Tiago Maya: The witness, creating his own legacy

Tiago Maya

Hi Tiago, tell me about yourself.

I was conceived in Porto and I was born in 1980 in Lisbon. I lived with my parents until I was 28, when I moved, bought a house and went to live on the seaside in Oeiras with my wife-- now we have two kids.

Your English is really good. Did you ever live in the States or abroad?

Yes. I did an intership in a photojournalism agency called VII in Brooklyn while living with my aunt in New Jersey. The difference between Spain and Portugal is that in Spain they translate every movie that comes out but not in Portugal. So since childhood, I’ve been listening to music and watching movies in the original language.

Giulia Cuccurullo from the Artesian Bar in London

And what did you study?

I didn't go to college. I graduated in photojournalism in fashion and communications here in Lisbon, a three year course. From then I started working in 2002 as a freelancer.

Did you ever work as a bartender?

No! I think it's funny that you asked because my experience with cocktails was zero until like six seven years ago, when I had my first assignment with an agency that had a client called Bombay Sapphire. My first assignment was to go to London to cover a press trip to the Bombay distillery at Laverstoke Mill. And at the time, we stayed in the Mondrian, a very nice hotel. In the evening we went to a cocktail bar called Dandelyan which was one of the best cocktail bars in the world and  I think that's where it all started. I started to like working with these people and learning about cocktails, because since before then I knew nothing. I’m still not a big drinker. From then I started to fall in love with the industry, working more and more with brands from with the agency, starting get intention from Bacardi. Now I work with the 3 major distributors, Bacardi Diageo and LVMH.

Bartender from the Three House in Funchal

Who gave you your first great paying job. Was that Bombay?

No, I started working as a freelancer in 2002. I did an internship in a newspaper but the first important paying job was an assignment for Vogue Portugal.

Wow! That’s big!

Yeah, it was the first important one I remember- doing a fashion shoot for Vogue in collaboration with designers. There was a hairdresser in Paris that worked with a store here Portugal. After that, I did a lot of gigs. As a freelancer it's normal to for you to do a little bit of everything like events, weddings, commercial photography, whatever you can get until you find your niche, which I found years later. I had to do a bunch of things.

Catching the moment

When did you first realize you could be a photographer for a living?

The first time that I realized it was probably like 10 years ago. I would say I always wanted to be a photographer. I got my first camera when I was a little kid from my grandma when I was five or six years old. And since then I've been shooting always, because I like to witness things and shoot my family, my friends. I think photography has been with me forever but when I realized that I could do this, only do this forever. I think it was like 10 years ago when I when I quit the job that I had working in a call center trying to pay my way. You know how it is. Then I said, “That’s enough. Let me try it.” And I started getting more and more engaged because I really wanted it so said, “I guess this could really happen”.

Where is photography taking you around the world?

In 2023 I worked with a couple of bars in Italy, traveled to Sao Paolo for the World Class Global final,and covered some takeovers in Spain. Thank God for my wife, who is not holding me back-- I think she sacrificed a lot. Before that my travels took me mostly in Spain and Portugal.

Patrick Pistolese from Drink Kong on a guest shift at Monkey Mash

The biggest challenge that you face as photographer?

I think the biggest challenge is marketing yourself. And mainly because being a photographer today is mainly a marketing business. There are so many good people, the only way you can set yourself apart is to make yourself a person that can offer more than just a photography service. And as I said, find your niche no matter how long it takes.

A lot of people think that finding a niche limits you but it doesn't really. Of course when you are just starting out, don’t look for it, just get experience and connect with people. Learn to love people, it’s the only way to be a good photographer. Once you learn that, the rest is easy.

And then the niche will find you. Woody Allen said that 80% of your success is just showing up. Take assignments, be present, where you want to be and someday you'll find yourself. That’s what happened to me. I had to offer more than just photography service. I discovered this a little late.

What is your highest aspiration?

