Different Mind Designs

Different Mind Designs is a creative company that focuses on various types of photography. Owner LeTony Hadnot considers himself as an artist, not just a photographer. Most photographers have for several different skills and Had not is the same he is a skilled illustrator and graphic designer. Tell us a little about yourself. I am a photographer that loves shooting at night. I shoot anything from landscapes to portraits, but I definitely enjoy the por traits more. I prefer shooting at night sim ply because it’s challenging and forces you to be creative with the limited light sources that are around you.

Hadnot got his start with photography in high school after taking a class just to gain a credit. “I had absolutely NO interest in photography.” It wasn’t until 2015 when Hadnot wanted to capture some pictures of models in his graphic shirts that he picked up the camera again. “Somehow I went in a totally different direction and caught the “shutterbug”. Once I realized that I wanted to do photography on a se rious level, I signed up for a cheap little photography course I found on Groupon for about $5 (lol) to refresh myself with the basics of photography.” stated Had not. Hadnot challenged himself to first learn how to shoot in one of the most diffi cult conditions that most photographers struggle with and that’s shooting at night. He started with landscapes in the Down town Houston area and eventually moved on to doing fashion and portraits. Why do you choose to shoot at night? Night photography is nothing more than release therapy for me; it’s my breath of fresh air after a long crazy day. I feel like the portraits I shoot at night represents several different things, boldness, confi dence, sexiness, romance, vibrancy, and fun just to name a few. Those are things I feel are more present at night than you would see during the day. What do you special ize in? I specialize in various types of photography including portraits, real estate, fash ion, and commercial. I’m most known for the unique ability to shoot the majority of my portraits at night which earned me the

moniker of “The Nocturnist” (Shoutout to the lovely la dies of Mimosas and Lattes at Street 100 the Heat lol)

Author of budget travel book, “Wanderlust: For the Young, Broke Professional.” Deidre Mathis is known as the budget traveler. She is the first African-American fe male to own a hostel in the United States. Mathis has visited over 40 countries. Deidre has visited 16 of those 40 countries solo. She managed to travel to 12 coun tries in 12 months for less than $12,000. Mathis stayed in hostels while traveling the world and her experiences sparked her interest.

Right now there are only 400 hostels in the Unit ed States. Wanderstay Hotels aims to connect travelers from all over the globe. Guests love our social atmo sphere and private and shared rooms, which is geared toward making travelers from all over the world feel right at home. Unlike typical hostels, our Houston hos tel concept was designed to ensure that you receive all of the amenities that you are used to but at a price point that allows your dollars to stretch. Wander Often. Wan der Always. Inclusive Accommodations for the budget conscious traveler.

For many travelers, communal-style accommodations have left much to be desired. Sparse in the ways of ame nities and obviously lacking in perks, they simply allowed for a lot of improvement. So, we did. At Wanderstay Houston, we improved upon what other hostels offer. Maybe we went a little bit overboard when it came to ensuring your comfort and convenience, but we kinda felt that it was time. Our Houston hostel provides the following for FREE: Free WiFi, Free Continental Break fast, Free Games, Free Parking, Free Luggage Storage and FULL-SIZED BEDS!

Wanderstay Houston has been open for 6 weeks in the museum district of Houston, Texas. The hostel is able to sleep up to 27 people and has a total of 8 rooms. The Wanderstay provides inexpensive food and lodging for a specific group of people such as students, workers or travelers. Wanderstay is a place is the newest share accommodation space in the city. When you are capturing clients what is your main goal? My goal is to evoke some sort of emotional feeling when people are looking at my work. I also try to get a pos itive reaction from my sub jects when they see them selves looking their absolute best. What do you think is a big challenge for most photogra phers? I think the biggest challenge that artist’s face is the fact that they are afraid to step outside of the box. Especially with photography. We should be breaking those “rules” and finding a way to come up with something unique and exclu sive to individual techniques and processes. There’s no such thing as creativity if we all follow the grain. Creativi ty is the result of disrupting the norm and standing out. I strongly believe in not follow ing a trend, but being a trend setter. What sets you apart from oth er photographers? I would have to say actually taking the time and learning how light works in the dark. Finding a way to create beau tiful results. Most night pho

“Getting open was the hardest part of everything. The hostel did not open when it was initially supposed to open. Delays continued to happen and I had to learn to be flexible.” says Mathis. Deidre’s Tips: 1. Learn the most when you first start. This will help things go better. 2. Plan for more - Don’t plan for the exact amount you need save as much or more than you need. 3. Make sure you have a plan. 4. Be flexible. It’s for the best because you never know what’s going to happen. 5. Practice self-care to refresh every week. You need to put a plan in place to help keep your mind off work. tographers’ work is usually dark and moody, but I actual ly prefer to bring vibrancy and color into my work which cre ates a more dreamy and emo tional vibe. What is a philosophy or quote that you live by? “What you put into anything is what you get out of it.” If you could offer any advice to someone wanting to follow your path what would it be? Stay in practice, Hone your skills and keep pushing your self even if things seem low. The day you give up could be the day you get your break.

Mathis has been featured on Forbes, USA Today, Essence, Black Enterprise, the Houston Chronicle, and many oth ers. She plans to expand by 2020 to other locations. Wanderstay Houston 4018 Chartres St. Houston, TX 77004 P: +1-281-501-9610 https://www.wanderstayhotels.com Info.houston@wanderstayhotels.com For more information on Differ ent Mind Designs visit www. differentminddesigns.com. For more information on ser vices send an email to t.had not@differentminddesigns. com. And of course be sure to follow Different Mind Designs on Instagram @differentmind designs, Facebook @different minddesigns, and on Twitter @ DMindDesigns.