Daily Inspiration: Meet Calvin Leonard

Today we’d like to introduce you to Calvin Leonard.

Hi Calvin, so excited to have you with us today. What can you tell us about your story?
I started doing photography about six years ago. At that time I was just shooting Landscaping and a bit of street. Then I moved on to doing portraits. I started to expand my reach. And started shooting the lowrider culture. Then I eventually started working with lighting. Like studio lights strobes and flash. Trying to add on to what I was doing. I think being a complete photographer helps in the long run. Six years later I have been in quite a few art exhibits. I have a few published pictures also. Two years ago, I self-publish a photo book. It was a book based on my travels during covid-19. Me and my girlfriend went on road trips during that time. I took a bunch of pictures of things I seen with the film camera. Three bookstores ended up carrying the book. It’s sold out pretty fast. Something I’m very proud of. Right now I’m working on another book that’s based on the lowrider culture. That should be coming out sometime this year.

Alright, 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?
Overall I think the road was pretty smooth. I picked up a lot of techniques and how to work the camera and do editing really fast. To me, the fun part was just learning all of those things. I usually take on challenges head-first. That’s what it’s about.

Thanks for sharing that. So, maybe next you can tell us a bit more about your work?
I can’t say I really specialize in any specifics. I pretty much shoot what I see. I’m all over the place which is a good thing. I don’t want to be stuck or predictable as a photographer. But I usually shoot the lowrider culture. But like I said I’m everywhere. I can shoot skateboarders, Surfers, portraits, landscape you name it. I want to say what sets me apart from others. Is the mixture of photos that I take. Like you can’t really sit here and say hey this guy only shoots lowriders. Or hey this guy only shoots people with tattoos. Or he only shoots in these places and that’s it. In photography, it’s all about creativity. Setting yourself apart from others.

What are your plans for the future?
In the future, I would love to be in more art exhibits. Like I said earlier I’ve been in quite a few so far over the last 2 years. But my main goal is to get into art LA and photo LA. That’s really what I’m looking forward to. If I can accomplish that I would be completely happy.

Contact Info:

• Instagram: @clphotosla_