Hidden Gems: Meet Blaise Joseph Castellano of BLAISE JOSEPH PHOTOGRAPHY

Today we’d like to introduce you to Blaise Joseph Castellano.

Hi Blaise Joseph, so excited to have you with us today. What can you tell us about your story?
I grew up in South West Florida, it was there around the age of 15 that I got an itch to grab a camera and start capturing the world around me. In the early 2000’s digital photography and video was just starting to become more accessible and affordable, as was computers and post processing as well. So I got my start in photography at an early age through capturing photos of my friends skateboarding and making video montages around that. Throughout my high school years I explored many different aspects of photography, mostly landscapes and portraits. I took summer photography and photoshop courses at Ringling School of Art and Design, then took what I had learned to college. It was in college at UCF that I had the oppurtunity to start photographing and filming concerts for promoters. Which I was able to turn into working and touring with artists and DJ’s. Once I graduated I figured I had nothing to loose and always had the dream of coming out to LA to surf and experience the Southern California lifestyle. At the time I had two gigs confirmed in LA for HARD Summer and Las Vegas for EDC. So I packed up my car with what I had and drove across the country to live on a futon in a music studio at my friends house for almost two years until one of the other roommates moved out. I’ve been based in LA since 2015 building my photography business, mostly with DJ’s and festival promoters while also working editorially and commercially with a range of brands and companies. This business has taken me around the world a few times and I feel very thankful to have the experiences and built the relationships that had lead me to where I am today. There is still a lot I would like to accomplish and I hope to continue to push my own boundaries and challenge myself during the long road ahead.

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?
There have been many twists and turns along the road to where I am today. I’ve had major struggles with the business administrative aspects, mental health, and self doubt. I’ve had to make hard decisions to say yes or no to clients as well as ways to grow and prospect my business. Prospecting has always been a big struggle for me, often I wish I could work with an agent and just be able to focus on the creative. That being said, if you’re a photography agent give me a shout! haha. I’ve also had to miss many birthdays, holidays, social, family, and, personal events. The emergence and expansion of social media has also been a blessing and a curse. One day your work is being shared with the world on major company or artist platform. The next your watching your colleagues do things you had dreamed of and trying not to constantly compare yourself to their achievments. Media is a forever learning and adaptive experience, especially with fast changing technology, you must be able to learn from mistakes, often on the fly, and there is never only one good way to get the results you want. I always leave myself open to finding new ways to achieve the technical results I want. However, I would say the largest struggles for me have been keeping my mental health strong and not falling into self doubt. My hobby became my career, so I like to fill that void with either going on adventures and capturing things like landscapes for personal enjoyment and prints. I also like to fill my extra time with other hobbies like surfing and snowboarding, without the camera.

As you know, we’re big fans of BLAISE JOSEPH PHOTOGRAPHY. For our readers who might not be as familiar what can you tell them about the brand?
My creative agency is Blaise Joseph Photography, a boutique production company specializing in creating and executing digital content for brands and companies. I combine a traditional filmmaking and photography approach with a fresh perspective on evolving digital mediums. My aim is to create visually and narratively engaging content and work across all platforms to engage the visual sense, always striving to create meaningful content and storytelling. I tend to be known for my work with DJ’s, events, and festivals. I’ve had the pleasure of working with many small businesses and indepependent artists as well as fortune 500 companies like Addidas, The Latin Recording Academy, Latin GRAMMYs, Insomniac Events, Ultra Music Festival, amogn others. Niches are great for building a business or community, however to me photography is a medium in which many iterests can be explored. With that, I have also been known to specialize in portraits, action sports, and corporate work as well. Aside from paid work I perosnally love to capture landscapes during my travels and adventures, to which I also sell prints of through my website.

We’d love to hear about how you think about risk taking?
Taking risks is almost bound to happen in this business. If you’re not willing to take risks you may not grow. I took a risk when I moved my life to LA for what was only two confirmed gigs at the time. I took risks taking certain offers over others and saying no to some. And I take a risk everyday working freelance in a field where work can dry up at any moment. It ultimately falls down to your personal drive and willingness to keep going even when there’s no work on the horizon.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://blaisejoseph.com/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/iamblaisejoseph/
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/blaisephoto/
• Other: https://blaisejoseph.pixieset.com/prints/

Image Credits
Featured photo of me – Credit Kyle Houck https://www.instagram.com/kylehouck/

Festival images taken at EDC Las Vegas for Insomniac Events

Pink Doll House Images of Mia Khalifa

Studio image taken for JSTJR https://www.instagram.com/jstjr