Today we’d like to introduce you to Leah O’Connor.
Hi Leah, can you start by introducing yourself? We’d love to learn more about how you got to where you are today?
Growing up in and around Kansas City, Missouri, I spent most of my childhood creating various forms of art for as long as I can remember, eventually falling in love with photography when I was around 13. Pretty quickly I started photographing local concerts (accompanied by my mom), humoring the local musicians with my early teenage presence. I fully believe that if it wasn’t for the Midwestern Musical Co.’s First Friday concerts, I would not be who I am today. As I got older, I put photography on the back burner as I pursued theatrical lighting design all throughout high school, where I had the opportunity to design many of our school productions while also working for various community theatre companies. I eventually moved to Santa Fe, New Mexico where I planned to get a Bachelor of Fine Arts in lighting design and photography at Santa Fe University of Art and Design. In a bittersweet turn of events, it was announced in the spring of my freshman year that the college would be closing down. This leads to two turbulent years of international travel until I landed in Los Angeles where I have lived ever since. The time I spent traveling allowed me to fall back in love with photography and then combine it with my lighting design history to pursue working in the film and photography industry.
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?
It has absolutely been a bumpy road, full of twists and turns. One of the biggest struggles that was consistent throughout though was finding the balance between managing my mental health and achieving my creative goals. Having moved so much in such a short period of time, I struggled with the isolation I felt once I did settle into living in Los Angeles. I am a very community-oriented person, so when I was no longer moving around and meeting new people constantly, I felt lost. I began the trial and error process of immersing myself in Assistant Camera work and other assorted film jobs but it took almost two years for me to really find what I was good at and made me feel creatively fulfilled.
Thanks – so what else should our readers know about your work and what you’re currently focused on?
I am an editorial and behind-the-scenes photographer, and I am known for my ability to blend into the background and capture scenes using natural light. I believe that this is my strongest skill that sets me apart from others, as it allows me to work in any scenario with limited equipment without being obtrusive. Because I have a theatrical lighting design background, I can also heavily incorporate artificial light to add elements of fantasy as well.
Who else deserves credit in your story?
I would not be who I am today without the plethora of amazing mentors I’ve had over the years. Some of my biggest influences are the women I have worked with / currently work within the film and photography industry, as they have shown me ways to be a strong woman leader in a male-dominated field while also teaching me tangible technical skills. My photography mentor is Zaydee Sanchez, an amazing photojournalist who not only captures raw, emotional stories of our city’s homeless population and immigrants on the border but also is an active part of the effort to help these communities. She’s shown me the importance of not only telling people stories but being a part of the change you are documenting. I feel like this angle is really missing from a lot of media these days, so I find it very inspiring. I also have to give major credit to some of my biggest supporters, my family, my sister Elizabeth and my partner Kalum, for their creative inspiration and emotional support.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.leauh.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lea_uh/
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