Today we’d like to introduce you to Edwin Ortiz.
Hi Edwin, thanks for sharing your story with us. To start, maybe you can tell our readers some of your backstory.
This is such a difficult question to answer especially because I hate talking about myself. Haha. I’m a very private person, my story is kind of common. I won’t waste time on specifics, that’ll take mad long. I’m a Puerto Rican from The Bronx & I was raised by my mother & two sisters. Those women made me who I am today. I really think my story started after I purchased my first camera. I purchased a Canon 70D with a refund check I got from school… My intention with that camera was just to walk around & take photos of nature walks. I wanted to shoot images like the ones I’d seen on National Geographic. Once I actually got the camera in my hand, I discovered that the images I liked to capture weren’t landscapes or flowers (which are still beautiful nonetheless) but instead something a little more emotion invoking. As a child, I was always enamored by movies that made me either scared or sad. I’ve always thought of the power to make someone feel sad through an art medium was something beautiful. So that’s what I set out to do; shoot images that would make the viewer feel. It started as buildings and alleys and then it transformed into something more because I felt I wasn’t conveying the feeling that I wanted to with no subject. So with the intention to make my work more impactful, I decided to stop shooting digital and start shooting film. Film photography gave my photos the “feel”, so to speak, that I had been looking for. Film photography also made my camera a lot smaller, so I took it everywhere with me. With my camera in my pocket 24/7, I began taking photos of the things that make me sad that I would see on a daily basis. Portraits of homeless people, impoverished conditions and drug attics were my new subjects. Through them, through their pain, I began to take the photos I’ve always wanted to take.
Of course, do other work that isn’t sad though, haha.
I’ve been fortunate enough to shoot in every setting possible, living in NYC you literally get to see EVERYTHING. The people that I’ve met throughout my photography career have really helped me prosper. People I looked up to (and still do) became people who would give me opportunities to showcase my talent. Those opportunities and relationships are what got me to where I am today. And also the fact that I may just be a good photographer, haha.
I’m sure you wouldn’t say it’s been obstacle free, but so far would you say the journey have been a fairly smooth road?
Is anything ever a smooth road? But who’s to say what’s “smooth” and what’s not. I’ve had my fair share of rejection, fear, hopelessness and self-doubt throughout my photography career but it all makes the story that much better, I like to think of my life as a movie. So if the movie didn’t have any trials and tribulations, it wouldn’t be interesting.
Thanks for sharing that. So, maybe next you can tell us a bit more about your work?
I don’t really post photos of myself on the internet. I’m very private. I also don’t share everything that I shoot. My art is very near and dear to me. I like to remain anonymous. I think this anonymity allows me to take the best photos possible. I don’t want my subject to take a photo for Edwin Ortiz the photographer, I want to be some random guy with a camera. For some reason, the “stranger with a camera” thing has always gotten me the best photos. There’s been so many times where I’ll be out and about and take a photo of someone and after I send them their photo from my Instagram, they’re like “Ohhhhh, that was you?! I’ve seen [insert photo here] on my timeline” or “I had no idea that was you, I like your work.” I love those moments.
I don’t think I specialize in any type of photography. I think I’m all around skilled. But through critiques that people give me, I’ve come to learn that I use color to invoke a certain mood. People have also told me that I have a very unique subject choice. I tend to shoot those that go unnoticed. I truly don’t do anything on purpose although I do see patterns. This is just the way my brain works when I go to take a photo. It’s kind of like an autonomous machine. One thing I will say I do is choose my film stock VERY meticulously for the scenario I would be shooting in. I’ve researched 35mm and 120 film extremely thoroughly and use that knowledge to try and get the best possible photo.
I’m currently the most proud of a photo that I haven’t shared yet. It’s something I’ve always wanted to photograph and I got a chance to shoot it in the exact way I wanted. I also had billboards in Times Square a couple of months back. That meant a lot to me too.
There is nothing that sets me apart from anyone else that has a camera. I like to think of my photography as a testimony to what my camera can do. I don’t edit any of my photos. All my photos are true to the moment they were captured in. I like to say that I’m more camera than human.
Is there a quality that you most attribute to your success?
The most important quality I feel has contributed to my success is the ability to be genuine and learn how to maneuver in a way in which you always make yourself a priority. It sounds selfish but sometimes you have to be selfish. No one loves you like how you love you.
Contact Info:
- Email: edwinortiznyc@gmail.com
- Website: edwinortizjr.com
- Instagram: EdwinOrtizJr
Image Credits:
All content copyright to the artist.
