Why I decided to become a World Student?

 

Hi everyone,

Hope all is well! I may not blogged in almost two months and my new years’ goals failed, but I wanted to still get my thoughts out, regardless if I went to an elaborate event or not. I was asked a few times of why adding the “World Student” part when mentioning my professions as both a photographer and videographer. Personally, I find this occupation is to represent me the most as well as encompassing my roles as videographer and photographer. It’s not a common profession because I am not common person and its a title unique to me in some way. Despite my claim to fame of being a swell photographer and persistent event videographer, I actually graduated from Trinity College with a Bachelors of Arts in International Studies as my major (minor was film studies). I never took a course in Photography until I studied aboard to Trinidad and Tobago. I took a photography course there, but I learned far enough before the class. If anything, Trinidad and Tobago taught me photography. I don’t know how to paraphrase or narrow it down to how a nation taught me an important skill I currently run my business on, but I can’t stress enough that travelling to a new country and becoming well-submerged in the culture has not only shaped my understanding of the world around me, but gave me a stronger purpose in life. My major in college, having the vast majority of my friends from different countries, studying aboard to two different countries (China as well), and being Nigerian has given me the sense of excitement when I actually do something, especially learning new things and making them a part of me. I took some of my strongest pictures in the Caribbean and also in events with International elements such as Couture Fashion Week. I am a huge fan of EDM music and . I studied the Japanese language for almost 4 years. I can go on with my submersion of International culture, but what makes me a World Student is not about being just worldly, but how to take different aspects of the world to influence your overall self in the time you are given. Let the world expand in your favor. Hope to blog again soon, seriously soon, soon.

Couture Fashion Week 2013

This slideshow requires JavaScript.

I know this might be late (I know, I know), but I am going to talk about my experiences as a press photographer for this year’s Couture Fashion Week held at the New Yorker Hotel on February 16th. I was able to make it to only one of the days because the designers I was interested in viewing their work were showcasing the same day. From Pearl Naidoo of South Africa to Alphadi of Nigeria, I am always rooting for international fashion designers to take both New York Fashion Week and Couture Fashion by storm and hopefully get to work with many more international designers. I had the wonderful pleasure in working with both Dakar Boutique from Senegal (there will be a future blog) and Sai Suman Couture from India. Nonetheless, I find the outfits were even more impressive and eloquent than ever before. From Alphadi’s beautiful dresses (My favorite was the woman in the brilliant pink) to Pearl Naidoo’s spunky male model of Indian descent and Marlene’s amazing wedding dresses, I am anxious to see if this would be something in the markets quite soon. I have also improved significantly in my sharpness, color balance, and lighting of my shots than the last couture fashion week, with the same old Canon 60D camera and kit lens. I can’t complain, I am still working on acquiring new lenses for my 60D. I would not get rid of my camera in a million years! Sure, I wished I moved to the front of the press pit to get the over the head runway shots you see in magazines, but the press photographers I have encountered were extremely vicious! I was one of the first ones, but I am not doing it for a magazine or a particular designer. Next time I do Couture Fashion Week, I will get more snarly to get the absolute best shots! Who knows, I might become a New York Times Photographer. The sky is the limit, our world is small. I am here to experience it all. Wait, why did I end with a rhyme? Until the end of time, I get the shots that is…ok, im done.

Ashton Michael Autumn/Winter 2013 Collection-”Black Heart”

This slideshow requires JavaScript.

Hi everyone,

Since I have been hiatus for a while, I will leave you guys with one last post. And yes, its New York Fashion Week related for all those fashionstas out there. I’m actually uber excited writing this post as we speak since I have the utmost pleasure in covering an Ashton Michael show. You may seen some of his work (notably his jackets) with a few celebrities including Will i Am, Azealia Banks, and Waka Flocka Flame. Unlike the Micheal Kuluva- I Crave You collection, a show of flashy, hearts, and “Dripping in Gold” features, Black Heart is a huge contrast! The show adorns with each model sporting a gold nose-rings like long horn bulls, Gothic/metal leather jackets, unusual models (eg., a stocky man with a crazy beard, albino models, and the famous Zombie Boy.) The show is absolutely my favorite fashion show to date, not because of clothes I could see myself wearing (if I have the money), but a memorable one that I consider one of the scariest and perhaps controversial show of the season. Nonetheless, check out Zombie Boy and Ashton Michael’s line! You wont be disappointed. Unless you are very conservative in fashion, which can be boring! Cheers!

Please check out Ashton Michael at:http://www.ashtonmichael.com/home.html

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ashtonmichaella

Tumbler and Tipsy-I Crave You! Fall 2013 Collection

This slideshow requires JavaScript.

