Life, Values & Legacy: Our Chat with Patrick Janka of I’m omnipresent

We’re looking forward to introducing you to Patrick Janka. Check out our conversation below.

Patrick, we’re thrilled to have you with us today. Before we jump into your intro and the heart of the interview, let’s start with a bit of an ice breaker: What is something outside of work that is bringing you joy lately?
I’m a pickleball fanatic! I love going to outdoor open play and meeting new people while playing an incredibly fun sport!

Can you briefly introduce yourself and share what makes you or your brand unique?
I’m a videographer and photographer originally based in Orlando, now residing near Atlanta, but still operating in both cities. I’ve been shooting wedding and corporate work since 2010. My wedding brand is Luxe Filmography and my corporate brand is Executive Imagery. I also teach a course on SEO for wedding professionals called Wedding SEO Pro.

What makes my work special or unique is that I approach my wedding work from a non-wedding vantage point to avoid cliches. In all my work I’m very deliberate when it comes to framing and lighting. I feel the art of cinematography has given way to shooting more social media/BTS style, which isn’t as intentional. I’m more traditionally cinematic in my approach.

Thanks for sharing that. Would love to go back in time and hear about how your past might have impacted who you are today. Who taught you the most about work?
My parents originally taught me hard work through studying in school and going above and beyond the assigned coursework. I earned a bachelor’s degree in Finance and a master’s in Information Technology. I didn’t go into either of those fields, but the work ethic propelled me to excel in running my own ventures. With respect to video production, I learned a lot under the wings of a couple of people who ran wedding video agencies. I worked directly under them and they taught me a lot about the business and shooting live events.

Was there ever a time you almost gave up?
There have been many times where I almost gave up. You have to make a decision and ask yourself, is this thing worth fighting for? There’s the sunk cost fallacy that says you don’t need to continue doing something just because you’ve already invested a lot into it. It’s okay to say this path isn’t the correct one and make a pivot. If it is something worth fighting for, then you need to just persevere and remind yourself that setbacks are only temporary and everything has peaks and valleys. Specifically in the wedding industry there have been many cultural shifts that have affected business. There was Covid, the rise of content creators, a shift to more documentary style videos, the looming recession, etc. You have to be able to adapt to the changes.

Alright, so if you are open to it, let’s explore some philosophical questions that touch on your values and worldview. How do you differentiate between fads and real foundational shifts?
Fads typically appear rather quickly, which means they generally fade quickly, as well. They often spring up without much warning. I’ve largely avoided them knowing they won’t last and will only make my work look dated. Foundational shifts are more gradual and you typically see them coming. Right now AI is shaking up nearly every industry and is here to stay. I think it can be a force for good in my industry. It helps with automating tasks, doing audio transcriptions, photo editing, aid in writing blogs, etc.

Thank you so much for all of your openness so far. Maybe we can close with a future oriented question. Could you give everything your best, even if no one ever praised you for it?
Absolutely. I don’t chase clout at all and accolades mean very little to me. I do this because it’s my life force. It gives me personal satisfaction, and I don’t need external validation to keep going. The only real praise I enjoy is from my happy customers.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://luxefilmography.com, https://executiveimagery.com, https://weddingseopro.com
• Instagram: https://instagram.com/luxefilmography/
• Facebook: https://facebook.com/luxefilmography/
• Youtube: https://youtube.com/LuxeFilmography