This is a post in Braintalk

Braintalk with Josh Mackey

1. Hi , who are you and what do you do?

Hi to you, My name is Josh Mackey and I am an Automotive Photographer and Digital Artist. You can find my portfolio at http://www.mackeydesigns.com but here are some samples of my work:

2. Describe a typical day at work?

Well, I do have a full time job as a Creative Manager at an Events Company based in Seattle, WA. That takes up a good portion of my time, My typical day there varies from event to event, I could be building registration websites or designing graphics for banners and event materials. Mackeydesigns.com is a totally different story, I have work lined up throughout the summer, more of it being Photography. I have several big Photography gigs lined up that will consist of several hour shoots over a few weekends and weekdays and then the post processing that comes with that.


3. What do you enjoy most about your work?

I enjoy work because it’s what I like to do. They say 90% of people that work do something they don’t enjoy, and that the other 10% love their work. I like my work because I love designing, I love taking photographs, it’s amazing to take what was once a hobby and turn it into a profession. My recommendation to anyone reading this, if you’re stuck in a job you hate, or doing something you don’t like, take what you enjoy and make that a career. Just work at it, it will eventually happen.


4. What do you like least about your job?

Well, I hate nothing about my side work for Mackeydesigns.com, because I get to pick and choose the work I do. The full time job is another story, I can sum it up with one word, corporate.


5. What is your worst enemy of creativity?

Creative block. You can ask any designer or photographer that you will have an amazing streak of being creative and having exactly what the client wants, then out of nowhere it hits you. For some it’s really easy to overcome, for some it’s not, so I suggest saving several sites, like this one, for creative inspiration.


6. What do you do when you start a new project and you have NO ideas?

Sharebrain.info for one, then I always ask friends and colleagues of any ideas they might have. You can only think of so much before you run out of ideas and need to see what else is out there. Keeping up with the trends is always a great thing, staying ahead of the trends is very difficult, especially with the web, because like fashion, it’s always changing. I would suggest bookmarking your favorite websites and checking on those at least twice a week to see what’s new.


7. What inspires you the most?

Friends. Honestly, surrounding yourself with hardworking, motivated and talented friends is the best thing you can do. Not only will they help you in the time of need, but you can always look to them for inspiration. For a recommendation of my friends, you can check out the side bar on my blog, and you’ll see plenty!


8. Do you listen to music while working? And if “yes” what music do you listen to?

Yes, Music to me, is like my heart beat when working, it keeps me focused. I tend to listen to everything, but if I’m trying to get in a groove where I need to work for several hours straight without stopping, I’ll listen to streaming stations on Winamp, one of them being Bassgrove, another being RadioRevolt HD. One being sort of techno bass, and the other alternative songs. Gotta mix it up.


9. How do you deal with criticism?

Never take it to heart, the second you take every little comment seriously, you’ll get yourself in trouble and start second guessing your work. I take it as feedback and sort of it stick it in a mental piggy bank. Sometimes it’s very useful, sometimes it’s just pointless, but I don’t disregard any of it. You’ll never get better or learn more if you don’t listen to it. Just listen to it.


10. What does your workspace look like?
At the home office, consists of two large Ikea drafting style desks. The main desk has my PC on it with all the trimmings (CPU = Vista, 2.4 Quad Core, 8800GT Vid Card, SB Xtreme Audio 7.1 Card, 4gig G*skill RAM, Logitech G5 mouse, Razer Tarantula Keyboard, 5.1 Headset, 5.1 Speakers) I’m a gamer too, so I need to have my stuff set up right, I also run dual monitors on the main PC. The other PC is for my wife whenever she needs it, whether it’s for backing up files or for downloading music for her IPod. The room itself is fairly large, I have my automotive magazine covers on the walls, helps me appreciate what I do.




11. Do you remember the very first web-project in which you were involved?

Yes I do, which is basically the foundation of how all of this got started. I used to be part of a car crew (sorta still am, just not in the same way) and we had a website. At the time the site was being ran by another guy on the team, I had recently been laid off from my job (entire company went chapter 7) so I had some time to kill. My brother had recently loaded Photoshop onto my PC, and I went from there, creating graphics, learning the programs, eventually getting Dreamweaver to assist me in the build process. The site has morphed over time, and doesn’t really reflect my current work, but it’s still alive at mospeed.com.

12. Is there any advice you would give our readers?

Stay true to yourself, never try and emulate someone else’s style. It’s always great to take an idea, but make it your own. If you need to, learn from it, but it’s always best to truly be yourself and only look to others as inspiration.


13. What has been the most fun project to work on so far?

The latest design of Mackeydesigns.com. I took everything that I’ve learned over the years and crammed it into one website that I can basically change over and over now without having to remove the content and start over. Previous versions of my site have been wiped clean, and re-done, this one I’ll be able to build on it, and change designs on a whim. It took several months to finish, and was a lot of hard work, but I can say that it has been the most enjoyable project I’ve done, because it’s my own.


14. Imagine yourself in 15 years… what do you see yourself doing?

Somewhere exotic with my wife taking pictures for big name magazines maybe? Or possibly the Automotive Photographer car companies reach out to. I’ll be happy with either.


15. Please tell us 3 people who we should do this Interview with (Why them?).

Steve Demmitt (www.stevedemmitt.com)
Steve is great because he truly started a trend of his own, and his work speaks for itself, a great guy with a lot of advice. He works hard and would recommend him in a heart beat.

Easton Chang (www.eastonchang.com)
Easton is one of the first “pro” automotive photographers I ever spoke with, and his guidance and inspiration always kept me motivated.

Donny Mak (www.tunerzine.com)
DTM is probably of the best coders I know out there, he gave me so much help on my current site, and has been the main guy behind several projects we’ve done together. Not only is he a talented photographer, but also a very good designer/coder as well. I would recommend him in a heartbeat, he’s very humble and always wants to work.


Josh, thank you very much for answering our questions.
So if you want to visit Josh and see more of his work you should do this now: mackeydesigns.com