, often), I was excited to check it out. I emailed one of my favorite people (Vivka) and we shot something quick for the site when I was up in Detroit for a wedding. The rest is history.
What were you doing before you joined Zivity? How is this site different from your other photographic ventures?
Staff photographer for SG - pretty much the same but different. I LOVE this site - no-one tells me what or who to shoot. If a set goes up, I know if someone
votes on it, we will be paid. The diversity on this site is bonkers - All the sets don't look the same (don't get me started on the sheer amount of talent shooting for zivity - between Corwin, Thingstolookat, Shooter, AddictedImage, Adam Robertson, Dwam, P-Mod, Ghettomonk, Lorelei and others: I just stare at the screen and try to convince myself I don't just suck. LOL!)
If I want to shoot something that is a bit out of my usual box - ArdenLeigh's debut set for example, I can. I can shoot sets with heavy studio lighting, natural light, high concept, no concept...whatever is clever. I can shoot a quick zivity set with my model friends for fun and they can be as involved as much (or as little) as they want. Stoya's debut set is a great example. We shot a pack of fuji instax while she was taking a smoke break after getting her hair done for a magazine layout on the balcony at the location. No muss, no fuss.
What is the craziest/funniest thing that has ever happened to you while taking photos?
Couple of years ago, I shot a model down in NJ at Sandy Hook (famous nude beach). It was a foggy morning in August. Do you know who comes to a nude beach in New Jersey at 8am on a foggy thursday in August? Old dudes who can't be described as "thin". Do you know what these naked old dudes do on a nude beach in New Jersey at 8am on a foggy thursday in August?
Pick up shells.
Pick up shells without bending their knees.
What has been seen, can't be unseen.
So...after we figured out that a) we were in the interesting shell capitol of the beach (cuz all the old naked dudes were picking up a LOT of shells right near us) and b) if we combined our ages between the 3 of us (me, model and her friend who was assisting), we were younger than anyone on the beach - we decided we should get on to the business of shooting.
All is going well, then an....err..older gentleman in a rainbow thong walked over and inquired if he could be in the photoshoot. I politely thanked him and said, "no thanks sir." (I was raised to respect my elders - esp. ones that someone somewhere calls "Grandad".) Couple more shots and the model (who was mostly naked by now) steps away to do a quick hair fix with her friend. The older guy comes back...sans thong and not, well, un-excited. ifyaknowhatimsayin'? Once again, I thank him for offering to jump into the shoot and tell him that his services as a male model aren't needed at this moment. He runs off into the water and errr...proceeds to make the ocean a bit more, well, "salty". Needless to say, I didn't point this out to the model at that time. (pretty much cuz I wanted to finish the shoot without an 18 year old naked girl killing a 75 year old naked guy with a boner on a beach in NJ. Pretty sure that would make the 6pm news. LOL!)
How would you describe your own work?
A product of the three B's - Boobs, Backlighting and Bright colors. Here at Team Rockstar, we believe in nothing is worth doing unless you can over-do it.
What other things are you passionate about? Why are you passionate about them?
hmmm...I like coffee, things that go "vroom" - mainly american muscle cars and italian motorcycles, coffee, beer, books (lots and lots of books), coffee, loud music, the past (what has been done before that looks cool), the future (what can I do that will look cool)...oh yeah, coffee.
<sigh> y'all are gonna ask about the whole coffee thing, aren't you? Ok, fine. I have 3 coffee-themed tattoos (including half my chest done by Paul Booth as well as "Death Before Decaf" on my ribs) and have told someone's mother at a holiday dinner, "if coffee had boobs, I would marry it." (for the record, I was sitting next to my wife at the time.) What can I say? I like coffee...a lot.
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