Podcast Episode 33: This is Mick Shah
So great to bring you the fab Mick Shah for episode 33 of the This is Reportage Podcast! Mick is a world-class photographer turned videographer, one of the founding members of Nine Dots, and an all round inspirational character – thoroughly enjoyed talking to him for the Podcast. Tune in today as Mick talks all about:
- why he went from photographer to videographer,
- his thoughts on the pandemic at the moment,
- how and why he founded Nine Dots (with Adam Johnson, Andy Gaines and Rahul Khona)
- the transition from photo to video; thoughts and tips,
- his advice on public speaking,
- his background as a professional drummer and pastor,
- food (yes, we talk about food!),
- what success means to him,
- tips on the financial side of life,
- forming his Studio with Ash and tips on doing that,
- tips for working with videographers,
- the future of video and the industry,
- and much more…
Listen on Spotify, Google Podcasts, iTunes/Apple Podcasts, YouTube, and below in this post (where there is also a full transcript if you prefer to read)
Alan Law:
Hey Mick. How are you doing?
Mick Shah:
I’m great. Fantastic. Great to be on TiR radio.
Alan Law:
I should have called it that.
Mick Shah:
You need a jingle with it, like Alan Law on TiR radio
Alan Law:
I’m going to make it that. That sounds good.
Mick Shah:
I want a percentage of every, like, it’s like a copyright or something but it’s a royalty.
Alan Law:
Okay. No, you can have no 0.0001% of the free cost of the podcast.
Mick Shah:
Fantastic. I mean that’s about as much as I got from our share prize money for winning the tournament together, the ping pong tournament together.
Alan Law:
Ping pong. Is it ping pong Mick?
Mick Shah:
Table Tennis?
Alan Law:
Table Tennis!
Mick Shah:
Well, you know what? Now that I know that this podcast is going out to the non-handshake members, like live to the world, I needed to call it something that is accepted in all cultures. So I went for ping pong.
Alan Law:
Okay. Yeah. People would understand. But that was great though. That was, wasn’t it? What year was that?
Mick Shah:
2016 I wanna say..17?
Alan Law:
Oh man, that was the first time that yeah, we got through to the final and won it.
Mick Shah:
It’s the first time you won it. I like to think that I had, you know, I had a hand in that, your legacy. You’ve now won it three times in a row.
Alan Law:
It was 50/50 though, man. It was awesome. If anyone doesn’t know what we’re talking about, it’s the table tennis tournament at Nine Dots.
Mick Shah:
Yeah, they’re a little turned off now because it’s like what the heck are they talking about. Edit that one out.
Alan Law:
No, I’m not going to edit anything out. This is Mick raw. Anyway, thank you for joining me on here. It’s ace to talk to you. How are you doing at the moment?
Mick Shah:
I’m really good. I’m sure I’m like everyone, you know, you have up days and down days and the up days you wake up. Oh, this is amazing, all this time I’ve been gifted and I love my family and I love life and everything’s great. Nasmaste. And there are other days where you’re like, Oh my God, please let the world go back to how it was. I want to shoot a wedding. Or I want to go back to normal or I don’t want to have to take off 5 million layers just to throw the rubbish out or queue up in Sainsbury’s. I just want to go back to life as normal.
Alan Law:
Oh, I know, man. It’s like a roller coaster, isn’t it? It is roller coaster.
Mick Shah:
It is. I mean, it’s just like so many stuff you take for granted. I live in London and I know you live in Cornwall. I mean, does it have electricity and Wi-Fi down there?
Alan Law:
Just last year that came in.
Mick Shah:
Okay. Yeah. Cool. But you know, the big smoke. But I think there’s so many things we take for granted, like just popping out like not every evening, but you might think, Oh, I want a take away or something at 9:00 PM or 10:00 PM. And it was as simple as jumping into your car or getting on an app and now like McDonald’s is closed for goodness sake. That was a failsafe; 24 hours a day, about my end. And that is gone.
Alan Law:
That’s the last thing of it all, I think.
Mick Shah:
I’m reduced to Wimpy buying. I’m like what has the world come to?
Alan Law:
Does Wimpy actually, does that exist still?
Mick Shah:
It does. I know. I mean you know it’s desperate when you’re either looking at Wimpy or Little Chef.
Alan Law:
Oh I like little chef though. I like little chef chip’s, nice. But anyway. Yeah, it is a roller coaster, isn’t it? And what’s it looking for you in terms of like, what’s the next wedding that you’re supposed to be like videoing?
Mick Shah:
The next wedding I’m supposed to be shooting is the 2nd of August. I think they’ve already got a second date in and they’re just holding out to see what would happen but I think that probably not going to happen. And then after that, the next one is in France on the first week of September. But again, who knows, like the way they’re making decisions. I mean, apparently shops are now opening on Monday.
Alan Law:
Is it Monday? Nonessential stuff?
Mick Shah:
Yeah non-essential stuff are going to open on Monday. So who knows? It’s a strange one. I think it’s the not knowing, right? I think if they just went, look parley everyone, 2020 Parley, like no weddings for 2020. We are just all going into 2021 and we’re definitely going to start from this day. I think psychologically we could all go Oh, okay, recalibrate and we’d be like, Oh okay, I know on my first wedding’s going to be this and I’ll converse with my clients and we’d have a plan in place and everything will be cool. I think it’s the not knowing, right? Because potentially I could be shooting October. I might not be, you know, obviously some people go, well, that’s just wishful thinking that you’re going to be shooting October, but you still don’t know. Are we going to be shooting in December? Who knows? You know, not knowing.
Alan Law:
Yeah, definitely that not knowing is a major thing. It’s like with the kids going back to school, not knowing. And now there’s more of an announcement today that that’s not really going to be properly happening until September stuff, but yeah, it’s mental. And I mentioned how I asked then, when would you be next videoing? Because people don’t know. Yeah. I’ve got it in my note here that you went to the dark side. So yeah. People don’t know Mick used to be an absolutely brilliant wedding photographer and now he’s a very average, no, I’m joking, he’s a great wedding videographer. So yeah. How did you change Mick and why did you change from photographer?
Mick Shah:
When did I see the light, Alan?
Alan Law:
Go to the dark side? Yeah, why?