I want to be a witness of my generation. I started to shoot very young and I realized that shooting my friends, my family, taking pictures of everything that surrounds me helps me create a legacy, something that will never die. It's a testimonial, and that's really important for me. It’s a bit of history mentioned, materialized in images, because today if you forget, if you want to know something about history, you read, you have words and you have images. And everyone knows that an image is still worth 1000 words.

I think about this all the time. My grandfather died with Alzheimer's and dementia and it was a very scary thing to me. Losing your memory, losing everything that you know. So sometimes I think that by being a photographer is the way I can transfer my thoughts, my image my memories into something that will stay forever, no matter what happens. You know when you can’t remember something? You say. Let me see my pictures. Images are like that. I don't talk about this very often. But I think in the back of my head I know that this ghost brought on by my grandfather is always trying to push me to report what's happened in life.

I did a post when I was in Barcelona and I said: For me it's a huge honor especially to be in this niche and in this industry and to be a witness. I'm not just a photographer. I'm the photographer with relationships. And I know I'm a witness for this industry. This is the most important thing for me.

Party time!

Do you a lot of studio shots?

Oh, yeah. Mainly my work centers on doing product photography for restaurants and bars. And so I do the cocktail photography and I work with brands. I do product shoots. So my studio is me, I come to you because I prefer to engage with your spaces and mix the products with the space wherever it is

The Three House in Funchal, Madeira

If someone asks you your specialty, would you say cocktails and hospitality?

I think my specialty is people. I'm recognized by my work with food and cocktails. And I think do a good job with the product photography. But I always try to have a twist because my major is photo journalism. So I always wanted to bring more to my product shots, it has to tell a story. There's always a hand or someone doing something-- I like to see things move.my patients have movies. So they can tell a story. I love to mix the both of those techniques and I think that's what stands out in my work.

The Monkey Mash team

 So you've been working full time.

I am the official photographer for Monkey Mash, Red Frog and Quattro Teste in Lisbon, also TORTO in Porto, but I also work for other bars and brands.

Riccardo Rossi from Freni e Frizioni in Rome

What about the challenge during a huge event, you know, after midnight in a bar, a mob scene of people how, how are you able to capture photos in that atmosphere?

I always tried to be focused I try not to lose myself in the crowd, but be outside of the crowd trying to see what's happening. You know, as a witness I want to I want to know what's really important and what's happening. Who are the people to watch- who will help tell the story about that night?  I'm always looking for the next good shot.

Did you ever photograph a big celebrity that you were really in awe of?

No, I don't think so.

What is one kind of photography job you would turn down?

I would definitely decline an “only fans” kind of shooting.

Have you been asked?

Yeah. And I said no. Recently, I found myself turning down working for some brands. I was asked by one or two brands, in categories that I was not very fond of. If I don’t like the brand, I am not going to be as focused on it and can’t give my all.

And sometimes those brands have huge budgets and are willing to pay a lot of money.

Yeah, people have told me, if I don’t like a product, to jack up my price. But if I don’t like it, I won’t be proud of my work and that’s counterproductive for everyone. I need to fall in love. I love my clients, I love everything I work with, I want to do my best and I want to help people that I really believe in. And I think I'm at a special phase in my life. My 20-year-old self would say, take the job, any job. But I think my 43-year-old self is in a place that doesn't need to do that kind of thing.

All I can say Tiago, is that you are doing something very right. Keep doing it.

5 fast questions for Tiago

Strained or on the rocks?

On the rocks

Your favorite alcoholic spirit?

Mezcal

One photographic item you can’t live without?

My Polaroid.

That was my next question: Polaroid yes or no?

Yes. Definitely. Let me give you a longer answer to that question. Like me, the Polaroid is instant- what you shoot is what comes out. And it's a chemical process and it will stay that way forever. You can’t change it, you cannot edit it. It’s my favorite thing to shoot. I love it.

Who would you like to spend an hour in the dark room with?

My wife. I probably don't get enough time to do that. Not enough quality time.

Where to find Tiago on Instagram

@tiagomaya (alias MAYUKA)