Learn. Build. Monetize.

The McKinney School of Media & Marketing helps creatives, entrepreneurs, and business owners build real skills in photography, videography, marketing, AI, and entrepreneurship.

This is not just education. This is career development for the modern creative economy.

Whether you are learning your first camera, building a personal brand, starting a creative business, improving your marketing, or preparing to monetize your skills, McKinney School gives you the training, tools, mentorship, and systems to move with confidence.

Learn the craft. Build the business. Monetize the skill.

[Join the Waitlist]

Founded by Carter McKinney

The McKinney School of Media & Marketing was founded by Carter McKinney, Founder of McKinney Media, an award-winning creative entrepreneur, educator, photographer, videographer, and business coach.

Through McKinney Media, Carter has served more than 20,000 clients nationwide, trained students and professionals, and built a creative institution rooted in media, marketing, education, entrepreneurship, and community impact.

Carter and McKinney Media have been formally recognized by the City of Bethlehem, the U.S. Senate, and the U.S. Congress for leadership, entrepreneurship, and creative impact.

Today, Carter leads the school with one core mission:

To help creatives and entrepreneurs turn passion into skill, skill into income, and income into long-term ownership.

Built for Creatives, Entrepreneurs & Future Media Professionals

The McKinney School of Media & Marketing is designed for people who want more than random tutorials and scattered advice.

Our students are learning how to:

• Book better clients
• Build stronger portfolios
• Launch creative businesses
• Use AI to work smarter
• Create content with purpose
• Develop real marketing systems
• Understand pricing, sales, and client experience
• Turn creative talent into professional opportunity

This is where creativity meets execution.

What You Get When You Join

Live Coaching & Mentorship

Get direct mentorship from Carter McKinney and the McKinney Media team through live coaching, critiques, strategy sessions, and guided learning experiences.

Students receive practical feedback, real-world insight, and clear next steps they can apply immediately.

Online Course Library

Access a growing library of courses covering photography, videography, editing, marketing, AI workflows, entrepreneurship, content creation, and business systems.

Learn at your pace, revisit lessons anytime, and build your foundation from beginner to advanced.

Business & Marketing Toolkit

Students receive access to practical resources used by real creative professionals, including:

• Contracts
• Pricing frameworks
• Client intake forms
• Marketing templates
• AI prompts
• Content planning tools
• Proposal structures
• Creative business checklists

These are not theory-based resources. They are built for execution.

Networking & Community

Join a community of creatives, entrepreneurs, students, and professionals who are building their skills, brands, and businesses together.

Members gain access to alumni conversations, networking opportunities, peer accountability, and select in-person experiences.

Workshops & Pop-Up Labs

The school offers hands-on workshops and focused training labs throughout the year, including topics like:

• AI-powered campaigns
• Brand building
• Photography intensives
• Content creation
• Lighting
• Editing
• Marketing systems
• Creative business growth

These sessions are built to help students leave with something tangible: a stronger portfolio, sharper system, clearer offer, or better workflow.

Programs & Specialty Training

Creative Skills Education

Photography

Learn camera basics, exposure, focus, composition, lighting, editing, client workflow, posing, direction, and professional delivery.

Tracks include beginner, intermediate, advanced, and specialized photography training.

Lighting

Master natural light, continuous lighting, off-camera flash, studio lighting, and real-world lighting setups for portraits, events, branding, and commercial work.

Photo Editing

Build a clean editing workflow using Lightroom, Photoshop, AI-assisted tools, and professional finishing techniques.

Students learn how to create consistent galleries, speed up delivery, and develop a recognizable visual style.

Videography

Learn the fundamentals of video production, including camera setup, movement, framing, audio, lighting, storytelling, interviews, b-roll, and event coverage.

Video Editing

Develop editing skills using tools such as Premiere Pro, Final Cut, and AI-enhanced workflows.

Students learn pacing, structure, captions, sound, color, storytelling, and content formatting for social media, business, and long-form projects.

Design & Visual Branding

Learn graphic design fundamentals, layout, typography, color theory, Canva, Adobe tools, and brand consistency for business and content creation.

AI-Powered Creative Training

AI is no longer optional for modern creatives and business owners. The McKinney School teaches students how to use AI as a practical tool for speed, strategy, content, and operations.

AI for Photography

Retouching
Background replacement
Concept development
Mood boards
Shot planning
Creative direction
Gallery workflow support

AI for Marketing

Content planning
Ad strategy
Campaign ideas
Trend research
Email and SMS copy
Social media workflows
Brand messaging support

AI for Business

Client tracking
Proposal writing
CRM workflows
Chatbots
Automation
Internal systems
Standard operating procedures

The goal is not to replace creativity. The goal is to help creatives move faster, think clearer, and build stronger businesses.

