What do you do when every school interview starts looking exactly the same?

Library.

Classroom.

Repeat.

You change things up — starting with composition.

Recently, I filmed a series of interviews at a high school in Springfield, Tennessee. Like most school shoots, the default options were the library or a classroom. And while those spaces work… they’ve been done. Over and over again.

I wanted something different. Something with depth. Something intentional.

So I chose a hallway.

And it turned into one of the most cinematic interview setups I’ve shot — with one light and zero pre-scouting.

Now this client ask for this specific look!

Let me break down why it worked.

White walls. Fluorescent lighting. Four empty corners.

On paper, this was not an ideal interview location.

But this shoot was a perfect reminder that cinematic interviews aren’t about having the perfect room or unlimited gear— they’re about composition, light control, and problem-solving on the fly.

In this breakdown, I’m going to walk through how I searched for a space in a not so ideal building that I turned into a visually compelling two-camera interview using minimal gear, intentional composition, and controlled lighting.

When you’re shooting branded content, the space matters just as much as the gear. The textures, the colors, the layout—everything plays a role in shaping the story you’re trying to tell. So when I spent $600 of my client’s budget on a Peerspace location that checked every aesthetic box, I expected a smooth, inspired shoot.

What I walked into instead?

A Christmas-themed party setup, a man actively renovating the place, and a full hour of rearranging heavy furniture—by myself.

Here’s exactly what happened, what I learned, and what you should know before booking your next shoot location online.

Just a week after my chaotic, overpacked shoot in Memphis… I was back at it again — this time with a redemption plan. I swapped out gear, simplified my setup, and focused on what really matters: composition and storytelling.

In this blog post, I’m breaking down how I turned a tough lesson into one of my cleanest interviews yet!

Every cinematographer remembers their first client shoot. For me, it was a two-camera interview outside of Memphis, Tennessee—and while the client was happy with the results, I walked away knowing I could have done better.

The truth is, my mistakes on that day taught me more than any class or YouTube tutorial ever could. If you’re a beginner cinematographer preparing for your first paid shoot, I want to share what I learned so you can avoid the same pitfalls.

I’ve never been someone who can “fake it till I make it.” I need to know my craft inside and out before I can confidently show up on set—especially when I’m being paid. That’s why I intentionally carve out opportunities to practice cinematography in real-world environments, even if it’s unpaid. It’s how I refine my skills, troubleshoot gear setups, and experiment with deliverable

When my childhood friend, who owns Renu Salon in Goodlettsville, Tennessee, told me she was adding a new esthetician to her team, I knew exactly how I could help her spread the word. The challenge? Most of her current clients had never gotten a facial—or were nervous about the idea. The common responses she’d get were:

“What’s a facial?”

“I’ve never had one before.”

“I don’t know what to expect—I’m too nervous.”

It’s been a minute since I uploaded a video to YouTube—November, to be exact. And if I’m being honest, I needed the break. Money was tight, so I let go of my studio rental last October. I had plans to shoot in PeerSpace locations or maybe the same studio once a month, but then the election hit, and mentally, I just wasn’t in a creative space because I was emotionally drained.