Ismail Sirdah
As technology evolved, many industries have seen a spike in the invested capital. One of those is photography where high-resolution cameras can now capture everything from simple photos to slow-motion videos. Consequently, such developments have facilitated the growth of talented professionals like Ismail Sirdah. With many years of experience, Mr. Sirdah became one of the Miami’s finest photographers in the area of travel and weddings. He currently runs his own studio as well as a school of photography where many young adults have learned the basics of this field. Prior to his success, however, Ismail Sirdah started his ventures by working as an assistant. This enabled him to learn how to express his style through different manipulations within his photos. Those are the same concepts that he now teaches people who come to his school of photography.
What are some things that you love?
This will be a very predictable answer, but my biggest passion revolves around photography. It started long before I even got a camera that enabled me to create shots myself. I always enjoyed the way that photos can be taken from different perspectives with a varying amount of colors and effects. Hence why people who are in this interesting line of work need to be very creative while their imagination must be paralleled by nothing. Also, I love nature. Although I was blatantly unaware of how beautiful the world around us truly is, after taking tens of thousands of photos, I now recognize the marvelous surroundings.
What is your favorite TV show?
I am a huge fan of a show that ended a few years ago called House, M.D. It was a drama series that followed a diagnostician who had many issues with personal boundaries, social norms, and so on. I enjoyed watching it because the character development was scripted perfectly and the plotline always found a way to work itself out. Although I was not a fan of the ending, I would recommend the show to those interested in the field of medicine as it can teach people a ton of things.
Describe your typical day.
It generally starts around 8 in the morning when I get woken up by one of my three alarms. The reason for multiple alarms comes from the fact that my days are organized very systematically and I cannot afford to sleep in unless it is the weekend. Once I am up, I do my best to make it to the studio by 9:30. The only exception to that rule is if I have a client engagement to attend and will spend the day out of the office. Also, whenever I have someone coming to my studio to take professional headshots or something similar, I tend to wake up earlier. I do not have a set time for lunch as it varies based on the amount of work that I have. Usually, I get done by 6 in the afternoon. If I am not too exhausted, I do my best to go for a quick run or a swim before going to bed around midnight.
What is your favorite thing about working in your industry?
The opportunities are limitless. I am a person that hates monotonous projects. Thus, doing a job that is based on repetitiveness could not work for me. With photography, I get to experience everything from interaction with my clients to long hours of photo editing back at the studio. Not to even mention how many different subsectors there are. You could decide to solely take pictures while traveling which means that you become a full-time travel photographer. If that does not interest you, there are fields where all the shots are taken in nature, during the weddings, public events, and so on.
What motivates you every day?
I strive to be the best version of myself. Although photography is not the most stressful, high-responsibility job in the world, there are days when I have to face a lot of adversity. Consider the fact that every wedding that I photograph comes with people who want to make sure that I capture their precious moments. Sometimes, technology can malfunction and you have to rapidly resolve any issues while providing high-quality customer service. Even though I have undoubtedly evolved as a professional, I am far from perfect. My hope is to become a businessman who is able to help others in ways that go beyond basic photo services. Hence why I wanted to start a school that teaches others how to navigate this industry to be successful. Thus, my motivation is the fact that I have a lot more room to grow and becoming better at what I do will help other people learn from me!
