We are excited to feature one of ViewBug members and California based creative photographer Chris Rivera. Visit Chris's profile and share your love by awarding his photos!
Hi Chris, tell us a bit about yourself, how do you describe your photography style?
My name is Chris Rivera and Iām a conceptual and fine art photographer living in Southern California! When Iām not photographing, I like to hang out with my family and friends, be active, and explore! Iām completely self-taught in my photography, so I like to add bits of pieces of surrealism into self-portraits and portraits! I would describe my style as dark and bizarre, yet at the same time, light and airy.
When did you start taking photos and what inspired you to get started?
My friend in high school started a photography club, which caught my interest! Even though I didnāt have a DSLR, I just used my Nikon Coolpix and snapped away! After I graduated high school, I bought my first camera in June 2011. I just took pictures of anything and everything until I decided to dive into the conceptual and fine art world in December 2012, and here we are!
What really inspired me to delve into photography, particularly with a DSLR, was the fact that you can make the photos how YOU want, rather than simply pressing the shutter and it does everything for you. As for the conceptual side, I wanted to create art from my imagination since I wasnāt the best painter or artist!
Do you have any influencers?
Oh definitely: fashion and magazine photographers really inspire me! A huge and major inspiration would have to be Annie Leibovitz, for sure! Iād also have to say Brooke Shaden, Lindsey Adler and Alex Stoddard are huge inspirations as well!
What has been your favorite shoot and why?
Thatās a tough one for sure! I would probably have to say my self-portrait series āThe Curseā! The idea for the shoot itself was in my head for about 5 months: I donāt know why I didnāt do it earlier, but Iām glad I did it when I did! It was also one of my favorite shoots to edit because I had this certain color I wanted the photos to have and it worked magically!
Do you remember a difficult photo shoot session? What happened?
Hmmā¦ I donāt really have much difficult shoots, but I do remember one! My idea for the shoot was to have my friendās hair to be floating in the air, making it look like a Native American headdress. By the time I shot the image, it was sunset and the lighting was getting a little weird. I had my sister lift certain strands of hair of the modelās hair up in the air, expand my frame and make sure the lighting was all the same. The editing was a task for sure, but in the end it was worth it!
What do you carry in your camera bag?
In my camera bag, I simply use a Canon Rebel T2i and a Canon 50mm f/1.4 lens! Iāll stuff a snack in there too if Iām out adventuring for a long time! ;)
What are you currently working on?
Thatās the thing: Iām constantly inspired, meaning when I want to do one shoot, I have inspiration to do another. Next thing you know I have all these little photo projects that I want to do!
However, I am working on a three part series called āForever: On the Runā! Iām really excited to release the images within the next month or two! Stay tuned!
Can you share a couple of tips with your fellow photographers?
Yes! I know this is one that is used a lot, but just keep shooting! If you ever feel like youāre in a slum with your photography and want to give up, DONāT! Just turn that around and find things to shoot! Another thing I would like to advise is experiment! It helps so much with creativity, and who knows, it may be a big hit! Oh yes, and donāt compare your work to others: it does nothing but make you feel bad about your work, which shouldnāt happen because you are AWESOME!