Hello everyone,

2012 has been quite an impressive year for me as I plan to make 2013 even bigger. This is officially my first post of the year and what better way to start off by talking about New York Fashion Week for the Fall Collection. I was honored to find out that the post that I wrote about last year’s Tumbler and Tipsy’s show landed me an official invite to attend the Tumbler and Tipsy- I Crave You! Fall 2013 collection as press. I never really expect my blogging can lead to more opportunities to network, but nonetheless I get to attend another Tumbler and Tipsy show!  Michael Kuluva is a LA based designer and owner of the Tumbler and Tipsy fashion line. The show was held on February 12, 2013 at STYLE360 at the Metropolitan Pavilion, New York City. Sponsored by Harmon/Kardon and Conair style, the show is set to impress once more.

Stars that attended the red carpet include Lily Halpern, Camen Electra, and Wynter Gordon as the show opened up with a live performance by pop singer Colette Carr with the hit song “F16″. Her military style baggy pants forecast what is to come for the rest of the show. The majority of models sported in plaid and or military like attire such as studded jackets and combat boots. However, since Valentine’s Day was near, the show had interesting Valentine themed accessories such as the makeup of the female models’ lips painted in heart shaped pouts, in tribute to Betty Boop. The show have alot of flashy and glittery aesthetics in the dresses and gear. but the most remembered among the collection was the official “Dripping in Gold” black sweatshirt worn by a model. Micheal Kuluva wore this shirt for the event. The show concluded with each model holding a red heart-shaped balloon. Overall, great show and perhaps Valentine’s Day Gift for those who attended!

P.S. I met Micheal Kuluva after the show was over! Best Valentine’s Day gift ever.

Please check out Tumbler and Tipsy at:  http://www.tumblerandtipsy.com/index2.html

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/TumblerandTipsy

Expect the Unexpected, you will appreciate it. (Part III)

This is the last of my post for the series and I have to end it with the Hurricane Sandy. The storm is certainly nothing close as glamorous as the other two, but is something that I certainly did not expect. I was upset when Hurricane Irene delayed my flight to my beloved Trinidad and Tobago for a week last year, but never expected that the east coast will be affected with another Hurricane storm. Especially at the level of impact the storm has left the Tri-State area. I admit that the belief of a super storm like Sandy was ridiculed (hence the Sandy meme jokes and Twitter) until the storm’s wrath was no laughing matter. The twitter account I find funny at first became deleted after the storm was over. I lost power at my place for over a week. I have missed a day of work and came back to work half a day later. Not to mention, the overwhelming crowds of people lining up Port Authority was unspeakably unbearable. I never expect to have the police direct how I will go home or the lack of wifi hotspots in New York City for someone who loves her technology.But for one thing, the storm has brought interesting attributes out of people. I have heard stories of people with generators sharing some of the power to next door neighbors, I have met interesting  people in the city that made my time more valuable. Instead of Facebook, instead of wifi, instead of internet, I was able to talk to many people first hand. Lastly, I found how less hectic it was when a huge percentage of electricity was shut down. I find it serene when the bus rides home have less flashing lights, piercing through the windows. It felt kinda cool when a whole town has a common bedtime of some sort.  I have seen different classes, race, and creed of people I hardly see on the bus to interact with each other. Most importantly, no one in my family was injured from the storm, nor the people I am close to. I expected many things this year, some of my expectations were beyond unexpected. Talk to you soon!

Expect the Unexpected, you will appreciate it. (Part II)

I mentioned from my previous post that I will talk about the PDN Expo 2012. I know that its quite late since the show was this past October, but I would love to talk about my experiences for I actually had a great time. Also, this was my second show in Javits Center, after attending New York Comic Con. Even though I was not press this time, I still met amazing people! I received so many pamphlets, Photography magazines,product guides, and information on the latest DSLRS, portfolios hosting sites, lighting gear, and much more from tons of different vendors. Nonetheless  I spent alot of my time around Sony and Canon DSLRs since I already own Canon cameras and I am planning to invest in Sony products. I am planning to obtain either a Canon Mark III with both 24mm-70mm lenses or the Sony Alpha a99 with similar lenses from Carl Zeiss to take my pictures to the next level. Lastly, I spent the rest of my time hearing from the Sony artisan photographers who gave amazing seminars to the public.  They talked about how their usage of Sony cameras has made their diverse niches in photography such as portrait and fashion easier. You might heard of them, but meeting Micheal Jordan Smith, Andy Katz, and Me Kah Roh was perhaps the coolest thing that has happened to me this year. Oh, and I won $250 dollars from Borrowlenses.com. Hopefully, I will email them about the certificate. Stay motivated!

Expect the Unexpected, you will appreciate it. (Part I)

Hi everyone,

This slideshow requires JavaScript.

