Meet Michael Thomas | Photographer and Storyteller

We had the good fortune of connecting with Michael Thomas and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Michael, where are your from? We’d love to hear about how your background has played a role in who you are today?
I was born in Marietta GA and had a very good, strict upbringing from my Air Force dad and my mom. They encouraged compassion and empathy and care for others less fortunate. I did take a humanities class at Marietta High School where we were given cameras to complete a project where we picked a song and took related photos with people, things and whatever we wanted to be in the composition. I chose Money by Pink Floyd and took photos that related to greed that other people didn’t have – fancy cars, big homes, waste etc. Also, my dad bought me a 35 mm camera kit where I put the camera together. He was very good with cameras. The kit was from Radio Shack, that hot store of the 70s and on.
I always liked the works of Gordon Parks; his black & white work of Harlem always intrigued me. He said, “My camera is my weapon.” Only time I picked up a camera between that time and more recently was when I picked up a camera to take photos of my kids growing up. I bought a camera for photography in 2017 and a close friend took me out a cold day in the winter and I got started. I was taking an ancestry course at a local church and they talked about talked about photography forensics, researching people at a point in time. Then it was just birds and things for a while, but what got me into the street shooting black & white was when I had to do a screen-printed t-shirt delivery for my wife, and saw things that broke my heart in the south-side of Atlanta. I wanted to show people through my photos, that you can take a longer look at things and not just judge quickly. I wanted to share this feeling and let the image tell the story. That was my main passion, then the replenishing part came in my backyard. I found the counter to all of the despair, and it was nature, the ying & the yang. I developed the skill set of capturing the birds in flight, rising away from the angst and the pain, the black and white of the less fortunate.

Let’s talk shop? Tell us more about your career, what can you share with our community?
By day, I am a mild mannered Tech Industry dude working for companies like ADP, Oracle and Microsoft. Always looking for a challenge I joined Boingo Wireless to learn more about the telecommunication industry and loving the challenge.

My mantra is “Make Something Happen,” I was not very studious and college did not work for me but I manage to learn and adapt quickly while working alongside some very, very smart people.

While I can geek out on occasion I am good with the human component of business as the one who explain the “so what” ROI of what a solution can do for their company.

I’ve had an extraordinary life (in my eyes) from participating in Triathlons, Marathons and SCUBA Shark and Wreck diving.

My brand is being kind and sincerely caring about people without any mask or fake sincerity. To help others look into others and I don’t subscribe to the “random acts of kindness” why random? If one is kind nothing is random, it just pure unrestricted kindness.

The Universe gives and refills our pitcher where we are constantly pouring out kindness. It does not hurt,

One will never know what burden someone is carrying that smile and hello can make someone’s day.

Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.
The Square in Marietta, Ga, I grew up hanging out on the Square and always fond memories of living in a city like Marietta that did not share some of the bad history that other nearby cities experience.

Start of with a little libation and Pizza Truck, I would take them to the Marietta Museum of History and could do the tour myself and watch the fascination appear on your face as I tell the story of what makes Marietta unique.
I’m not saying it was perfect but I always felt at home there and a majority of my street photography takes place along with some of the not so pretty back roads just to say while everyone has a good time on the Square there are others less fortunate hidden behind the curtain.

It is there where I always have clothes, shoes, food, backpacks and yes, sometimes money. As in pictures I never “take” without “giving.”

The “Big Chicken” is overrated but Kennesaw Mountain never disappoints.

Who else deserves some credit and recognition?
I want to dedicate this to my mom and late dad for instilling goodness, decency to others and that the less fortunate need a voice which I provide through having their story told through my lens to the heart and soul of others.

In addition to Gordon Park’s “A Choice of Weapons”, and David duChemin “The Soul of the Camera.”

Website: https://the-stories-of-us-8e23fb.webflow.io/

Instagram: mwt_photography mt_mybackyardnature

Linkedin: http://linkedin.com/in/mwthomas