Today we’d like to introduce you to Celi Hairston
Hi Celi, so excited to have you with us today. What can you tell us about your story?
My name is Celi Hairston and I was born and raised in the Lower East Side of Manhattan in NYC. Growing up I developed a passion for self expression through creativity, which provided me with a safe space to step outside of my comfort zone. I tapped into writing at a very young age and realized that it became an outlet for me and a form of therapy. My writing started with daily diary entries, and then it transitioned into poetry (which I found myself performing at places such as the New York Poets Cafe) and from there I found myself writing songs.
I moved to South Florida in 2005, with my now husband, and in 2009, when I birthed our first child, I purchased my first digital SLR camera (Nikon D3000) and dedicated myself to learning how to use it and applied my self taught knowledge towards fashion photography. Now, I was no big shot photographer or anything of the sort, but just girl with a camera that truly enjoyed capturing her daughter, friends and their sense of style in different scenes.
Throughout this time, I also learned the power of editing which gave me full creative control of how I wanted the end result to look like.
It was through this experience that I realized that self expression is extremely flexible and comes in many different ways at any given place and time.
Eventually I was encouraged by my husband to use my creative talents and not only be the one behind the camera, but also the one that the camera captures.. He saw a vision bigger than the one I did at the time. It was through this experience that I came to learn, value and appreciate content creation.
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?
The path leading me up until this point in my journey has not been an easy one. I’ve had to constantly remind myself that my self expression, is just that, me expressing my genuine self and understand that throughout the course in doing so I’m putting myself out there for people to support and judge.
I’ve learned that your support system won’t necessarily always look the same, with the same people and that it can change throughout time.
At the end of it all, the one thing that was within my control was the support I could provide to myself. There were many financial challenges I’ve faced where I couldn’t really afford the top notch tools for me to create, but one thing I’ve learned is that you have to make best with what you have. Any creator can create with their available resources. Anything outside of that, are just add ons that may elevate your creations.
Can you tell our readers more about what you do and what you think sets you apart from others?
Im a content creator specializing in curve fashion and lifestyle (which includes, but not limited to, food and travel).
I’m most proud of my hard work ethic which has proven time after time to be key in my overall success.
I think what sets me apart from others is that I’m 100 percent hands on with what I do, from creative ideas, content strategy, research, marketing strategy, filming/shooting, edits, post delivery lessons learned, to name a few.
We’d love to hear about how you think about risk taking?
Risk taking is a healthy part of growth. Even if negative consequences results from it, it’s still allowing for you to learn. Risk taking gets you out of your comfort zone and can help you discover what your strengths and weaknesses are to better equip you with the knowledge you need to better yourself. Without risk taking, you will never know what you may be capable of succeeding in.
I step outside of my comfort zone every day and take risks. A few major risks that come to mind are:
– opting to go for a heart procedure to cure a heart condition I had which was caused by irregular rapid heart beats. I spent most of my childhood in and out of hospitals before the procedure and afterwards I’ve been able to be active without those worries. I’ve even birthed my kids naturally, which wouldn’t have been possible without that cure.
– in 2005, moving from NYC to South Florida with my then boyfriend, now husband.
– at the beginning stage of being a content creator, reaching out for opportunities for work only to get rejected. I then used those rejections as lessons learned to better equip myself and put in the effort that would eventually get me the acceptance from those very same opportunities.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://celihairston.com/
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/celinstagrrram
- Other: e-mail: celi.hairston@gmail.com
Image Credits
Image Credits for the studio photos:
📸@djazzphotography
by @thierryedejean
Studio: @ArtSpot403
