Meet Artist & Photogrpher: James Walker

Today we’d like to introduce you to James Walker.

James, please share your story with us. How did you get to where you are today?
I grew up in NYC with two well-known opera singers as parents. I was exposed to the theater at an early age when my mom became a playwright so telling stories has always been a thing for me. My first camera was given to me when I was ten years old and I have never really ever stopped exploring imagery since. I moved to LA to finish my undergrad in photography later in life and now it’s all I do.

I simply am out to make the viewers mind different in some way than what it was before they saw the work in a positive meaningful experience. Either to learn, or question something about themselves in the work or see something new in a way they had not before. To have an impact on someone’s life in some way is an honor you can’t get from cheap imagery. It takes time to create the work. A critical mindful process not only in its analog creation but in the narrative or subconscious serendipity. Of course, this is only a dream.

Has it been a smooth road?
No, not one bit. About the only thing smooth about my photo career was to decide to go at it full time. I am learning disabled (as they called it) and very dyslexic. So being comfortable with the math and mechanics of photography was rough. I gave it up for a while in the 90’s. Too much to figure out in camera. No fun at all. However, the digital age helped me realize I had some natural talent again. Then in school, we had to do film. I learned a lot. I have gone back and forth from analog to digital over time. Now I shoot with camera’s that doesn’t even have a shutter but for the lens cap. My issues still come up. I see numbers wrong and make mistakes but I embrace this now.

What’s your outlook for the industry over the next 5-10 years?
I’m always hopeful. However being a photographer with depth is a long road. I see us moving further and further away from the traditional DSLR for the mainstream. I feel I am so focused on getting through just one year that the future to me is more about how I can sustain myself in a world already saturated by people with cameras and no training but can network well. So I try not to worry too much about it and am focused on my own work and improving on it. I think there will always be people like me who want more than just to have the next best tech and or to be at the latest fashion show after party. So 5-10 years? I have no idea. I can’t think about it. I’ll be 50 to 55 years old!!

What would you say has been the biggest challenge for you over the course of your career?
Pricing my work, my pay rates. Networking. I’ve always been shy. I say the thing at the party that would kinda make me feel like getting up and calling it a night. Terrible at names, and well quite honestly enjoy my own company. Selling yourself is a totally different ballgame than selling a thing. Like a car salesman. You sell something already made that you had no input in at all. The only issue would be if you knew the car was junk and sold them either way. For me, I am literally selling myself, or a piece of myself. It’s the hardest thing I have ever had to do. It’s extremely personal. I don’t have a huge ego about my work. However, over time I have been able to like the work I do. I would buy my work! So it’s not as hard to try to sell it anymore.

What would you tell someone who is just starting out?
Shoot all the time. Do the work to learn your trade. Take a photo 101 class. Especially a film class or two. Learn to appreciate the tools you have and that you can make great images with that 100-year-old Graflex or canon from the 80’s. Maybe even better than the ones on your new $3K camera. But they will make you work for it. Anything worthwhile takes time. These were ideas I could not really appreciate when I was younger shooting photos so I stopped and lost valuable time.

Pricing:

• Portraits (plates) range from $75 a plate to $650 depending on size and quantity.
• I sell my personal work and prints ranging from $350 to $3,400. Limited and so on.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.jwalkerimagery.com
• Phone: 3238684050
• Email: [email protected]
• Instagram: jameswalkerimagery
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/James-Walker-Imagery-120163064710055/