Taking The Leap to Full-Time

TikTok has been the wild-wild West for creators, and last week Videographer/Photographer, Max Tabakin took my attention:

@maxtabakin

Hope I can inspire other people to follow their passions ❤️ #photography #followyourpassion #lostmyjob

♬ Gretta Ray Vienna Cover – Gretta Ray

I reached out to Max and asked him to tell Gear Focus a little more about the journey he’s launching to make his side hustle and passion his full-time career.  Here’s what he said:

4 years ago, I was scrolling through YouTube in my college dorm room when I came across a video that would change the course of my life.  Titled “My Year 2016” by travel videographer Sam Kolder, it ignited this passionate feeling of creativity inside me and within hours I had purchased my first DSLR, a canon t6i, which I still use to this day.

Thousands of videos and one college graduation later, I found myself ready to truly pursue videography as a career.  However, I also felt very lost and unsure of how to get my feet off the ground.  I figured moving to Boston would be a good place to start.  After showcasing my work on a website, emailing as many local brands and companies as I could think of, and waiting weeks with no responses, I started to feel defeated.  Needing some money to pay rent, I picked up a job waiting tables at a local restaurant.  I spent my days filming and creating as much as I could and my nights serving food.

A few weeks ago, I found out the restaurant was closing.  While I initially had thoughts that I may need to find another restaurant job, I instead decided to put my all into videography, and of course I made a video about the whole situation.  The video, which I posted to TikTok, got hundreds of replies from people wishing me well, fellow creators looking to connect, and even countless job offers, many of which I already have plans to work for.  I have a long way to go on my creative journey but I’m excited to see what comes!

Follow Max’s journey on TikTok @maxtabakin or Instagram, @maxtabakin