So there were several events I participated this year, but due to Hurricane Sandy and the lack of a stable laptop, I was left discouraged to post everything that has happened to me recently. Not to mention, I can not remember every event  I have been to in detail. So, I dedicate these two posts for these three events, Hurricane Sandy, New York Comic Con, and the 2012 PDN Expo. I start with New York Comic Con and Anime festival since it came first. I was blessed to receive my second press pass this year as the show was much more bigger than I expected. I was overwhelmed of where to start, which booths or exhibitions to look at, and how much time should I photograph various events. Not to mention, the attendees from this year is higher in number than 2010′s expo (I heard the number was over 110,000 as tickets were sold out before the show.) I can not tell you as much in detail of my experiences this year since I came unprepared, tired, and overwhelmed, solely the reason that I spent more of my time with Cos-players than attending some of the events. Although, I did spent some time in the show floor. I must say that seeing New York streets flooded with superheros, zombies, monsters, and villains has clearly made me feel at home for I am quite the anime/video game fan myself. I didn’t expect that the cos-players were the highlight of my time at the show, but I surely appreciated the interactions I had with them. Here are some pics I took from the event! Enjoy!

She’s The Way Summit at Columbia

Hi guys,

So sorry I haven’t posted in a while. Having been affected by Hurricane Sandy with a run down laptop has completely slowed down my blogging. And thus, I waited awhile to think about more things to write about. Thanks to Sony, I am able to obtain a Vaio laptop and other multimedia gear. So I am going to start with the latest photography experience I have. I attended the She’s The Way Summit at Columbia University this past weekend. She’s the Way Summit is a global movement promoting, mentoring, and educating young women of Africa, especially from marginalized and oppressed locations. I was really excited that it was a multitude of seminars and discussions about inspirational women of color tell their stories to other women of color in hopes that inspiration will follow. Not to mention that the event was sponsored by Dark and Lovely which provided amazing gift bags and hair makeovers to the women that participated. Among the events I attended this year, it was definitely something I am not used too (considering that I do more fashion and music events) but definitely gained a lot of contacts and self-awareness. I just have to fight harder to continue telling the stories of others through the power of film and photography.

Fashion shoot in Times Square

This slideshow requires JavaScript.

I have another fashion shoot update for this post which involves night photography. Again, this is the first time I got involved in a niche within photography for a clientele without prior experience. Not to mention, my time in teaching myself night photography is limited due to commuting to work. Thanks to YouTube videos, online photography posts such as Improve Photography (One of my favorite places to learn photography) and photographers I know, I discovered a nifty trick named Rear Sync, which delays your flash in order to get the background and foreground at the right settings. In the future, I will write more about camera tips and tricks which you, my readers will benefit from! My clientele for the fashion show was Sai Suman from India. She is a major Bollywood fashion designer who has done shows for Dubai Fashion Week and Couture Fashion week. I find that her work for someone in her youthful age is truly impressive. Initially, I thought I am doing photoshoot for Sai only, but little that I know that this is ACTUALLY A PHOTO SHOOT WITH MODELS!

Let’s recap this equation. Night Photography+Indian Fashion Designer+Real Models+Mid Level Camera equipment……..often have lukewarm to poor results, but for me, equals awesomeness. It was the first time I saw models getting ready for a actual shoot.They had an amazing makeup artist, hair stylist, and an assistant to work with Sai in a hotel room. Luckily for me, I have my partner from Bitter NYC to help me with my shoot maintenance and other things. With a few practice shots, the fashion shoot was ready to start. The tourists’ reaction of the models in Times Square was crazy. A lot of people want to pose with the models, asked if this will be featured in a magazine soon, who was the designer, and more. What was even more insane was the wardrobe changes in the changing room of a few clothing stores such as Hollister and inside a food shack. It felt like a Top Model moment. Best of all, the New York Police is known to stop shoots like this, but they actually joined in the fun and I took great pictures of them posing with the models. Overall, great people, great shoot, and most importantly, GREAT EXPERIENCE!

Some Updates and Goals

Hi everyone,

It’s been a little over a month since I last posted here. I have some amazing updates for you guys! First of all, although its not the biggest thing in the world for me, I am proud to say that I found a part-time job at Sony in New York City. I am very excited to learn about Sony since it gives me a chance to play with all the latest gadgets and gizmos. Second, I am selected to direct a documentary next year. I am confident that you guys will here alot more about it in the near future, since I love keeping things a mystery. For the next two posts, I am going to talk about my experience with NYCC/NYAF (New York Comic Con and Anime Festival)  and my first photoshoot in Times Square with an Indian Fashion Designer. Oh, and I finally got a credit card for the first time in my life! I have a clue of the many things I want to purchase and yes, paying those god-awful bills. More to come, finally.