Life & Work with Yip Tse

Today we’d like to introduce you to Yip Tse.

Yip, we appreciate you taking the time to share your story with us today. Where does your story begin?
My journey as a photographer and entrepreneur began in my first semester at ASU. I am an out-of-state student from a small town in Idaho, and I was inspired by how ambitious the students here are. One month into college, I bought a camera off of Facebook marketplace and began taking pictures of my friends at college. I realized that everyone loves being in pictures and that if I could achieve a professional level of skill in photography, my services would be useful anywhere in the world.

I began networking by going to parties with my camera and taking as many pictures of people as I could. I thought that this would be a great way to grow my Instagram page and portfolio, and I would make a combined album from the parties for people to download the day after. Looking for any chance to improve my skills, I started filming and editing youtube videos, podcasts, and TikTok as well as editing them. This whole time, I was not being paid and focused solely on building my reputation, portfolio, and skills.

Word of mouth has gotten me the chance to work with people I never thought I would have, and in the past few months I have actually been getting paid for photoshoots and videos, and I hope to be able to scale up to higher prices when my skills and product become better. I hope to continue to grow and connect with more people.

Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way? Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
There are many challenges that come along with starting something new. I remember I didn’t even know how to use a camera when I first bought mine, but I was dedicated to learning how it worked. I researched plenty of videos on how my camera worked and took plenty of pictures before I even decided to create a portfolio. It seems that if you are truly passionate about making something work and you put yourself out there, opportunities open up.

There have been a lot of great photographers, models, and graphic designers that I have been able to work with even on my small-scale business, and the passion these people have for their work motivates me to do better in my own work. My passion for capturing the moment and making the subject look and feel special is what brings me back to photography.

My friends and family have been incredibly supportive of my endeavors, but I am still in the beginning stages of this business and there are still plenty of struggles and challenges to overcome and learn from.

Can you tell our readers more about what you do and what you think sets you apart from others?
I’m in the beginning stages of finding my own lane and style, so it’s hard to specialize in one thing specifically. Right now I am focusing on building my skills in as many areas of photography and videography as possible. Whether it’s shooting in a studio with models, out on the street with my friends, or at a concert, any chance to take a picture is good practice and could contribute to my portfolio.

I may not have the most technical skill in photography or videography, but I am very ambitious and passionate about constantly getting better. My ability to communicate with people is what sets me apart from other photographers.

It is one thing to take a picture and make it look good, but it’s even more important to make your client feel comfortable and involved in the process of creating the perfect picture. Honest communication is really important to me, and I think that it is an important tool in creating a strong community and clientele base.

How do you define success?
I define success as being better than the person you were yesterday. As long as there is consistent progress in my personal and professional life, I think that I am successful. You cannot worry too much about the things you missed out on or the things that are coming in the future.

All you can do is try and be the best person you can be today, and believe that if you do that day after day, you will reach the goal that you have set for yourself. The actions that you take shape the way your life will go, so it is important to spend your time wisely and choose the uses of time that will benefit you in the future. Success is not an endpoint, it is an occasional reassurance that you are on the right path with your life’s decisions.

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