The Unknown Waters: How I Started

The constant malleability of our surroundings is something I’ve always been hypnotized by. Every day, our canvas is completely changing with the seasons, environment and shapes. To me, as a photographer, I view the world through a lens – constantly observing the in between moments in every day life.

There can be a certain character on the street that dresses a certain way, acts a certain way and gives off a general feeling. It is through street photography, and the way I view things on a daily that keep me inspired and fresh creatively. I started off this way. The day I decided to pick up my camera at the beginning of 2017 was to fill in a void in my heart – which had been broken. With heartbreak, you experience a flow of emotions, one that can be dangerous if you let it consume you.

I realized this, and couldn’t see myself wallowing in the hole that the heartbreak was pulling me into. Most of these emotions I experienced at the beginning of the year were so strong that I needed a creative outlet to cope with it at the time. I turn to art for comfort. Art has always been there for me when others weren’t. And even if they were there for me, creating things always has had a special place in my heart ever since I was a child. It is there, in creation that I lose track of time, lose track of the troubles in my mind and filter the negativity I feel outwards. The act of pursuing a brand new medium in which I had zero knowledge in was daunting but I dedicated all the time I had into the craft. I never read a single article, watched a single video, read a single book when I decided to pick up the camera. It was through trial and error, and my own intuition that spiraled me further and further into photography.

The artists I’ve met along the journey up until now, I have the most love for. It is those artists I met in the early stages of my pursuit that really molded and shaped exactly what I am doing today. If I were to give any advice to any photographers starting out – it ‘s to never worry about your gear, and just go photograph. The simple act of doing, over repetition and grit will improve your composition, the perspectives of your surroundings and the elements that make up a photograph such as line, contrast, shape, form, color, texture, hierarchy vice verca. So what exactly did I do at the beginning and why do my photographs look the way they do now? I was always intrigued by grit, urban decay and imperfections in the urban landscape. It was through a fellow artist Mo Ayad that exposed me to the world of true street photography. I would gather all the money I had at the time and set out to Toronto almost every single weekend.

This became a routine, the daily commute into the big city to practice my craft. These days were my most memorable times photographing things – I remember how cold the days were and how colder the nights were. We would leave home early in the morning and arrive in Toronto for 10am usually staying until 9pm outside all day bracing the cold with our cameras. There were no complaints. Mo was one of those artists that I ventured into the unknown areas of Toronto with and every single time we surged the streets in search of composing a photograph – he was full of passion and energy.

This energy still lives in me today. You have to really practice your craft in a childlike state – to open yourself up and be vulnerable to different compositions and environments. We walked through the city scanning our eyes and dissecting every single detail about the city and the characters that we saw – at the time I did not realize it but this was true practice. I believe there is more to photography then simply just freezing a frame. The act of viewing things, in a complex. When you critically observe your subjects and world around you, you develop a brand new world that you live in.

It is in this world that you find yourself living in. If you have this perception developed it will come second nature to you. To all the photographers that stop to smell the roses, I applaud you. This is my journey up until now, and if you could take one thing from this piece of writing, take this: Use the things in your life that make you feel less, take those things and make yourself feel more. Replace the emotions with new ones. The act of taking a leap of faith and diving head first into the unknown is the first step. Maybe you’ll surprise yourself. Secondly, trust your intuition, study those you admire, and surround yourself with people who are like-minded. But most of all, I believe that the idea of plunging into unknown waters for ANY art medium, skill, passion, craft will aid your soul. From there, you will find purpose.