Meet Geovani Gallegos | Photographer, Videographer, & Photo Studio Owner

We had the good fortune of connecting with Geovani Gallegos and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Geovani, how do you think about risk?
Creating a business, especially a creative business, is ALL about taking risks. The biggest risk I’ve had to take was deciding to quit my job to invest my complete time and attention into my photography business and continuously finding ways to keep it a sustainable business, especially in this economy. Luckily for me, I had a great support system with my parents pushing me to follow what I wanted to do from the beginning, and allowing me to not just settle for a common 9-5, but instead challenge myself to make a living from what I love to do.

Alright, so let’s move onto what keeps you busy professionally?
So I first started photography as a fun hobby. Since I was a kid I enjoyed taking pictures, I wasn’t the best at it, but I enjoyed the idea of taking pictures for the memories. On May 20, 2019, I was going to a car/truck show and I decided to use my parents old family DSLR camera to take pictures of whatever I liked at the show then posted them on Facebook simply for fun. To my surprise, people started sharing my pictures, and then began asking me how much I charged to actually have a photoshoot of their vehicle, their kids, their senior portraits, etc. That’s when I realized I could turn this into a business. However, I was nowhere near a photo professional at the time. I may have had the vision for photography, but I didn’t have good enough gear, or even the knowledge to completely understand a camera so I did what anyone is able to do nowadays… learned everything about cameras and editing through YouTube! Eventually, a couple months later, with a new camera, a new understanding of photography, and with enough social media recognizability, I was able to turn a fun hobby into my full time job for the past 5 years, where I now specialize in portraits, concert, and special event photography and videography as well as owning my own photo studio, KREATIV Studios at only 24 years old.

Despite how easy it may seem that it was for me to get started, it was a challenge to really understand the business side of photography. Taking pictures is fun, filming videos is fun. Understanding how to charge, run, and maintain a business was tough! Like in every business, there’s good months and bad months, finding a way to be able to stay afloat during the slower months is always difficult, but luckily have been able to make it work for what is now, as I am saying this,, officially 5 years of running my photography business.

Lessons I’ve learned is that running a business is extremely hard. I got out of working a 9-5, 5 days a week, to now working what feels like 24 hours a day 7 days a week, sometimes missing crucial family time, missing time for myself or to be with friends/loved ones, but it’s all in hopes of continuing to make a living out of what I love to do. A piece of advice I have for anyone wanting to start a creative business is; only start if you absolutely love what you do because if you don’t, you will burn out and want to give up incredibly fast.

Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.
The great thing about Colorado is that there’s something for EVERYONE to enjoy. You’re a person that loves the city? Great! Downtown Denver is where you’ll want to be. Oh, you’re more of a nature/outdoorsy type? Great! Colorado’s got you covered with all sorts of outdoor activities less than an hour drive away from Denver. For me, my personal favorite places to take friends from out of state would have to be anything sports related, Nuggets game, Rockies game, Avalanche game, Broncos game, Rapids game, Mammoth game. We are blessed to have a professional sports team in every major league so that is my number one thing to do for a fun time. As far as for dining, grabbing a quick bite, or having some drinks, there’s plenty of food and bar options scattered across the entire metro area, especially downtown. For a little exercise/getaway time there’s beautiful hikes in boulder, or go experience a concert at Red Rocks, where you’ll get a hike AND live music! There’s plenty of things to do for anyone all over Colorado!

Who else deserves some credit and recognition?
Mom and Dad.

If it wasn’t for their complete trust and support when I first started creating my photo business, none of this would be possible. Before photography, I was a 19 year old college student working at Chick Fil A trying to figure out what I truly wanted to do with my life and never found something I completely loved. While I was trying to figure life out, my parents were there for me through it all. From changing majors, to changing low-income jobs, they never turned their backs on me and I know that if none of this would’ve worked out, they would still be there for me, ready to help me with whatever I need. I mean to this day, they help me around the studio, decorating, remodeling, anything I need, for they’re willing to help. So for that reason, they deserve all the credit in the world because if it wasn’t for their love, support and trust, I wouldn’t be where I am today.

Website: https://Flako.me

Instagram: https://Instagram.com/flako_films

Facebook: https://Facebook.com/flakofilms

Other: Concert Instagram page: instagram.com/flako_films
Portrait Instagram page: instagram.com/shotbyflako