Why I Almost Quit Real Estate Photography (Even While Making Six Figures)

I’ve thought about quitting real estate photography more than once.

And I know how that sounds — because I’ve been making over six figures doing it for two years running, about to be three. It’s not that I hated it. It’s just not the life I thought I’d be living.

Let me explain.

This Wasn’t the Dream

My name’s Cole Connor. I’ve built two six-figure real estate photography businesses — one on the east coast, one on the west. I run a YouTube channel that’s crossed a million views teaching people how to do the same thing.

But real estate photography was never the dream.

The dream was being a rapper. Being an actor. Making films. Telling stories. That’s still the dream, honestly. Real estate photography has just been the thing that worked.

Nobody in my family is a photographer. My dad’s an electrician. My mom did creative things but sold insurance for a living. This didn’t run in my blood — I just picked up a camera one day and it turned into something real.

And that creates a weird tension.

The Tension Between Stability and Purpose

On one side, I’m making money. I’m building something. I have stability — which, for a long stretch of my life, was the one thing I didn’t have.

On the other side, you start to wonder if you’re playing it safe. If you’re actually chasing what you were put here to do, or if you’re just… chasing the thing that pays.

So I’d think about quitting. A lot. Running away and going all-in on music or film or acting. Not even caring if I went broke, because at least I’d be chasing what I wanted.

Then something shifted.

I’m 33 now. I started chasing the rapper thing at 17. Started chasing film seriously around 27 or 28. And somewhere in there, I built a life. I have a son. I have a partner. She has a daughter. It’s not just about me anymore.

I’ve had to have a lot of honest conversations with myself — and the truth is, real estate photography is the only thing that’s been consistent. It’s the only thing that’s actually made me money. And at this point, it and YouTube work together. They are the engine.

Everything Is a Tool

Here’s the reframe that changed it for me:

Everything is a tool. Money is a tool. Skills are tools — creative, social, business, mental. All of it is just tools you use to navigate life.

For a long time I was chasing things I thought were the goal. Validation. Success. Some version of fame, whether I’d admit it or not. I don’t think those things are inherently bad — I love music, I love acting, I love writing, it’s all part of me. But there’s also an emptiness in chasing them for their own sake.

You can’t just quit on your family. You can’t quit on the business that feeds them. You can’t quit on learning just to go broke betting everything on one thing that may or may not work.

That’s not the route.

Real Estate Photography Isn’t the Ceiling. It’s the Foundation.

That’s the shift.

It’s not the dream. It’s the thing that lets me chase the dream. It puts food on my son’s plate while I figure out the rest of my head. It gives me the flexibility to build, to create, to experiment.

It’s not linear either. I’ll have a great run — super busy, making money, feeling on top of the world — and then it slows down and I start thinking, do I need to go back to Uber Eats? Do I need to get a 40-hour job just to have a floor?

Sometimes I make more money and then upgrade too fast instead of saving. I’m ambitious in ways that occasionally tip into delusional optimism. I’m still figuring it out.

But to have a skill. A business. A thing where I set my own schedule, build my own relationships, decide what I’m building and how — that’s a blessing. Being able to provide in a way where my family has options — that’s rare.

What This Business Actually Gave Me

Here’s the part I don’t talk about enough.

I never would’ve met my partner if real estate photography hadn’t brought me to LA. Never would’ve met her daughter. Never would’ve had my son. I don’t know if I would’ve had the confidence, the money, or the skills to make that move without this business propping me up.

What started as a kid trying to make some money so he could stop delivering pizzas and start marketing his music — it turned into something real. Something with legs I never expected.

You don’t know which way life is going to go.

If You’re on This Path Too

I’ve almost quit real estate photography a lot of times. I’m really glad I didn’t. Because it turns out it’s not the thing holding me back — it’s the thing keeping me going.

If you’re trying to figure out how to build a creative life, or you’re thinking about picking up a camera and making money with it — it doesn’t have to be real estate. Any kind of photography. Any skill. Just start.

Give yourself options. Build the foundation.

The dream doesn’t die because you have a stable income. Sometimes the stable income is the only reason you get to keep chasing it.

We’re figuring this out together.