Mick Shah:
Why? I think what happened was I’ve always been very, I don’t know… it’s taken me a long time I think to accept that I might be creative because my whole life, I’ve just been very passionate about things and then being very obsessed with the thing that I’m passionate about. So I was a drummer. I know you know that, like I was a professional drummer, but I started playing the drums when I was 20. [Quite late then] Yeah. So I was studying a degree in law and went oh I want to become a drummer and just went, I’m going to learn the drums. And I remember my drum teacher go well, you know, I don’t know if that’s possible, you know, 20, you know, and then became a professional drummer for eight years and then finished that and then became a pastor for eight years and then found photography cause my wife bought me on camera cause we had our first child and I did wedding photography for eight years and basically every eight years so far, I’ve changed career. We look back and every eight years I’ve changed career. And basically, I found that the first six years of wedding photography, I was so passionate about it. Like I know we would chat, you know, and meet up. And you know, when you were down in London or when I came to Cornwall, we would chat and we were very excited about the industry and just making images of wedding photography. And I just found myself slowly rocking up to weddings and just be like, I know what to do, like that feeling of, I know what to do, like I know how this goes. And I know that if I operate at 80%, 70%, I can get work that the client is going to be happy with. And it’s not going to win awards. It’s not maybe going to blow people’s minds, but the client’s going to be ecstatic with it. And I just didn’t like that feeling. And I just didn’t like that feeling of, I don’t know what to call it, but just knowing what to do. And I just felt like I needed a new creative itch. And at the time we’d opened up a video part of Miki Studios. Back then I wanted to open up a Miki everything; a Miki studios, a Miki video, a Mickey chips, Mickey burgers and we had some guys doing the video. They weren’t as passionate about weddings as, I me and Ashley was. Ashley had joined at that time. Right. And me and him like two sides of the same coin kind of thing in a good way. We’re both really passionate about what we do. But they kind of weren’t and it would annoy me that I would ask them, look, can we do this? The client would go, can we do this? And I would go, can we do this? And they’d be like, nah, because I knew nothing about video. So they were just like, nah, you can’t do that because you know, this setting on the camera means you can’t do that. And no, we can’t do that in the edit. And I’d just be like, Oh I don’t like not knowing, I don’t like being able to go, well, actually you could do this. So it’s a different dynamic with Ash. Because Ashs come back and be like well, I couldn’t do this. And I’d be like, well, I’ve been in that situation. And here’s some of my experiences and my advice, you could do this, but with the video guys, I couldn’t do that. Oh. So I was like, oh, this is really annoying. So I really want to get into it. And the flip side was that, and I’m sure we’ll talk about this later, but I think video is the future, I believe in the future. I believe that’s where the industry is or that’s, where society is kind of going in terms of the way we view stuff and consume content. And I didn’t want to wake up one day and just be like, you know, like when Tiktok was something new, and you hear like hey, are you using tiktok? You’re like, what is tiktok? Isn’t that Tea? No, it’s an online social platform. And you’re like, how do I even… You know that feeling like when you feel old or how do I do this? And I didn’t want to be at that stage and then trying to be catching up. So I was like, Oh, I think I should get the video. And I think that’s new lease of life really, and that creativity and just being in a new world. Really, I found kind of that excitement again. So that’s why I kind of continued on that journey.
Alan Law:
That’s totally awesome, man. And that one thing I’ve always just felt from you is that you’ve this huge amount of passion in you and your drive to do things as well as you can and to such a massively high level. I think that’s inspirational and you’re a businessman, entrepreneur as well, which I think is really cool.
Mick Shah:
You’re a business entrepreneur, my friend. I pretend it sometimes. Well, I mean, I don’t know, I mean maybe we’ll talk about this as well, about finances and stuff like that. I don’t know if I’m an entrepreneur as such, but when I see an opportunity or get passionate about stuff, I get ideas. That’s for sure.
Alan Law:
Well, that’s awesome though, isn’t it? That’s what entrepreneurship is really. The Ideas and so
Mick Shah:
Maybe. I mean, I think partly that’s what drove the nine dots guys, crazy. Like I’d be like five minutes and we’d be like, Okay, let’s do the gathering. That’s an amazing idea, wow. And I be like, let’s do one in space and they’d be like, what on the first one? Nine Dots merchandise!
Alan Law:
While you’ve mentioned that, if people don’t know Mick was one of the founding members of nine dots with Adam Johnson, Andy Gaines, Rahul Khona as well. Yeah. So yeah, if people don’t know what nine dots is, what is it and how did that come about you doing that then anyway?
Mick Shah:
So nine dots is a wedding photography, I would say community that trains and inspires people to, you know, run amazing businesses and, you know, discover the artistry in what they do and inspires them to be better. That’s what I’d say is. If the guys are listening, I hope I was on brand there. And we started it in 2015. And it started basically if I’m honest, because I was too… you were doing workshops at the time. I remember this and you were like, ‘you should do a workshop’ and I was like, man, and you were killing it on workshops, you know, the law school, and you were selling out. I was like, man, I should do workshops, but I didn’t have, if I’m honest, I didn’t have the guts to do one on my own. So I rang Rahul up. I was like, Oh, let’s do a workshop together. And we could do a flash because we were both into flash at that time. And it wasn’t like it is now. Like the information that’s around now wasn’t around back then. And he was like, well, if we do it together, I’d really love to do one with my mate, Adam Johnson. And I said, well, if you’re going to pull in Adam Johnson, I’d like to do one with my mate Andy Gaines and Andy had come down and done a family shoot for me and we’d really gone. And I was like, I just really felt like we were in the same vibe in terms of what we did. And so we planned a workshop, all four of us. And we’d never met, like we’ve never met in the same room. We planed this whole online workshop. And it sold out. I think it sold out twice. And I think back then, it was like, unheard of, from what I can remember of wedding photographers joining together to do something. And it sold out and thanks to Adam actually. The price was like, it was quite a premium price as well. So it wasn’t cheap. And because it sold out, we kind of had like this big pot of money, for want of a better word. And I was like, Oh, I’d always had this dream of doing a conference. That’s what it was. And there was nothing like this in the UK. And I think Laura Babb hadn’t done Snap yet. I think she was coming out with Snap and I was like, okay, but that was more around the camping kind of thing, but I wasn’t really into camping. Although now I happily go, but back then, I wasn’t really into it. But there wasn’t anything like a conference. You know, like you see all these big Fearless conferences around the globe and people like Two Mann and all these amazing photographers, but there was nothing in the UK. And I was like we should do something with that. And I think Andy was like, well, why don’t we just do it and well, and Rahul was like yeah, let’s just do it. And I was like, what? And we hadn’t even done the workshop yet. And we started planning this gathering. We planned the gathering and Adam was like it’s not going to be called a conference, it’s going to be called a gathering and Rahul found Bounce. I mean, me and him went to see it as soon as we walked in, we knew that was the place and we launched it and that. And the only reason we could hire somewhere like Bounce is because we we’d sold out these workshops and had all this income to put up the money to take the risk on this. Cause is not cheap, Bounce isn’t cheap, so it wasn’t a risk in the sense of like, we got to put up all this money, it was like we had this money from the workshop that we could invest in this gathering and thankfully that sold out. [I was one of the first people…] Yeah you were first and I think back then, I thought, I’m very naïve and romantic, I think, at times. And I was like, you know, this is going to change the world or this is going to change the industry and we’re going to have all these amazing people in this one room and I’m going to go away and suddenly everything’s going to be different. And the conference finished and it was like, okay, so time for 2016, I was like, what? We gotta do this again?
