Meet J’aime Spezzano

Today we’d like to introduce you to J’aime Spezzano.

So, before we jump into specific questions about the business, why don’t you give us some details about you and your story.
I am an actress, painter, furniture refurbisher, writer-turned-entrepreneur and travel photographer.

Great, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
No artist’s road is ever easy; it is filled with rejections, losses, restrictions, and failures. But we get back up because that is what we do; we create, even if we have to recreate ourselves. We do, for the love of expression and life. My artistic road has been a bumpy, explorative and reinventive one. No matter what, every day I have to create something to satisfy my soul. There have been many times I have had to pick myself up and dust myself off and ask myself what my next pursuit of happiness would be.

I am from Oahu, Hawai’i and have been an actress for over half of my life. I moved to Los Angeles to attend The American Academy of Dramatic Arts. I continued working in Los Angeles as an actress and artist while dealing with the #metoo offenses that came my way. Until I experienced a trauma that like many women, sent me reeling and I needed out of LA. I needed a revolution; an evolution of self. I asked myself what makes me the happiest? My answer was traveling and exploring the world – there was no question about that.

Renting out my bedroom for three months last Fall, my best friend and I eloped to Paris. I focused on the form of expression that was most accessible to me – photography. It didn’t take up vast amounts of space with art supplies and furniture or many hours spent rehearsing. It was perfect for living abroad. I wanted to share what I loved about all the places I was experiencing. The more I fell in love with my photography the more my audience did as well.

Then, of course, a pitfall. My Canon 5D Mark III was stolen in Barcelona. What is a photographer without a camera? Well then, “when life gives you lemons,” I continued to focus on my iPhone travel photography and was gaining more and more recognition. I liked that I could show people that they too, in this day and age, have the capability to create beautiful photography with their mobile devices. Yes, I am a romantic – I fell in love with it!

JaimeSpezzano – what should we know? What do you guys do best? What sets you apart from the competition?
As a travel photographer, I love connecting to the location and expressing its essence through the filter of my experience there. Just like when I was acting or painting – I want to invoke a feeling in my viewer. I want them to feel like they are there experiencing it for themselves.

What moment in your career do you look back most fondly on?
I was recently flown out to speak on a debate panel and lead a workshop for travel photography at MojoFest in Galway, Ireland. It was a tremendous honor to be speaking with so many photography masters. Not to mention that leading my very own workshop on travel photography was a thrill. I am so proud to have had that experience – I feel like I found my people!

Since then I have been encouraged to lead iPhone travel photography seminars which I am very interested in doing. Travel, clothing, apps and hotel companies are starting to take notice of me and are looking to collaborate. I want to build this along with my travel blog, the children’s book I wrote, and new luxury eco-friendly puppy product business I am very passionate about. I also still love acting as a craft and may go back to it in the future. As of now, I am back in Paris writing this interview before I head back to LA in a month.

As artists, and if I do say so myself, as women, we continually reinvent ourselves, either in the same field or another. Our lives are full of possibilities; it is just up to us to create them!

Contact Info:

• Website: www.JaimeSpezzano.com
• Email: JLSpezzano@gmail.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jaimespezzano/
• Twitter: https://twitter.com/JaimeSpezzano

Getting in touch: VoyageLA is built on recommendations from the community; it’s how we uncover hidden gems, so if you know someone who deserves recognition please let us know here.