Meet Mandy Hobel

We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Mandy Hobel a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Mandy , we’re so excited for our community to get to know you and learn from your journey and the wisdom you’ve acquired over time. Let’s kick things off with a discussion on self-confidence and self-esteem. How did you develop yours?

I would accredit my confidence and high self esteem from the support of my family. From my brother and sister’s compliments and push, to my family standing behind me with the highest support in what I do. A decade ago I would not have imagined that I would be a full time professional photographer. I moved into diving into the deep end and buying my equipment and going all in. Now I have the confidence to brave the New York City runway shoots, to asking random models on the street to doing a photo shoot, or to doing an interview with your amazing esteem magazine.

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?

My love for photography was sparked by my two uncles who were both amazing photographers. They gifted me my very first camera, an Aries Viscount, it was manual and film, and I had to learn how to shoot using a handheld light meter. They were my toughest critics and I am so grateful for that. I would spend all of my babysitting money on film and developing, and my one uncle taught me how to develop film in his home dark room. In honor of them both I named my business, Hunter Photography, from their last name and my maiden name. I am photo journalist at heart. I love going out and doing street photography and telling a story of the day. I love doing fashion photography that’s on a different level. Not just a beautiful or handsome face, but something with flare. And although I want this to be my career, I also want it to be an extension of who I am. My next step is to shoot abroad. Through my ventures I met a brave and wonderful model in NYC, that turned out to be from Norway, and she has asked Hunter Photography to come there and shoot her wedding in 2025. In the past year, I have found that I am doing shoots away from my base here in Pittsburgh. I am loving it. So, now the wings are spread and ready to go wherever the camera takes me. I am proof that you don’t have to start out with a fancy camera, use what you already have and develop your craft! Your creativity will take you where you need to be!
 My camera is an extension of me, and I hope that I’m still with a camera in hand at 90!

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?

 
Some of the most important qualities, skills and or areas of knowledge to know is a great question. I would say, know your scene. Whether you know where you are, or you know who are working with. Ask questions, lots of questions. Make yourself aware of your surroundings so you know what to expect. Keep your eyes peeled. Even when you are not shooting. You could be going somewhere and see the perfect place to do a shoot at. Your see an angle on something that catches your eye. Don’t be afraid to stop and take the photo. That moment may never come your way again. And most importantly, always be in a mindset to learn. No one knows everything about everything. So, even when you think you know all there is about the type of photography you do, someone may offer you a tip that just didn’t come across to you that could take you to the next level. And my last tip, never give up. It’s a tough art to get into and not get into the stereo typical “starving artist”, but keep pushing forward and you will accomplish what you set out to.

To close, maybe we can chat about your parents and what they did that was particularly impactful for you?

The most impactful thing that my parents did for me was to raise their family in a home full of art and music, growing up I always heard a guitar being strummed, or fingers gliding across a piano or keyboard. Someone was always drawling or painting, cooking something new, and creativity flowed. My parents always encouraged the arts, and always encouraged us to try different things that sparked our interest. I’m extremely grateful to have grown up in such a home flowing with music, art and love. Their encouragement has been an amazing example for myself and my husband in raising our sons to be whomever they want to be.

Contact Info:

Image Credits

Hunter Photography – Mandy Hobel

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