Check Out Roman Lopez’s Story

Today we’d like to introduce you to Roman Lopez.

Hi Roman, so excited to have you on the platform. So before we get into questions about your work-life, maybe you can bring our readers up to speed on your story and how you got to where you are today?
I am 30 years old. I am a Venezuelan beauty and product photographer based in LA.

I left my country a little over nine years ago due to the big crisis my country is going through. I lived in Uruguay for around three years, there, I started studying photography at an institute. I loved photography right away but I felt it would be better for me to study it by myself.

Even though I fell in love with it, I never thought I would pursue it in a professional manner. I remember doing my friend’s hair and makeup and taking photos of them, now looking back I do not think I was that bad to be honest haha. I guess I have always had “an eye” for it since I was raised in a country where pageants are huge and beauty is really relevant. I grew up watching the “Miss Venezuela” with my mom, I think this helped me develop this sense for beauty.

Three and a half years after, I moved to Argentina, where I started doing event photography full-time. This was not my ultimate goal, but I was at least working as a photographer and it was paying the bills.

I discovered beauty photography after being in Argentina for quite a while and I fell in love with it. I decided to start learning more about it as well as retouching. I was living in a pretty small town at the time where it was super difficult to find models, I still pushed through it and from time to time I would travel back to Uruguay or Buenos Aires (Argentina’s capital) to work with models and build my portfolio. All the money I was making from events, I was investing it back to building my portfolio as a beauty photographer.

I invested a lot on learning how to retouch pretty well so I started working as a full-time retoucher while still living in Argentina.

After some time living in that small town, I finally decided to move to the capital, I knew this is where it was at when I came to model agencies fashion, etc. Even though I was working as a retoucher, I was still building my portfolio as a beauty photographer and it was going in the right direction.

After more or less three years in Argentina I decided to come to LA to visit my photographer friend, we met because I was retouching photos for her, we bounded and then that is how I decided to come visit. Being here it was eye-opening for me, I saw all the brands, models, budgets, and artists that there are, hence, two years ago I decided to take the leap and move to the US.

Currently, I am living my dream, it feels like this is the place I am supposed to be. I am really proud of what I have accomplished so far, in less than 2 years my work is already in Sephora, it has been printed big around the city, I have worked with big cosmetics brands and most importantly I am able to do what I enjoy the most full time.

This journey has not been easy; however, I would not change anything about it. I started out from nothing, LITERALLY, when I moved to Montevideo (Uruguay’s capital) I did not even have a pillow or a blanket to sleep with, everything I have built has been with hard work and of course amazing people along the way that have supported me as well.

For me, this is just the beginning of a new chapter in my life however, I already feel successful. I admire what I have done, not from a cocky place but from humbleness.

One of the things I am most grateful for and that has brought me to where I am is my mom and the education she gave me because that is the only thing nobody can take away from you and that is what has helped me whenever I have started all over again.

Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
Coming from Venezuela was already a challenge due to the situation my country is going through, I feel we have to work extra hard to be able to accomplish anything we want.

When it comes to photography and retouching I have been self-taught, so everything takes more time and effort.

When it comes to the language, I am grateful I learned English when I was little, however, it is way more different when you are in a city where there is a lot of competition, so I had to quickly learn how to properly communicate with clients in a proper and professional way in a language that is not my first one.

Appreciate you sharing that. What else should we know about what you do?
I am a beauty and product photographer; I specialize in cosmetic brands. What sets me apart from others I feel is my style. I have worked with big names in the industry in a short period of time. I guess I am doing something right haha.

Are there any books, apps, podcasts or blogs that help you do your best?
I am not much of a reader, but I have been reading a lot about the business side of photography, like licensing, pricing, how to stand out, etc.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.romanlopezphotography.com
• Instagram: @romanlopezfotografia