We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Mackenzie Smith Kelley a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.
Hi Mackenzie, really happy you were able to join us today and we’re looking forward to sharing your story and insights with our readers. Let’s start with the heart of it all – purpose. How did you find your purpose?
In 2010, I was living in NYC, working as a job coach for adults with developmental disabilities . A friend of mine gifted me a copy of Michael Pollen’s “The Omnivore’s Dilemma”, and after reading that book, I knew that I wanted to carve a career path that was rooted in food and storytelling. That year, I quit my job and moved in with my parents, who lived in Odessa, TX where I was raised. My goal was to save up a bunch of money so I could pay for grad school, or move to Europe so I could attend a program focused on food and sustainability.
I saved up a lot that year, and around the time I found out I was accepted into the program I applied to at NYU, the owner of the company where I was working asked me what I would do work-wise with an expensive degree in food studies. I explained that I wanted to find a way to get people to think about who is making what’s at the table and how it connects us– and what we can do to create more sustainable food systems. He asked me if I would consider foregoing grad school to make a heritage cookbook for his family.
At that point, I had saved almost $50k– but I would need to double that amount in order to go to NYU without going into debt. So, instead of going to grad school (and into debt), Doug Frey hired me to make a cookbook that celebrated their family history, food and memories. I interviewed family members and photographed, designed and edited the book with very little help. Looking back, I would have approached the project completely differently, but you don’t know until you know, right? That process of making the book afforded me the opportunity to try a lot of different skillsets and figure out which one I really liked. Photography was it. I moved back to NYC, committed to digging my heels into the food media scene by attending as many networking events as I could, reaching out to folks in the industry who I admired, and finding an entry level job at a cookbook publishing company. I also started freelancing as a photographer. I said yes to everything!
After a few years of leaning into the food scene in NY and becoming a better photographer, I was ready to move back to Texas in 2016. I have been in Austin ever since. I am still working to shine a light on folks working in food and bev, and celebrating the food that connects and sustains us through photography and stop motion animations. At this point, I have the art of photography and working with crews and clients big and small down to a science, and I love the process dearly.
Thanks for sharing that. So, before we get any further into our conversation, can you tell our readers a bit about yourself and what you’re working on?
I think I spent too much time on my first answer — I am going to spend a bit more time on this question and get back to you!
Looking back, what do you think were the three qualities, skills, or areas of knowledge that were most impactful in your journey? What advice do you have for folks who are early in their journey in terms of how they can best develop or improve on these?
I need more time to answer this question — I am going to go ahead and submit the form and get back to you here.
How would you describe your ideal client?
My ideal client is representing a brand committed to creating CPG (consumer packaged goods) products rooted in true sustainability.
They understand that hiring an experienced photography team is worth the investment of time it takes to prepare for a photoshoot, and the capitol it takes to pay the team who will create the art.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.mackenziesmithkelley.com/
- Instagram: instagram.com/mackenzie.smithkelley
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/mask/
Image Credits
Portrait of me by Heather Gallagher. Image from my portfolio created in collaboration with Maite Aizpurua, Taylor Cumbie, Candice Putter and Audrey K Davis.
