Bee Gats

Conversation between Mike Giant and photographer Bee Gats.

Topics discussed include: photographic aesthetics, the beauty of decay, Estevan Oriol, Boogie, opening doors for the next generation, the Tulsa series by Larry Clark , The Americans, playing with cameras as a child, Kodak cameras, hip-hop album covers: Mobb Deep - The Infamous, Thrasher and Transworld magazines, discovering Big Brother at 13 years old, magazine shops, Life Sucks Die, While You Were Sleeping, Mass Appeal, F.E.D.S. and Don Diva, Arme, The Wire, learning lessons from law enforcement/forensics shows, moving around, finding parallels in Buddhism, early love of guns, Miami Vice, Knight Rider, Dirty Harry, GI Joe, The Punisher, burglaries at 8 years old, picking locks, the register button, grand theft (first felony at 12), TICO, skate/punk houses, Camu Tao, The MHz, preferential treatment from police due to his mother’s murder, racial inequality, Don Pendleton: (Mack Bolan, The Executioner, Phoenix Force), learning to shoot at 10, Boy Scouts, Raven handgun, stashing guns, getting jumped, finding the courage to fight back, learning how to box, libraries, free pizzas for reading, learning dynamic framing from comic books, biting, “standing on the shoulders of giants”, reading the room, Mindful Listening, body language, Steve Jobs, unforeseen advantages, an eye for choosing interesting subjects, building an audience through authentic work, feeling grateful, artistic process, Meas, Flaks, flow state, the quest for greatness, punk ethos, punk house, comfort of regularity, gambling on yourself, learning from exes, having the hard conversations, “Don’t believe everything you think”, How to Think and Grow Rich, Gabe/Mortal Machine Gallery, seeing tattoos at 8 years old, first tattoo at 16, subcultural connections, BJ Betts, Huero, Dave Calvelli, Jesse Strother, Instagram as a curated portfolio vs lifestyle feed, mutual inspiration, Frank Miller (Sin City), and life goals without expectations.

Recorded on March 1st, 2026 on Mike Giant's studio in Dayton, Ohio.

Instagram: @beegats