Meet Max Arren | Photographer & Lighting Technician

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

Hi Max, what led you to pursuing a creative path professionally?
I very strongly believe that if you really like what you’re doing, you will never get tired of it or burnt out from it. If that’s happening to you right now, there’s a good chance you don’t actually like your job that much. And that’s totally okay—people are forced into doing things they don’t like to survive, everywhere, all the time.

I have very few things in life that I actually enjoy doing—mainly performing music (which was my first passion growing up; I spent all my younger years in classical music school. It was the career path I abandoned because it’s nearly impossible to make a living doing it) and doing photography. When I can spend my time doing these things, my life feels good. Every moment I have to spend doing other work, I genuinely feel terrible, because it takes a huge chunk of my very short life and turns it into nothing—I just feel disconnected from it.

But when I’m doing what I love, I can keep going for days with just short breaks to sleep before jumping back in.

I think I was around 17 when I finalized my decision to pursue a creative career. And for me, it was the right call—even with all the hardships, the crunch times, and at times having to work two other jobs just to survive until I could support myself through creative work. Because once you push through that phase, life starts to feel rewarding and meaningful.

By the time I was 20, I was doing photography full-time and could afford a really nice lifestyle doing it. However, shortly after I turned 21, the government of the country I was living in decided to crack down on the opposition, which included me. Without getting into details, this resulted in me losing everything and not being able to see my family in person, possibly ever again, escaping the country only by sheer luck. Eventually, I ended up in LA, and the cycle of juggling multiple jobs just to support myself and my creative work began all over again. To me, this experience only further proves that doing work I’m proud of and truly passionate about is essential. Without it, I don’t feel like I can fully be myself.

I know a lot of people don’t really care what they have to do for a living, as long as it brings them enough money to spend on things they enjoy. But I know for a fact that a life like that would be torture for me—because I’ve tried it already.

So yeah, I think a lot of people in creative fields didn’t exactly choose this path lightly. For many of us, it’s simply the only way to stay true to ourselves and actually enjoy life.

Let’s talk shop? Tell us more about your career, what can you share with our community?
Before I started doing photography, my background through childhood and early teens was mainly in classical guitar music. For many reasons (but mainly because it’s nearly impossible to actually make a living with that skill), when it was time to get a higher education, I decided to go to a jewelry school instead.

During my time there, we shared a building and a few classes a week with the fashion design school, and I found myself increasingly drawn to the editorials they presented. For the whole first year of college, I was saving up money to buy my first DSLR, and officially began my photography journey in 2018, at the age of 17.
Despite eventually graduating successfully, I never pursued a job in the jewelry field. Instead, by the time I finished college, I already had some small-time photography clients and was excited to move forward in this industry.

As I navigated my way through photography, the initial focus on strictly fashion naturally expanded to include more general subjects like portraits and headshots. After moving to LA, I even started branching out into food and event photography. Periodically i also do lighting-related work on some video productions.
But I think my general work ethic remains the same. For me, photography is about capturing and communicating emotion through the final image. For many commercial projects, it’s about expressing the client’s vision for their product. For an event shoot, it’s about capturing the atmosphere and preserving personal moments for the people who were there. For a personal shoot, it might be about showing someone exactly as they are—or sometimes, about presenting them the way they want to be seen in that moment.

I think that regardless of the genre, people want to feel like they—or the things they care about—are being seen. Your job as a photographer is to understand precisely how they want to be seen and why it matters to them. And when you’ve connected enough to truly see that for yourself—that’s the moment to pick up the camera and start bringing their vision to life.

If you had a friend visiting you, what are some of the local spots you’d want to take them around to?
Firstly, The Baked Potato. That is THE greatest spot in LA for live music. Period. At this place, I’ve met in person multiple living legends of modern jazz and progressive music, but honestly, any night there is special—even if you don’t know who’s playing. Great drinks, solid food, and incredible music are just part of the deal.

Barney’s Beanery in West Hollywood. That’s the original Barney’s Beanery. It’s supposedly where Tarantino wrote parts of Pulp Fiction, and where Jim Morrison of The Doors was a regular—allegedly once thrown out for peeing at the bar. Genuine historical landmark.
Despite the lore, it’s not a music venue—it’s more of a classic dive bar with a great vibe and surprisingly friendly regulars.

The Comedy Store on Sunset Boulevard. This is THE place for comedy in LA. It’s not cheap, but depending on the lineup, it can be absolutely unforgettable.

Bar Lubitsch – beautifully designed, solid drinks, and every so often they’ll have some music performances going on.

4100 Bar – a proper Silver Lake staple. Silver Lake is one of my favorite areas in LA, and this bar is an essential stop if you’re exploring the neighborhood.

Los Angeles has way too many cool spots to list them all, so to wrap it up, I’d say: just get out there and explore. And of course, there are endless hiking trails and beaches across greater LA. They’re all amazing—just try to avoid weekends unless you’re a fan of serious crowds.

Who else deserves some credit and recognition?
I’d like to tell you about my friends that I share a house with: Jonny Stern, Chester and Harrison Milton, and Ali Shah. I deeply respect them as professionals and absolutely love them as people. They’re a huge part of what keeps me going instead of giving up entirely.

Jonny is a film director and cinematographer. His work includes multiple award-winning documentaries and collaborations with global brands. Right now, his biggest project is a documentary titled “Besela (The Scar),” which he’s set to shoot this summer in war-torn Tigray, Ethiopia (https://vimeo.com/1079208288 — trailer here).

Chester has worked on many film and TV productions, including Euphoria, Succession, Tenet (2020), and, most recently, Ryan Coogler’s Sinners. He’s also a filmmaker in his own right, and I highly recommend his 2018 short “Aging Out”— a powerful and visually striking piece that explores the realities of the modern foster care system (https://vimeo.com/266637731). His latest short is already filmed, but it doesn’t have a confirmed release date yet.

Ali – works mainly in the lighting department on high-end video productions, with credits on shoots for Rolex, Walmart, and many others. He’s also developing his own film project at the moment.

And Harrison is one of those people who make the industry function behind the scenes. He works at Milton Agency, representing artists and on-set professionals and connecting them with projects looking for serious talent. He also has a few projects in works and I’m sure he’ll be glad to share them with the public when it’s time.

Their emails (not for public use please)

Jonny Stern – jms@jonnystern.com
Harrison Milton – harrison@miltonagency.com
Chester Milton – cmilton14@gmail.com
Ali Shah – alihshah.10@gmail.com

Website: https://maxarren.com

Instagram: https://instagram.com/maxar_ph

Other: You can email me at maxarren.ph@gmail.com

Image Credits
1 –
Wardrobe Stylist&Creative Director: Kendall Scarone
Model: Imani Baptiste
MUA: Amanda Kindt
Hair Stylist: Annette Arevalo

2 –
Model: Feba Alex

3 –
Creative Director: Liubovi Grab
Model: Adriana Polyakova
MUA: Anastasia Bednova
PA: Kristina Nogovitsyna

4 –
Model: Kristina Mordovtseva

5 –
Model: Tenmeiy PV

6, 7 –
Model: Elizaveta Kruglova
Stylist&Wardrobe credits: Dana Tikhonova
MUA & Hair: Alexandra Avanesova

8 –
Model: Steve Ondongo
Stylist: Yana Novoselova
MUA: Nadezhda Shcherbakova

Personal photo –
Photographer: Kaley Vetter