Entrepreneurship & Business Growth

Creative skill is only one side of the equation. The McKinney School also teaches the business systems required to monetize that skill.

Students learn:

Business setup
Pricing strategy
Client communication
Sales conversations
Portfolio development
Contracts and policies
Marketing funnels
Personal branding
Lead generation
Service packaging
Client retention
Scaling through products, classes, licensing, and partnerships

This is where students learn how to move from “I’m creative” to “I own a business.”

Learning Formats

Weekend Intensives

Focused, hands-on training experiences built to help students master a specific skill in a short period of time.

Cohort Programs

Structured, semester-style learning experiences that combine craft, business, AI, mentorship, assignments, critiques, and portfolio development.

Pop-Up Labs

Seasonal, project-based workshops focused on timely skills, creative trends, marketing tactics, and business growth.

Private Mentorship

One-on-one and small group coaching for students, professionals, and entrepreneurs who want personalized guidance.

Focus areas may include:

Portrait lighting
Event workflow
Brand strategy
Pricing
Sales
Editing
Portfolio review
Client delivery
Content for business
Creative entrepreneurship

Spanish-Language Classes

Select classes are available in Spanish to make creative education more accessible to a broader community of students and entrepreneurs.

Internship Program

The McKinney School internship program gives students real-world training inside McKinney Media’s active creative ecosystem.

Interns gain hands-on experience in:

Photography
Videography
Marketing
Event production
Content planning
Business operations
Client service
Creative project management

The program includes portfolio-building assignments, mentorship from Carter and the McKinney Media team, and career development guidance.

The McKinney Advantage

You are not just joining a course platform. You are entering a creative ecosystem.

At McKinney School, students learn from active industry professionals who are currently serving clients, producing campaigns, building events, creating content, and growing businesses.

What makes this different:

You learn from people doing the work now.
You gain access to real business systems.
You build both creative and entrepreneurial skill.
You learn how to use AI as a competitive advantage.
You connect with a growing community of peers and mentors.
You receive practical tools you can apply immediately.
You are trained to think like an owner, not just a freelancer.

This is education for the creative economy.

Membership Access

The McKinney School membership gives students access to the full education ecosystem, including online learning, select in-person opportunities, mentorship, community, templates, and professional development resources.

Membership may include:

Online course access
Live coaching opportunities
AI and marketing masterclasses
Private community access
Portfolio-building assignments
Business and marketing templates
Priority access to workshops and events
Student and alumni networking opportunities

[Join the Waitlist]

Upcoming Classes & Programs

Photography Series

A complete learning path for students who want to improve their photography from the ground up.

Classes include:

Beginner Photography
Advanced Photography
Photography Masterclass
Lighting Workshop
Editing Workshop

Students will learn camera settings, composition, lighting, posing, editing, workflow, and professional delivery.

[Join the Photography Waitlist]

Videography & Video Editing

A practical training path for students who want to create stronger video content for clients, businesses, brands, events, and social media.

Topics include:

Camera setup
Framing
Audio
Lighting
Movement
B-roll
Interviews
Editing
Short-form content
Long-form storytelling
AI-enhanced workflows

[Join the Video Waitlist]

One-on-One Private Classes

Private classes are available for students, entrepreneurs, and professionals who want focused coaching based on their goals, gear, business, and current skill level.

Popular tracks include:

Portrait Lighting
Event Photography Workflow
Branding & Pricing
Editing & Delivery
Content for Business
Marketing for Creatives
AI for Creative Professionals

[Book a Private Class]

Cohort Program

Our cohort program is a structured training experience for students who want deeper development, accountability, mentorship, assignments, critique, and a final portfolio-building project.

Students complete guided lessons across creative skills, business development, marketing, AI, and professional presentation.

The program is designed to help students leave with stronger skills, clearer direction, and a body of work they can use.

[Apply for the Cohort]

Build Your Legacy

At the McKinney School of Media & Marketing, we do not just teach skills.

We teach ownership.

Ownership of your craft.
Ownership of your business.
Ownership of your future.

This school was built for the creative who wants more discipline, more direction, more opportunity, and more control over what they are building.

Learn. Build. Monetize.

[Join the Waitlist]

McKinney School of Media & Marketing

Based in Bethlehem, PA
Available online and in person

www.mckinneymedia.co/education
carter@mckinneymedia.co
484-222-5062