Alan Law:
It was awesome, it built an amazing thing from that.
Mick Shah:
Yeah. So it just built and it snowballed, and then I left.
Alan Law:
Why did you leave in the end then, why did you go?
Mick Shah:
The other three kicked me out because I was too fat. They’ve all gone on this massive health drive, like Andy is running like ultra-marathons and Rahul has lost all his weight and Adam’s lost his weight and I haven’t. And they just got me in a room. It was like, look, dude, you let it down the side. I was just like, guys, I just love the buffet too much at the wedding. And you know, someone’s got to pick up for the people who want to, you know, who can eat buffet. So I’m going to take one for the team, make stand and allow you got go. And I was like, fair enough. No, that’s not what happened. I’m joking. What happened was I just was, this is why I don’t know if I’m entrepreneurial, but I can only focus on one thing at a time. And I found the love for video and I wasn’t as passionate about photography. I think it’s a little bit different now because I think having now gone through it all, I think like, Oh, I feel I could actually manage a few things, but back then I couldn’t. I was shooting all these weddings so I still had all these photography clients. I had a video company that was running. I had Ash who I was kind of looking after, I mean, not looking after, but kind of managing and helping. And I had nine dots and I decided to take on video. And I think in all of this, I mean, you’ve heard the talk, I don’t want to call it a mental breakdown, but maybe a midlife crisis, whatever. I just realized that, okay, what am I passionate about? And I can’t do all these things. And I was like, well, I’m really passionate about video. And I just then felt, I couldn’t spin all these plates, as well as your family and give time to family being a good dad and good husband. And probably, my wife would say I wasn’t at that time because I was just so busy and I just think something had to give and I was like, it’s unfair to the community. It’s unfair to the guys. I’m not giving a hundred percent and I’m just kind of cruising. I just felt it was right, that I go. I mean, in hindsight, could I have stayed? Probably.
Alan Law:
It was a lot on your plate though, man. It was a lot on your plate.
Mick Shah:
Yeah. It was a lot in the plate. I think it’s just, I just think maybe if I had a good mentor or something. I should have called you up, Alan, what should I do? [I don’t think so.] I think that if I had maybe been better, but you go through these things in life to learn. And I think that looking back on it, I just wasn’t good at multitasking and you know, having a good time management schedule and I mean, we did a talk at nine dots. Everything’s cool with nine dots, by the way. So they invited me back and I spoke, me and Ash spoke at this last nine dots and we have a talk that we do. And it talks about what happened that year and the fallout of all of that and how we had to kind of realize that, okay, let’s go back to the beginning and learn about time management and finances and how to run a business and learn all these things and I’m like, okay, I’m still learning as, as you know, life goes on. But yeah, if I had kind of been able to manage it a bit better than maybe I could’ve done it better. But back then, I was just like a one thing kind of guy like I’m passionate about this and this is what I want to do.
Alan Law:
That’s what makes you so successful though, as well. And that’s probably the reason why you’re totally nailing the videography, you know? And it must be so difficult going from one art of photographt, going to something different of videography. And how did you make that transition so quickly? Because you did go from, you know, great photography to brilliant videographer so quickly. How did you do it?
Mick Shah:
Oh, firstly, thank you. It very kind of you saying that.
Alan Law:
It’s true man. People should check out your video clips. Hopefully I can embed maybe a video clip on the post. Because it’s quite totally different, but it’s like modern, like film, it’s like a film man. It’s like proper awesome. So yeah. How did you do it? Because a lot of people listening may be interested in trying video themselves.
Mick Shah:
It’s funny you say that, Alan, because I have a course. I did a workshop before COVID hit and it sold out like I teach photographers how to get into videography and then because COVID hit, I was like, well, like they still want to learn. So I recorded this, this whole course. So I literally recorded his whole course for them and it’s been released and it was like having a baby, like I thought it’d be easy. It wasn’t, it was hard work. And it was great. I’m saying all this to answer that question, cause it kind of breaks down the process of how did I do it? And I think that at the time I just dove in with two feet and just, like I said, when I get passionate about something and I think there is, there must be some word for it where when you learn something in your life and then because you have that skill, you can then build on it in another career. I don’t know what that’s called. It must be called something, but because I’ve been a drummer and at 20, I’ve learned how to practice and develop skills, I think that part of my brain was there to break it down when I became a photographer. So when I became a photographer, it’s like, well, I made all these mistakes drumming and I knew how to break that down and practice it. I knew how to do it with photography. And I think it was the same with video. Like just break down that process. And the other thing I did was I booked in a one day session with Phillip White. I don’t know if you know Phillip White, [never worked with him, but heard of him]. Back then, he was the only wedding videographer I knew and back then I was blown away by his films. And I was like, well, I’m going to invest all this money before I’d even shot my first wedding. I’m going learn all this stuff on YouTube. I’m going to film anything, basically like photography, I’m going to film anyone at anything. So film any birthday party, a family thing, when we had nine dots meetings, I’d film it and then I’d do a little one minute highlight and show it to them and probably bore them and they’re like yeah that’s great, go away. And through Andy, he got me, my first wedding in Iceland. [it’s quite a nice first wedding] basically, I just said to him, look, if you know anybody who wants a free video, and he was, well, I’ve got this couple in Iceland and they haven’t got any more budget but they might be interested in a video. And I was like, well, I’ll do it. And I think they paid for my ticket out there which I’ve realized that he never paid me for it. He owes me that, I’m joking.
Alan Law:
Were you scared? Cause that your first kind of wedding video then. The actual real first one.
Mick Shah:
So the Iceland one, he booked it in and so he booked in and he was like, all right, cool. So now I had a date and I was like, right, I’m going to shoot this wedding in Iceland. And the couple were like, well, we’ve never seen a wedding video before, so we don’t know what to expect so do whatever you want. That’s cool. Yeah. And so I booked in, so I learned all my stuff. I booked in a mentoring session with Phillip White and just said, teach me everything, you know, that I need to know. He taught me all the stuff, how he did it. I do a lot differently now, but back then, I didn’t know any different. So he was like, this is how I would do it. And I was like, cool, well, that’s given me confidence at least to try. And I went out there and did the best that I could failed on a lot of things. Like I’ve made a lot of mistakes on sound and things like that. But because there was no pressure to do like a 20 minute film and to film the speeches and to film the ceremony. And they were just like, do whatever you want. I literally had no pressure whatsoever. And yeah. And so they were awesome. They had their wedding on a Lake and it rained, but they were like, we’ve come all this way and we’re going to do it. So we filmed it on a Lake and then they went to like this James Bond kind of lair thing for their wedding. It was amazing. And that was my first wedding. So obviously then, and then a second wedding I booked was through Lina and Tom through nine dots, they had a couple in Ibiza, and it was like, we want a video for anybody who’s starting out. I just put my hand up and she was like, well, I know you from nine dots, so I know we’re going to get on and I’d rather give it to you than someone I don’t know. And so she’s really kind and put me forward. And again, they were like, you know, if you film it on your iPhone, we’ll be happy. And again, I had no pressure. So the first weddings I had, I had zero pressure and they were Iceland and Ibiza.
