Today we’d like to introduce you to Elizabeth Natalie Ng
Hi Elizabeth Natalie, it’s an honor to have you on the platform. Thanks for taking the time to share your story with us – to start maybe you can share some of your backstory with our readers?
Currently based in Boston, Massachusetts, I began my creative journey during the pandemic in 2020 by simply capturing mundane but precious moments of my family members and the small items that exist within an indoor space. In 2021, I became part of The Smart Local creative team – a locally known award-winning multimedia organization – as a photographer, videographer, and editor, shooting documentaries, key opinion leaders, and brands like Zalora, Sephora, L’Oréal, BOSCH and more.
I further explored my creative identity during my three years at Boston University, leading editorial campaigns, magazine publication photoshoots, fashion show photography, and meaningful collaborations between people of color. Heavily influenced by my work as Director of Photography for the all-POC publication, Charcoal Magazine, I hope to tell a diverse story that captures the idea of “Intersectionality,” and invites safe spaces for complex conversations that tap into the ideas of gender, race, and sexuality.
Through the dreamy utopian-esque and ethereal editing style, my mind hopes to explore and create alternative curate dimensions that deep dive into specific episodes of life. Touching on themes like girlhood, east-west collisions, breaking gender stereotypes, and other multifaceted issues, I hope that my creative works bring solace who those who see it.
Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way. Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
As a WOC in the male-dominated creative and photography industry, it has definitely been challenging trying to stand out and tell the stories of individuals with hidden stories and narratives. There has been multiple moments where certain parts of my identity were questioned by clients and other photographers, and that further wavered my ability to perform well during those situations. Developing a voice and a photography style that is different from the rest is difficult, but is made more challenging because of how I started and where I came from. The struggles were multi-layered but created a platform for reflection and introspection. Many of these episodes left me days and moments of questioning my personal goals and identity as a creative director but it also allowed me to reflect on the ways I would like to go about my journey.
This road as a photographer is not just about me but its about the women, the people of color and the LGBTQIA+ community that I am sharing about. It is about connecting these communities through tapping on the idea of “intersectionality,” and that is the core key word that I use to create vision boards, creative briefs and narrative works for my clientele. These struggles are reflective of the societal and systematic barriers that many individuals face in multiple fields, and I am aiming to be the voice of reason for many marginalized communities!
Thanks – so what else should our readers know about your work and what you’re currently focused on?
I graduated college with am international relations major and a women, gender, and sexuality minor, I have came to realize how much the intersections of these two topics intrigue and influence my photography work. My time in college has allowed me to dig deeper into the crevices of my photography journey and purposes, and it has encouraged me to tell more intentional narratives and be selective in the clients I choose to work with. As I develop as a creative creature, I choose to gravitate towards the fashion industry, editorial work, BIPOC individuals and minority and marginalized free-reigning individuals like myself.
It is bittersweet having this as my 5-9 and weekend profession but it is ten times a fulfilling as it is challenging. I am so proud of putting myself out there in the different college communities, and creating long lasting meaningful connections with other POCs who would want to make a difference like I do. While it seems like a romanticized rose-colored view, working with these creative souls gives me an elevated hope that our world would be more diverse, understanding and diffused one day, I am proud of breaking barriers slowly with each shoot, and telling the stories of my Singaporean culture – one that is lesser known and misunderstood by the greater society,
What are your plans for the future?
I am looking forward to concretizing my style with every shoot, and am hoping to meet fellow creators of similar goals and visions! I am hoping that this reaches out to my targeted audience – models, artists, creators, fashion designers, small business owners and anyone who wants to connect and create with me. I am constantly exploding with different concepts and ideas to work with and I would love to meet people to bounce these vision boards with. While it may seem far-fetched, I do hope to turn this 5-9 into an eventual 9-5, possibly working at an editorial firm, a magazine or a creative startup as a director of photography or a creative director!
I am planning to also pursue a masters in gender studies and policy, as I am a secret academia at heart. With a great love for reading and writing, I want to further explore beyond the boundaries of these intersections, and creating bigger and greater work that reaches a larger audience! I am planning to also create communities and possibly be part of a zine where I can regularly contribute these ideas to in a meaningful manner.
Pricing:
- Headshots – $150-$300
- Creative Shoots – $300-1500
- Event Photography – $200-$500
- Couple Portraits – $400-$600
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.canyoufeelmyjoy.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/canyoufeelmyjoy/
- Other: https://www.tiktok.com/@canyoufeelmyjoy_?is_from_webapp=1&sender_device=pc
