Today we’d like to introduce you to Braxton Neilly.
Hi Braxton, thanks for sharing your story with us. To start, maybe you can tell our readers some of your backstory.
I started photography at 14 with my best friend Antwan Dean. We both started shooting at the same time, me with my iPod touch and him with his iPhone. One day I ran into Antwan and he told me he found his dad’s old camera, it was a Canon Rebel Eos 300d. That camera had all kinds of scratches and missing pieces but we loved it. We shared that camera for an entire year taking photos of whatever caught our attention until finally one summer vacation, I purchased a Canon Rebel t4 from Walmart and started to really take photography serious, from there I started teaching myself about lighting composition, editing and finding my personal style. At the young age of 17, I graduated high school hopped on a plane to Florida and studied film for two years at Full Sail University. This is where I fell in love with Portrait photography, when I was home in The Bahamas I would only take photos of animals, the streets anything that excited me but I never photographed people. Throughout college, I would take pictures of my friends almost everyday trying to better myself at understanding portraiture. In 2019 I had built up the reputation of the class Photographer and had enough skill to contact people about photoshoots.
In May of 2020, I graduated from Full Sail University sadly the world had shut down and my industry was closed for the time being but that didn’t stop me. I continued practicing, taking photos of any and everything I could. Later that year when things loosened up, I was able to create some art with actual models and build up my style and portfolio. By the end of 2020, my time in America had come to an end, my student visa was expired and I had to leave. So I packed up my things and moved back home to my small Island of Harbour Island located in The Bahamas.
Since moving back home, I’ve had a total of eight successful photoshoots, one being with a world-renowned artist known as “Yung Blud”. It’s been rough being back home seeing that no one takes my job seriously and it’s been hard trying to find time for my passion and work a normal job but I’m making it work. Currently, I’m building a photography studio which is 25% complete where I’ll be able to work for myself and make beautiful art.
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?
Up until 2020, it has been smooth sailing but now that I’m back home, it’s been quite difficult. Since returning to my native land, I’ve only had ten photoshoots, in 2020 I had 20+ photoshoots along with a music video and documentary. Bahamian people don’t understand that being an artist is a real job, being a photographer back home is extremely difficult because our islands are very small and locals don’t always need photos that’s why we rely on tourists who only come here seasonally to help us not only make art but make a living for ourselves. It’s just been hard to find the motivation to shoot portraits at times because locals don’t take modeling seriously or ever think that they’re good enough or beautiful to get their portrait taken. I had however started to get back into Street photography which is a big plus because I really love that kind of photography and neglected it when I was away in Florida for two years.
Thanks – so what else should our readers know about your work and what you’re currently focused on?
I specialize in portrait, street, landscape and animal photography. I mainly focus on those aspects at the moment because that’s all what I would usually see around me. I’m most proud of some portraits that I took of a musical artist by the name of Yung Blud, it was an in the moment thing and he loved my photography so much that he wanted to have a photo shoot right there and then and we did.
What quality or characteristic do you feel is most important to your success?
An important thing is to always see the positive in everything, even if you mess up, you’re learning what not to do the next time. Happiness is also key, be happy with what you’re doing and be confident about your art. Lastly, learn to embrace failure because that’s the only way you’ll ever succeed.
Contact Info:
- Email: [email protected]
- Website: https://braxneilly.wixsite.com/570dx
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/570dx/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100010473130658
- Twitter: https://twitter.com/570dx