Alan Law:
Is ideal, isn’t it? But it’s not just luck as well, because that’s partly due to the connections you’ve made and the reputation you’ve made from all the work that you’ve done beforehand. So it’s not just luck, you know, it’s all come from your talent and hard work as well. I think you’re such an inspirational character, man, because you just nailed the photography. You nailed the conference at nine dots. You’re nailing the videography now. And I just love the way you just put everything into it. And yeah, it’s a work ethic as well as talent, I think with you, you know, and also as a speaker, you know, I’ve seen you speak at nine dots and compere and you’re just so good at that as well. You are a really inspirational character, man.
Mick Shah:
Thank you very much. Probably your listeners are going to be like this guy rambles a lot in speaking live.
Alan Law:
You are great live, man, honestly, so good. And I was going to ask you about that, by the way, actually, you are so confident when you’re talking live, when you’re speaking, do you have any tips for that? Because there might be some people listening who are going to be speaking at any other kind of conferences if any conferences happen again in the future, do you have any tips? Does that come partly from your kind of pastor back?
Mick Shah:
Yeah, I think so. I think so. I mean, I’m a bit rusty now. Because I would look like… when did I give up pastoring? I gave it up in 2015, so I haven’t really talked for five years, but you know, every week I’d have to get up and stand. But a lot of that came from drama, my drama school, I loved drama, as a teenager and I got an A star in GCSE drama. And I remember my head teacher going, you know, I love it when people excel at drama, cause they really always excel at ,you know, in business in terms of like meetings and stuff, being very confident to speak cause they know how to hold an audience. And also had been a drummer so I was used to being on stage. So being on stage in front of people wasn’t scary. I think what’s scary is when you’re standing up in front of people and you don’t know what you’re going to say. I think that’s scarier. But I think when you’re standing up in front of people and you know that they want to hear what you have to say and you feel that you’ve got something to say, then in that sense, like when you’re drumming or performing, you’re not scared because you’re performing a piece of music and you know, the audience want to hear it. So I come over that nervousness and I think it’s the same with speaking. Like you have to understand that like at a conference, people want to hear what you have to say. So, you know, that’s a given and B you have something interesting to say because your journey is unique. Like whoever you are, if you want to learn to speak, like your journey is unique or your perspective and what you’ve learned is unique. And you know, you’ve got something to say that I don’t know. And if I’m humble enough, I can learn from it. And then the rest of it is just practice. Like just put yourself in situations where you have to speak and whatever that is and makes you nervous. You have to practice it because I’ve seen it so many times where people go, Oh, I’ve written this talk and I’ve got 50,000 slides and I’ve timed it and it’s going to be 10 seconds a slide. And I’m just like, dude, like when you get up there, you’re going to be nervous. And you’re going to start speaking. Naturally, the nerves will take over, you’ll start rambling. And what will happen is that talk will elongate. And I think the first couple of times you do it, you have to nail that talk, like you have to practice it and practice it and practice it and practice it so that, you know you can almost perform it. And so when nerves take over, you’re not going to deviate from what you have to say and your muscle memory will kick in because you’ve practiced it enough. And then when you’ve done it one, two, three, four times you’ll then be really comfortable with it. And then it’ll be easy
Alan Law:
No, I was going to say that it’s great advice. For me, I still get so nervous each time. I get nervous even practicing at home for a talk. I get nervous during that practice bit, man, am I just mental? I don’t understand.
Mick Shah:
Well, you were a drummer before as well. Did you play live?
Alan Law:
I did, but only like about four or five. Nothing like you and not professional. No, but when you’re drumming, you’re just hiding at the back anyway. No, one’s really watching the drummer, are they?
Mick Shah:
Well, I mean, it’s interesting cause Andy, the four of us at nine dots, but Andy again, he was very comfortable on stage and he was a musician before and he’d been a front man. I think just being on stage or acting or getting up in front of people you know, will make you take care of those nerves.
Alan Law:
Yeah, it does makes sense. It does make sense. How did you get into drumming? I mean, I just find your backstory before getting into the wedding industry.. It’s just so interesting with, with pastoring? Can you say that as a verb? But being a pastor and drumming as well and then, how did you, I just find it really interesting doing both those things and then getting into weddings.
Mick Shah:
How’d I get into drumming? I got into drumming. Well, my mom says when I was seven years old, I used to get the, you know, the, the spoons and the pots and I used to drum outside. And then I grew up in church and we used to drum, you know, music was always around. And I was involved in the music team. Like I think when I was 14, I was playing the guitar and I used to play drums at church then, but I wouldn’t count that as… like I knew four beats and I thought I knew everything about drumming. I was like, oh yeah, cool. And I think when I was 20, I remember sitting in a cubicle on work experience at a PR firm. Just being like, man, if I died tomorrow, is that one of those films in a movie where a guy’s in a cubicle and he just looks around and he goes, O my God, this is going to be my life forever? And I was like, what? Like if I die tomorrow, no one’s going to remember me. Particularly in this cubicle, what do I really want to do? I was like, I really love music. And I remember phoning my mum and going Ma, I want to become a drummer. And she was like, well, why don’t you finish your degree first? And I was like Nah I don’t want to finish my degree. And she’s like, we’ve only got six months left, finish your degree. So I finished degree and then basically went to drum school. [So you’ve got a degree in law as well then?] I’ve got degree in management and law and then I went to do a diploma in music, which was the drumming. And then I did one year of a degree in music. And then in that first year I found a job as a drummer, [but what kind of drumming?] So basically, back then there was a church, it was one of the biggest in Europe, 10,000 people, part of this church. And so they were looking for a full time drummer and I was part of the church and I applied and I got it. And so we were then doing concerts and things like Royal Albert Hall, Wembley Arena. So I say to people, it’s sex, drugs and rock and roll without the sex and drugs. So we were recording albums. So we were going to the studio and we had people, you know, big gospel people that if I mentioned them, you probably wouldn’t know who they are, but they would come over and we support them. So yeah, so that was quite cool. And then from that, just enjoy doing the music, but then felt that I don’t know if I’m having an impact on people’s lives behind this drum kit. And then me and my wife felt we really wanted to get more involved in the community and that’s how pastoring came about. So basically I remember being in my bathroom and just praying, going God I’d love to be a pastor for just three months. Just try it. And my mum phoned me up. She was like, Oh, you know, one of our pastors needs to take a break. Can you take over for three months? I was like, yeah. And so I was like, ah, cool. And then did it for three months and then stayed for eight years.
