Huy Doan
Age 31
Huy is understated—a man who loves people, food, bicycles, the outdoors, and his dog.
He’s also a photographer who has sharpened his craft in the past decade and now counts Ferrari, Adidas, NBC, 686, and Oprah among his clients. “I think that definitely your style changes,” Huy reflected on his profession and art.
“When you first start shooting, you still don't know what you want from a shoot and what your style is. I think every year you are just honing in more [on] a certain style that you embrace … it becomes you.”
He watched other photographers when he was younger and “how they communicated with the subject.” He’s learned to read a person’s disposition and mood, “where the person is … [to] speak to him and take your time.”
Age 32
For me, connecting with Huy every year as a fellow photographer is powerful because he knows, in many ways and on a core level, what I'm looking for in terms of vital moments to catch, significant environments that reveal personality, response, internal growth—a way to hold up what's especially relevant in a subject’s life at a particular time. In his second portrait for this project at 32 years old, we shot at a table that he built out of preexisting parts, that also had stools he made out of wood and concrete. His creativity felt poignant in that. Being in his work environments gave me some insight into the way he approaches photography.
Age 33
Huy shared that marriage and progressing through his 30s has changed him deeply. Marriage to Tashina “is the most important thing in my life.”
“[Since] getting married and thinking about our future, we have started planning further ahead in our lives. I'm growing up … being more mature, being more responsible. … Now I have to think about both of us and our life together, instead of just being a selfish, single person. … I think about traveling more, before starting a family, because those responsibilities will take over and you can't be selfish anymore. … So I think that is the main thing that has changed—thinking about our future as a couple and, hopefully, future family.” He adds that it feels crucial “to make the right decisions in life … and to not make bad decisions, the ones that set us back. … I just want to progress and move forward together.”
Age 34
Huy is from the Midwest, but has been in California a long time. The way cultural geography impacts our passage through life was on his mind in our conversations at 36 and 37.
“It is hard to feel grown up when you are living in Los Angeles … not having the structure that most people have, living in California, being a freelancer … I guess it doesn't make you feel like you have to grow up. … You [can be] a 40 year old and still act like you are 30. I think back [to] where my family is from and what my sisters were doing in their 40s … it's completely different from what we are doing.” He mused, “What would it be like if I grew up in the Midwest with my family, versus here? … Being 40 would be completely different. But I wouldn't change a thing.”
Age 35
Huy drew a connection between aging, maintaining community, and the sports—cycling and golf, in particular—that have shaped part of his life.
“As people get older, it’s harder to meet up with friends, and golf is a kind of excuse to hang out with someone you haven't seen in a while. Or … for someone you haven't really hung out with, you invite them to golf … it’s a good way to segway that friendship.”
Age 36
Age 37
Age 38
Age 39
When it comes to recognizing that the prime of life is finite, Huy was frank,
“I accepted that I'm getting older. And I think ‘don’t fight it, just embrace it.’ I think that’s my secret … know your abilities and don't overextend yourself. … When I was younger, we didn't care about tomorrow. … Now, I'm just a lot more patient.”
His wisdom in a nutshell has been to “stop being selfish and be involved in the bigger picture.”
