Story & Lesson Highlights with Walter Martin of Cleveland

We recently had the chance to connect with Walter Martin and have shared our conversation below.

Hi Walter, thank you so much for taking time out of your busy day to share your story, experiences and insights with our readers. Let’s jump right in with an interesting one: What makes you lose track of time—and find yourself again?
Currently, I am working a full time job as a business operations administrator and I sometimes do photography on the side. When I’m not working at my day job, I try to go out and do photography whenever I can. As is often the case, I will travel to some place I have never been and I will have it in my head that I will spend maybe an hour or two at this location just doing some hiking and taking some photos. But whenever I bring my camera with me and I start taking photos, I could spend endless hours taking photos. It almost never fails. And when I start to realize that I’m losing the sun or if I rememeber to take a look at the time on my cell phone, I’ll notice I’ve spent more time than what I had originally envisioned in my head. But they also serve constant reminders that this this is something I passionately enjoy and makes me realize that photography is definitely something I love to pursue and try to develop professionally.

Can you briefly introduce yourself and share what makes you or your brand unique?
I have been doing photography for close to 9 years. Got started when I decided to buy myself my first professional camera and just self taught myself in photography. It was mainly a hobby at first, but as I got professional photographers urging me to become a professional, I’ve been looking into doing that. Right now, I consider myself a semi-professional because every now and then, I do some events or engagement photography. But I have mostly been doing nature & landscapes as well as travel photography and selling my photos online through shutterstock. I pretty much take my camera everywhere I go in case I find something that catches my eye. And I am always looking for opportunities so I can keep doing photography more often.

Great, so let’s dive into your journey a bit more. Who saw you clearly before you could see yourself?
I had a friend from back in my high school years who always felt I should pursue film making because he thought I had a lot of talent. At the time, my plan was to join the military, but I got rejected because of my asthma. When that happened, I decided to try film making and see where that will go. It was rather difficult at first as I did not know much about film making or what position I would like to undertake. I always remember many people in the local film industry saying that sometimes the one thing you really enjoy doing is what you least expect it. After graduating from college and deciding to get a full-time day job, I took up photography to keep my film making skills up to date as both photography and film making have some similar skills. After discovering I have such talent with photography, I often think of my friend and marvel at how he must have sense that I have some talent in it because I didn’t think I did.

Was there ever a time you almost gave up?
I can’t really say if there was ever a time that I almost give up. Most of the time, I force myself to keep trying or try to think of another way to get where I am. It’s most certainly was not easy. And the few times I have had people who try to get me to give up, I try to cut them out of my life as I don’t want that kind of negativity in my life. Plus, it’s hard enough when you have your own doubts clawing at the back of the end. I try my best to shake it off and keep going. For me, giving up is not really much of an option as we only have one life and it’s short enough as it is. I want to spend it following my passions wherever they may lead.

Sure, so let’s go deeper into your values and how you think. What would your closest friends say really matters to you?
Most of my closest friends would probably say traveling and photography are the top two things that really matter to me. Even then, I think most people who are not close enough to me probably could say the same thing as I tend to get very excited whenever I travel or I’m doing photography. Being able to experience new things and to photograph moments with my camera, these are things I try never to take for granted. I try to go out and have an adventure as much as I can. Even though sometimes it can be difficult, I try to find something that will force me out of my comfort zone. One such thing I could remember was when I tried wind surfing in Greece. I think it was the first time I felt really out of my comfort zone and felt a little afraid because it was a combination of parasailing and water surfing at the same time. Though I took a class, it was really difficult to learn it. I felt inspired when I met this Greek man who was in his early forties telling me it was his first time and he told me he felt something similar. It gave me an appreciation of no matter how old you are, you can still learn something new.

Okay, so let’s keep going with one more question that means a lot to us: When do you feel most at peace?
The only times I feel truly at peace is when I travel or when I take photos with my camera. When I travel, I feel like it helps quiet my mind and helps me feel calm. It also helps me to think a little more clearer too. I think a part of it is because I know that when I travel to some destination, I don’t fully know what I will expect to see or experience. And when I do photography, I tend to lose all track of time that I get absorbed into my work and it feels like the moments stretch for eternity. I’m not exactly sure what life has in store for me, but it is my hope that I will be remembered that I never gave up and that I continue to follow my passions for travel and photography.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://wamartin.myportfolio.com/
• Instagram: @writer.filmmaker2013
• Linkedin: /walteramartin
• Facebook: /walter.martin.71465