Alan Law:
I can imagine you are a great pastor. What was that like though? Did you bring back like your congregations troubles, you know, bringing them home and stuff. Were you able to switch off? Did it help with your kind of empathizing at weddings as well and stuff?
Mick Shah:
Oh, for sure. For sure. I think empathizing with people at weddings. Like just handling people is not easy, but I don’t find it daunting, like that side of wedding photography I never found daunting. Like, you know, organizing people for group shots and making sure that mum’s okay, you know, God willing and stuff like that. Like, you know, just being nice to people. For pastoring, for sure that really helped. Did I take on people’s troubles? Yeah, for sure. I did. And again, that’s something you learn and live through and then go, Oh, okay. I can’t change anyone. And you know, if you have faith and you believe in God, you understand that actually your role as a pastor is not to change people. It’s just to point them to the person you think they need to meet and can change them, and, for me, it’s God. You know, and, and I think towards the end of it, I kind of understood that. And it was like, oh, okay, that’s cool. But back then I kind of found photography and felt it was time to go. And the same thing with nine dots, I just felt at church, I wasn’t giving a hundred percent and I was more passionate about wedding photography thing. Then I was about these people and that wasn’t fair either. So I felt it was time to leave as well.
Alan Law:
Cool, man. So interesting. I love talking to you. I always feel like it’s almost like the first time each time, but then it’s cool, man. I love it. So let’s change tack slightly. Do you have a favourite joke, Mick?
Mick Shah:
Do I have a favourite joke? No. My son says he has a favourite joke. I think, I like being funny, like in the moment, like you’ve seen me at nine dots when hosting and stuff and just live, [I’ve never seen you be funny though. No I’m joking] I’ve had a few fun jokes at your expense. Yeah.
Alan Law:
Did you do the whole table tennis ball and my head thing?
Mick Shah:
That’s all off the cuff that all happened. And that’s what I’m saying. I couldn’t now say a joke and I’d be like but in talking maybe like in talking [that’s the best type of humour. [That’s the best type of humour.] Maybe, yeah I don’t have a joke.
Alan Law:
Mick, if you had 24 hours totally to yourself to do whatever you wished and money was no object. What would you do?
Mick Shah:
That would would change every day. I think right now I’d probably do something with the family, something amazing. Like take them somewhere, but 24 hours wouldn’t be enough with it. Could take eight hours to get there. I get really into deeper, these kinds of questions. I have to get on a plane and that would take eight hours. So you’ve wasted eight hours. You’ve only had six and they got jet lag. On 24 hours, I would have an amazing time with my family. And then if money’s no object, I would buy five houses or something to set them up for life because I’m about to die in 24 hours. They’d live off that for the rest of their lives and be like, dad was such a great dad.
Alan Law:
That’s a good one. Okay. That’s great. That’s good. What is a random fact about you that you think most people would be surprised to know?
Mick Shah:
I’m pre-diabetic Oh, really? My blood sugar is up because of this lockdown. I’m a sweet tooth and I need to lose weight. [You keep talking about your weight, you’re not like 30 stone or something.] When the doctor brings you up and he goes, look, we’ve had the blood test results and you’re prediabetic. You need to cut down on the biscuit and you’re literally locked down. What else can you do? But watch Netflix and eat biscuits. So now you’re telling me I’m going to have to go on the health drive in lock down. Fantastic.
Alan Law:
Oh, me and Oni we just love eating and she hasn’t put on weight. So she will be listening to this back and you haven’t put on weight at all. You look amazing. But yeah, we do just eat loads during this time. It’s just natural in it.
Mick Shah:
I know there’s nothing else to do and I think food is such a good, it’s a bringer together, isn’t it like? You know, even us, four of us, you know, my wife, my kids, like we have every meal together. And you know, just putting the food down and sitting down and eating together. It’s such a cool thing, but it kind of doesn’t stop, does it? Because you kind of have dinner and then you have a dessert and then you might move over to the couch and put something on the TV. And then you’re like, well, if I’m going to watch TV, I need a snack, you know, popcorn. And then it’s salty, now I need something sweet. So let’s get some sweet, already eaten something salty. [You’re making me hungry, man.] I know, and then, I mean, yesterday my wife made an amazing tuna and this wild salad. But man, 2019 me looking at 2020 me eating a saland, and I be like, what the heck are you doing? But it’s all part of this health drive, like I need to lose weight.
Alan Law:
It just such a shame for me now that this is audio only. I want to see like how big you are now. I’m just intrigued.
Mick Shah:
Yeah we have to do a video one. I’ll fill the screen. We can do a video call a year later, like look at the difference and I’ll be like, Oh, I lost 300 pounds on the TiR diet or the COVID diet. [The COVID diet.]
Alan Law:
I always find this question very interesting. So what does it mean to be successful to you? What is success for you?
Mick Shah:
Ah, good question. I think success is doing what you were meant to do and having a good relationship with the people that you’re meant to have a good relationship with and being who you’re meant to be.
Alan Law:
Wow. That’s a lot. That’s a cool answer. And so there’s a lot of “meant to” stuff over there. I mean, how do you know what you’re meant to do or meant to be with or meant to be?
Mick Shah:
Well, I’m the kind of like, if a door is open, I will walk through it kind of guy. Like you know, I’ve kind of walked through it. Ashley’s the same. And I believe, my faith, obviously I believe in God. And I believe he guides me in the sense that if it goes well, then I kind of think, well, that’s, that’s a good sign. That is what I’m meant to be doing. And so, you know, right now I’m meant to be videoing weddings because I enjoy it a lot and my couple seem to enjoy it and other people seem to enjoy it. So, you know, I meant to be doing that. I’m meant to be a father. I’m meant to be a husband. I’m meant to be in this business thing with Ash, that’s going well. And so favour is on that and it’s going well. So that’s probably what I’m meant to be doing. And then outside of that, you know, by being that person, you you’re life shines, doesn’t it? And other people get inspired. And through that inspiration, you make connections and that gives you the opportunity to then talk into other people’s lives, isn’t it? We all go through stuff in life where we have a knock back and then we get over it and, but you can’t go round going, Hey, I was really, I don’t know, whatever, like I was really depressed and now I’m not depressed because that’s kind of annoying, isn’t it? When someone says that. But I think when someone sees you being who you’re meant to be, they are just inspired by it, aren’t they? And you know, and they go, man, you’re amazing at what you do. And that doesn’t matter who it is. Like I’ve seen, you know, people who are chefs just be so passionate about food and when they’re making a meal and you’re like, Oh, I just want to hang around you because you’re just so inspiring. And through that conversation develop and then they speak into your life and then they might say something that’s completely unrelated to what to what you do. So they could be like a hairdresser. I met a hairdresser at a wedding once who was like an amazing hairdresser and he was just talking about his thing and that inspired me. And that opened up a load of dialogue about questions, about things that were non-business related, but were about life. And then he says something and the same thing happens with like with life, isn’t it? Like you meet people at weddings or you meet people at conferences and they, you know, sorry, I interrupted you.
