Artist/Photographer – Jamel Shabazz

Jamel is an American photographer born in Brooklyn, New York, 1960. At the age of 15, he started taking pictures of his families and friends which lead to him becoming one the most known street photographers of modern times. It is said that many of his earliest influences came from album covers that was passed down in his family through generations.

Jamel was chosen to be my inspiration because his works perfectly presented the elements I wanted to convey, happiness captured naturally and delivered throughly. When scanning through each different works of photographers down a list I looked up under “street photographers”, his works caught my attention quickly. Out of all the works, his, and only his was able to make me pause for a second as if I was taken out of reality and allow me to lay down my stresses for a second, appreciating his work before returning to the world filled with unwanted yet unavoidable anxiety. I then dug deeper into his works and eventually dedicated him as my inspiration because the subjects in his works are so animated that it almost becomes confusing as if they are actually there, present within the image in realtime.

Source: Studio Museum (Organization)

Image of Inspiration:

Rationale: This is a photo taken of 2 young boys off the street. The two subjects in the photo has very natural smiles, which brings true happiness to the audience’s hearts. Additionally, the slight tilt (visible through background) make this image seem more “on the spot”, live, and almost unreal, which brings the audience briefly away for a second to purely enjoy the happiness. There is also a variety of colors that differs but yet matches, corresponding with each other, providing the image with additional visual effects. Overall this image inspired me because it correlates with the elements that I intent to communicate, I personally belief I will be able to gain new ideas and strengthen my presentation in the final work through this inspiration.

Attention to Details:

-Eye contact with the lens

-Happy facial expression

-Creative and matching fashion (red and blue)

-Natural day lighting

Other inspiring images: