Journey of A Photographer

THE JOURNEY

As some of you know I picked up photography as a hobby 3 1/2 years ago. By the end of that first year of photography as a hobby, I was let go at my full time job.

With no 9 to 5 job, I suddenly began doing photography as a profession. That first year of professional photography was really interesting. I had so much to learn and so little time to do it.

It took me about six months to get a firm foundation on the technical side of photography. As far as the business side, it has been two and a half years and I am still learning.

In all honesty I have no clear direction where I am going with my photography. I didn't go to school for it. I didn't grow up with it as a passion. Yet here I am today photographing portraits, weddings, sweet sixteens, and other events for my clients.

It is both humbling and creatively fulfilling. What an honor it has been and still is to serve my clients during special, memorable days in their life journeys.

Starting today I now have my own photography studio in the Bronx. Previously I was sharing space with other photographers. Now I have my very own studio. That is so crazy to me.

The walls haven't been painted yet. All that is there are my lights and my two backdrops: one white and one pink.

I would love to share with you the plans I have for the four rooms of the studio space but that will be for another time. All I can say is it will be a place where art and photography meet. Holla!

I share all this because there may be some people reading this who are doing the thing they feel led to do for the moment, but don't have a clue about the destination.

I DO NOT KNOW THE DESTINATION FOR THIS PHOTOGRAPHY THING I AM DOING.

All I know is I am working with what is in front of me. You see I am the kind of person that likes to know the destination so I can get there in an efficient manner. As a person of faith I believe God is keeping that destination from me so I can trust Him along the journey. So I can look to Him for direction. I also believe this forces me to enjoy the experience of the journey and not be consumed with the destination, which is very easy for me to do.

If you are still reading this then perhaps you understand what I am saying. Maybe you have felt the same way.

Let us hold fast our faith and continue to press onward. It may be a roller coaster ride, but it will be one we have never been on before. Let us enjoy it while we are here.

Keeping the faith,
J

Urban Fine Art Fave - "Bronx Girl Portrait"

PORTRAITURE

Latina is a Bronx girl through and through. You hear it in her Florida swag. You see it when she walks in the streets of New York. Like many other places, the Bronx has this way of tugging at your heart even when you are not there.

So it was with great joy I took Latina around some industrial areas of the Bronx to get some real urban portraits. When I saw this one in my camera I knew it would be on this blog.

So enjoy the Bronx Girl Portrait of Miss Latina Vega.

Urban Fine Art

Urban Fine Art Fave - "Latina Vega"

PORTRAITURE

It is amazing how the internet provides a platform to meet people. A friend of mine introduced me to the photography work of Latina Vega some time last year. Then during the latter end of the summer that same friend recommended me to Latina to assist her with a photography project she was working on.

Since then Latina and I continued communicating on FB, and supporting each others photography work.

Latina works in the Tampa, Florida area so it was a great pleasure to take portraits of her last week while she was working in the NYC.

This is one of the many great portraits I took of her.

Nydia Veras was excellent on the Hair and Makeup.

Urban Fine Art

The Headshot

It was bound to happen. I posted enough pictures on Facebook for a friend of mine to ask me to shoot her headshots.

So Joseph Dominick Photography was hired. :0)

It seems she was not thrilled at all with the headshots she had recently taken. Her makeup looked caked on in the photos. The photographer's light also seemed to accentaute the thick makeup.

Unfortunately her other colleagues also took pictures with the same professional photographer and were not satisfied with the results either.

After reviewing what the photographer did with her and her colleagues headshots, we proceeded to review various headshots online by other photographers. This exercise in research was done to get a clear understanding of the visual palette and what this actress found pleasing in headshots. We were able to select a color scheme based directly off of the headshots she found pleasing. In our consultation I was also able to get a clear idea of how she was choosing to market herself in the acting world.

Well our photo shoot went very well. We did both in studio work and outdoor shooting.

I spoke with her this weekend and she loves the headshots I took. She loves them so much she's having a hard time selecting which ones to use. :0)

So once she makes her selection, I will post them here for your viewing.