Alan Law:
No, I’m just going to, I’m just going to say, I think you’re so right. Just seeing people being who they are, and happy with who they are and like is really inspiring. It really is.
Mick Shah:
Yeah. You know the difference, like when you go, like if you’ve ever been to the Apple store and you’d been served by someone who loves their job and loves serving people, it’s such a great experience as opposed to someone who doesn’t want to be there and is clock watching. And it’s just like, yeah, doesn’t have the answers. Like it’s annoying, isn’t it? And it’s the same with having a haircut or a going into a bank or going to a restaurant, you know, you get inspired and that’s how conversations start. I think when you’re doing what you’re meant to be doing, that gives you the platform to speak into people’s lives. And that helps inspire people. If you can inspire people, that’s like success, isn’t it?
Alan Law:
Yeah. Oh totally. They’re so different. Yeah, totally. It’s definitely man. And as I said before, you are really inspiring, man, you really are, and that’s awesome. So with your kind of like eight-year itch type things, do you think about the future, do you think in however many years you’ll still be doing videography? Do you have like a financial kind of plan, you know, going forward and stuff? Is that something you ever think about?
Mick Shah:
Do I think about what I’m going to be doing? I think it will come. I kind of just enjoy what’s going on now. And I think for doing that doors will open, and then when those doors open, it will make itself clear what I’m meant to be doing. And then that next thing will come. And I think it has to be born out of passion, you have to be excited about whatever that thing is. That’s one way God guides me, I feel. Cause I’ve done things where they make good sense, but I wasn’t passionate about it. And it just was a chore. It was a bore, man. It was like really hard to do it. And I think you’ve just gotta be excited about it. And I think just by being excited about what you’re doing gets other people excited. Ash is from the corporate background. He’s way better at negotiating than me. He’s way more like able to negotiate and do all that hardball stuff. But when it comes to talking, I think he would say the same, when it comes to talking to a client, and just being about passionate about what you do and selling them the vision of why they should book us. I’m good at that, but if I wasn’t passionate about it, that would be really hard for me. So I don’t know what will happen in eight years, but there are things I’m kind of exploring now and you know, who knows what will happen. Financially, that’s a great question. I think for years I could do a whole rant about this, but I think [you rant away, rant away is good]. We spend so much time in school learning about stuff that is inconsequential for the rest of our lives, like how to use a Bunsen burner or national achievements or woodwork or, and they don’t teach you about money. They don’t teach about finance, which is probably one of the biggest things in life once you leave school. They don’t do a course on relationships which is one of the biggest in life, they don’t do course of communication, which is one of the biggest things in your life. Like you can’t communicate. And I don’t do a course on finances, which again, another big thing. And I had no financial education and grew up in a single parent family. And we were on benefits, you know, violin, and then, you know got a job and then suddenly got into wedding photography, and I was getting paid. I mean, I know this is not true, but forgive me, but in that times I was like, Oh my God, I got paid more for one day than I do for doing a whole week’s work. And suddenly had, like I wasn’t rich, but I had more money than I ever had before. I just didn’t know what to do with it and [what did you do with it?] spend it on stupid stuff. Like we were part of a group and you know, people would be like, Oh my God, today I bought a robot hoover. And I’m like, what’s a robot hoover and I go like, I need a robot Hoover. What’s the best robot hoover to get? And you spend 300 pounds on a robot Hoover. [A Roomba] you’d buy a Roomba, you know, or like what’s the best vacuum cleaner to get? And everybody who would buy this vacuum cleaner and think nothing of dropping 300 pounds or 500 pounds or whatever on all this stuff. I just didn’t know anything about finances. And I think through like, one of my biggest things I say now to anybody starting out a business, is like get some financial education, like please. And my wife read this book called “total money makeover” by Dave Ramsey. Ash is from this very corporate background. So financially he was very savvier to that. And he introduced me to a financial advisor and just through a whole course of things, just learning about finances and how to run a business and how to do that well.
Alan Law:
That’s great advice to do that. I think a lot of people to come into this photography thing don’t know anything about money and it’s big, big deal.
Mick Shah:
Yeah. Money is just a tool, right? It’s not bad or good. It’s the love of money then causes all kinds of evil, but you know, money’s just a tool. And if you learn how to use that, wisely, it can give you creative freedom. It can give you the opportunity to say no to the wrong clients. And it can give you the opportunity to say yes to opportunities that maybe don’t pay as well but because you’ve got a good financial footing, you can take that risk that other people can’t.
Alan Law:
That’s so true. Yeah. That’s great advice, man. And you’ve mentioned obviously Ash a few times now. So if people don’t know you know, you own Micki Studios and you work with Ash and he does the photography and you do the videography now as well., But how did that come about in building that studio, and with Ash specifically, and you know, any tips? Because quite a few people want to build kind of a studio like you have done and having that kind of Video and photography arm, you know, how did you do it? Any tips on that? What happened? Sorry, so many questions, I keep asking you about twenty questions per sentence.
Mick Shah:
It’s fine, and I just added onto the fee. And so basically I think that the most important thing about building a studio, okay. I ramble a lot because I’ve realized the answer to the first question… to give the answer won’t make any sense unless I answer this other thing. So if I ramble, just edit me out. I’ll leave loads of pauses. So you can just cut that bit out. I think the first thing you have to understand is if you want to be a good successful wedding studio, I believe, you have to understand that you are a luxury item. You’re not selling a product, you’re selling an experience. And I think that if you want to charge, like you want to raise your prices and you know, to grow the business, I think, sorry, sorry, you have a choice. You can either be that, or you could be a product business where you sell a lot, but at a lower value. And I think you have to decide what you want to be. And I think if you want to be the lower value thing, where you have load of associates and they just kind of shoot under you, then what you need is a good system. And if you have a good system and you get know fairly good people, then they will fit in that system and you will grow the business. So the most important thing is having good systems at work, good systems that get the clients in, good systems that book them in, good systems that allow those photographers that shoot weddings and shares the finances out between them and then works in the business and that it almost runs itself. So everybody knows that they are part of that system and they do it. I think if you want to do the first thing, which is like an artist kind of studio, and more of an experience, you have to understand that it’s more about hiring the right people. And if you don’t have the right people, it will never work. Having made mistakes, not mistakes. Cause that’s the wrong word. But having experienced working with people who weren’t as passionate as we, me and Ash were, and working with Ash and seeing how passionate we are about what we respectively do, it really is about having the right people. And, you know, he came to the first nine dots workshop, I just thought, why is this guy here? I just thought he was really arrogant and he wasn’t at all, but he just sat there, very confident looking. And I was like why’s this guy here, and then I remember going to a wedding and getting ready for that wedding and just thinking, I want to take on an associate. I had one guy who was a former groom, who was an associate, such a great guy. But I wanted to take on another one and I just remembered his name. I believe it was a God thing again. I’m not trying to be overly spiritual or religious. His name popped into my head. I was getting ready to for this wedding. And I said, I’m going to ring him right now. And I rang him and he picked up the phone and I was like, I’ve got this option. I just feel that you should join my studio. You should become an associate. And here’s the offer. And he was like, cool, like, he didn’t say no. He was just like, yes. And I was like, let’s shoot one wedding together and I’ll show you how I do it. And then after that, you could say whether you want to do it. And he came the next week I think, shot the wedding and was like, yeah, I want to be part of this. And that’s what I mean by having the right people. But he was just from the get go has been like anything that I’ve asked him to do. He’s, he’s done it 110% and more, and he’s always been excited about the opportunities. And I think, you know, that really helped us to drive the studio in that more luxury, no, I wouldn’t say luxury because like, it’s all relative, isn’t it. But you know, if you look at our site now to how it was two years ago, you know, it’s got all this destination weddings on it. And that has come out of us being really excited about doing that and just pursuing that.
Alan Law:
And that’s your like first free two weddings as well. That’s all your destination stuff you need man, with your Iceland and Ibiza stuff?
Mick Shah:
Well, yeah. And we’ve been back to Iceland since then, but I mean yeah, it’s been amazing.
Alan Law:
You work so well together. And as you said before as well, you have different strengths. So that obviously this works really well. Do you ever kind of like disagree on things and fall out at all?
Mick Shah:
We’ve only fallen out once, that I can remember and he would even say it wasn’t a falling out, but I was annoyed that he had all these flashes and they just kept going off during the dance floor. I was like, dude, are you just going to keep them on and just keep flashing like spray and pray kind of thing? And he was like, yeah. And I got annoyed at him for about 10 minutes and he probably won’t even remember this. And then he came back and then said do you want to drink? I was like, yeah. And then we were okay, that’s how it happened. I don’t even know if he remembers that, but for me it was really annoying.
Alan Law:
I asked that actually, you know, obviously sometimes photographers, you know, might have a little moan about videographers sometimes. And I’m sure the opposite is the same with videographers moaning about photographers. But you know, you’re in quite unique position now because you’ve been on both sides. Do you have any tips as a videographer for photographers about working with videographers? You know what I mean, Cause probably more photographers I’ll be listening to this. So something that would help them work with videographers.
Mick Shah:
I think a really good tip would be get the videographers on side and try to make it like, okay, let’s go back. Let’s get back. Adam Johnson had this experience where he was shooting at a wedding. And I remember him telling me that he rocked up and he, you know, it was like a really luxurious wedding and he rocked up and he wasn’t the main photographer. Like there were other people there and he didn’t realize until he got there. And I remember him telling the story of how this one guy really tried to take control of it and that really put the backs up of everybody else. And he just went off with this other videographer and they worked really well. And when he told me that story, it really impacted me. I was like, man, I wonder what I would have been in that situation. Would I have been the first guy who tried to take control of the situation and try to make sure I got what I needed and then didn’t care about anybody else as long as everybody worked around me? Or would I’ve been like him? And just been like, you know, tried to make friends with people. And the other thing is like when you walk into a room and you’re leaving, you want people to feel that you left, that the room was better for you having been in that room. If that makes sense. So I try from that point onwards, whenever I worked with a videographer, I wanted to make him to walk away from that wedding and go, man, that was the best experience from a photographer I’ve ever had. And by having him along, that’s elevated my work. So, I would just be like, alright dude, okay, how are we going to shoot this? This is what I need. What do you need? Okay, let’s work together on this. And the other thing is, I think, honestly, I think photographers are way too precious about what they do and as videographers probably are as well. No, I need to be here and I need to get this shot. And I’m a documentary photographer and I can’t have anybody interfering with the scene and it’s like, Oh, get over yourself. It’s like, this is about the couple at the end of the day. We are artists, but we are primarily there to provide a service for that couple. And so, okay, it’s not ideal, but what’s the best thing I can do to A make sure the couple, having an amazing time, B ,make sure I get amazing work and C, make sure this videographer gets amazing work. And sometimes like the videographer is not clued up and stuff. And I think if you go, Hey man, I was thinking about taking them out on this time. And I think that, you know, this light’s going to be amazing and I’ve composed it like that. And this is what I’ve got in the back of my camera. What do you think? And they’re like, Oh man, I didn’t have that ide and I want to be part. They get excited and now you collaborate. And this happened, oh, sorry, I forgot the story. This happened at a wedding we went to where I and Ash were booked by the couple. And so I’ve heard this Adam Johnson story. And then we rocked up to this wedding and it was a destination wedding. And I won’t to say where it was because it will give away the wedding and the couple had booked, me and Ash. And we were like, look. And they were really excited about having a nice day. And they paid a lot of money for us to be there. And we rocked up to the pre-wedding shoot and they were like, look, my brother has hired another photographer. And he was like, look, you don’t understand, you are the main guys, we’ve hired you. This other guy is just going to do documentary stuff. He’s going to work around you. And I was like, okay, alright, that’s cool. As long as he understands that I and Ashley are the main, no, not the main, but you’ve hired us to do something. We need to be able to show that we can deliver on that. And you know, we can’t babysit this other photographer. So anyway, rocked up to the wedding destination rock up on the first day, we’re like, okay, how are we going to handle this rock up, and like meet the guy, he’s in the room, he’s got camera and I go, Hey, my name’s Mick and he goes, hi. Cool. So you’re the other photographer? Do you guys know I’m a videographer? What? He goes, what do you mean? He goes, Oh, I’m the videographer on the other team. But what team? He wasn’t even the main videographer. He was a second videographer with an assistant. And there was another videographer there. I was also a videographer and they’d hired another photographer, and me and Ash were there. And everybody thought they were the main. Right. And I’m like, okay, so this is what I mean about collaborating. So I just got us all together. I was like, okay guys, we’ve got to work together. Like, let’s work together on this. And I was like, I’ve had these ideas, what have ideas if you’ve got, and we just worked out like, Oh yeah, I didn’t think of that. And I was thinking, maybe we could get them on a boat and we could do this. And like, you could come along. And they were like, yeah. So we, as a team, we got really excited about what we were going to do and shot that wedding. And if I showed you that video and showed you Ash’s photos, you would never know that there was another team there. Cause we got what we needed. And that wedding taught me that I don’t have to be so precious about my art. If I’m skilled enough, I can get what I need to get. It was more important for the couple to have a good day and a good experience. Everybody was on the same side. And because everybody was on the same side, everybody got what they needed. And in the end, the videographer actually phoned me up and he’d lost the video but I’d recorded the voice track. So I was able to lend him some voice tracks and the only person who was a bit sneaky was this other photographer because he took the couple away. He was very sneaky, took him away on a golf cart after the service and didn’t tell us. And it was the only time he was sneaky, but he didn’t realize that we’d organized a photo shoot with a couple the other days. So we were like, really that’s fine, man. It’s cool. It’s was cool. It was a really great experience because it really taught me. You can imagine, we’re going to a destination wedding, we’re really excited about this. I’ve got all these angles shots and Ash’s got all these angles and shots and you know, to pull that wedding off without A them getting in our shots and us getting in their shots and all of us getting the footage that we needed and then being able to produce a product that you’re proud of at the end of the day and was on our website and got us other business taught me that actually it’s more important to be positive and get people excited.
Alan Law:
That’s very awesome, man. That’s great advice. And a great story as well, that’s awesome. Very cool. Because some people would just throw the toys out of the pram and it’ll go mental. So yeah. That’s awesome.
Mick Shah:
I can understand why, but I think if you just get people on side then they’re
Alan Law:
Yeah, I mean, that’s a good life lesson in general in that really. I think that’s cool. Let’s go into another question because we’ve run out of time, man. It’s so cool. I love talking to you. Two more questions, dude, because I’ve got to let you go. It feels like it’s gone really quickly.
Mick Shah:
You’ve got to edit this down. Oh my God, this guy’s rambling on.
Alan Law:
No, it’s so good, man. It’s so interesting. Okay. Penultimate question. And you touched upon it there with technology, you know, getting so much better than when we started and it’s obviously advancing all the time. Do you think being able to do both photos and video is going to be even more important in the future?
Mick Shah:
I think the way technology is advancing, I think it would be very wise to at least understand the process of how to make videos or what the videos entail. And even if you don’t want to become a videographer per se, I think the opportunities for marketing and branding and how video is consumed now, I think it’s just going to put you in an advantage as a photographer. There’re are cameras now that shoot at 24 frames a second in raw. So you imagine you’re filming a bride coming down the aisle, every one of those frames is a raw file and you could potentially take that raw file out and edit as a photo. So the potential in the future is there and then statistics show that on Instagram or Facebook, videos are like 20% more likely to be consumed than a photo or 50% more engagement. There’s more engagement with a video than there is with a photo, right? And so I think even for marketing purposes, there are so many things you could do around the whole area of your branding and business with video that if you know how to record and do video and voice, then you are putting yourself at a major advantage. And even just amplifying the experience of the couple, you know, like being able to record speeches or something, and being able to offer like if a couple doesn’t want video and they just want photographers at their wedding, but they might want the speeches recorded, right? Taking photos of people giving speeches are great, but a couple might want to hear the recording of that. And if you can give that to them or offer that as a service, that’s only going to put more money in your pocket and it’s only going to be of more value to your clients. And it only means they were going to be more willing to invest in your business. And that is just a win for everyone.
Alan Law:
Yeah, man, that’s so true.
Mick Shah:
I think it’s part of the future conversation. I think you’d be very wise. It’s like languages, right? Like if I’m going back in time, I would probably learn Spanish and Mandarin because like they’re like the number two biggest languages spoken in the world. So if you could speak those three languages now, like English, Mandarin, and Spanish, imagine the opportunities that will be open to you overnight. So it’s the same with video, isn’t it? Like you might not fluently speak in it or be a videographer, but if you’ve got it in your back pocket, the opportunities that are there.
Alan Law:
That’s great. Yeah. I think that’s a really good idea. I mean, it’s like preparing yourself for future possibilities and being the most prepared to be successful at whatever the future holds.
Mick Shah:
Yeah. I always said about photography and stuff like if I buy these cameras, or if I get into video and I don’t use it, not fail, but I don’t get into it, at the worst case, my kids are going to have great videos of themselves growing up. And the very worst, my family’s going to have amazing videos of themselves and they’re never going to complain about that. And it’s the same with photography. When I first got into, I said look, if I buy this camera, this Canon 5D, Mk 2, and Canon red ring lens, the worst case is Ethan, my first eldest is going to have great photos of himself growing up and he has amazing photos of himself, and Edward, my second child has amazing videos of his birthday. I say at the very least, they got that to look back on. It’s a win for everyone.
Alan Law:
Yeah. So true man. Yeah. Awesome dude. Honestly, it’s so cool. I’m just going to ask one last question. Now let’s save the big ones to the end. You ready? Do you eat the canapes?
Mick Shah:
Man, I tell my couples I eat everything. I’m going to be like one of your guests. I’m going to eat your canapes, I’ll be drinking your drinks. I’m going to be eating from your buffet. That’s all part of my brand, right? [That’s the Mick brand] That’s all part of the Micki Studios brand. We will be part and they think that’s cool.
Alan Law:
That’s cool, man. That’s good. Dude, Honestly, I found that so interesting. Thank you for talking to me, Mick. It was awesome.
Mick Shah:
And if anybody wants to stone me after that recording and some of the things I said like, I’ll happily give you my home address so you can do it live in person.
Alan Law:
No, there’s nothing stonable there, It’s all just like really interesting and how you think things might turn out and I guess we just never know.
Mick Shah:
I mean the only thing you could do, the only thing you’ve got is today, right? [It’s hard to live in the moment though. It’s hard.] It’s a skill though. A lot of our problems come from not being able to live in the moment.
Alan Law:
That’s so true. I’m reading a Derren Brown book on happiness at the moment, which is actually really interesting, which I really recommend,
Mick Shah:
Oh, my wife is reading Eckhart Tolle all about kind of the power of now. Most people either live in the past of the present really. They make decisions based on fear of the past and stuff that’s happened in the past or they’re thinking about the future. So they never really in the moment. But the only thing you have guaranteed is this moment right now. So you might as well enjoy it.
Alan Law:
That’s so true. Yeah. So true. All this lifelike lessons, droping on this podcast.
Mick Shah:
So basically live in the moment, learn about finances, get a stand out brand and learn video. Yeah, that’s it. And eat the canapes.
Alan Law:
Thank you so much. Anyone who is listening while driving or walking or running can also head to thisisreportage.com and I’ll include examples of your work and if you let me, I’ll be able to embed a video in as well so people can see like the video.
Mick Shah:
I’ll give a video, I’ll also give a link if it’s okay to. If people are interested in learning video, I have an online course that they can purchase, that is, if they want to, or if they just want to drop me a line and maybe chat about it, then I’ll be more than happy to chat through things and we’ll do some mentoring and stuff on it too.
Alan Law:
That’s awesome, man. No that’s cool. Definitely include links to that as well. Yeah. That’s brilliant, man. And thanks so much for your time. It’s lovely talking to you and hopefully I get to see you, I don’t know. Hopefully November, if you’re going to be around and if nine dots happens, then I don’t know.
Mick Shah:
Yeah. We’ll see. Like I said, you got to live in the moment, right. And, November, who knows at this point in time.
Alan Law:
So true. And thanks so much. You stay safe, dude.
Mick Shah:
Thank you. Anytime.
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We hope you enjoyed our Mick Shah interview! Check out more of his work on his website.
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