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I am a professional photographer and creative director based in Nairobi. I am largely a self-taught photographer, though I got my earlier understanding of a camera and photography from my father, who is also a photographer.

He even helped me get my first camera and taught me how to use it. I specialise in fashion, lifestyle, events and commercial photography. But, I am an all-rounded creative so to speak, who is still learning one shutter at a time.

The journey

As a creative, art has always been part of me. I was born into it. I learned drawing before I could even learn how to write and read. My mum is a teacher, and she took my brother and me through homeschooling back in Dandora, and most of that was drawing and colouring. Photography, however, came into the picture – pun intended – when I was in my Third Year of university back in 2015.

I studied Hotel and Hospitality Management at the University of Eldoret. I started it as a side hustle to supplement online writing that I was doing at the time to sustain myself in uni. That was after my poster design business flopped. I didn’t take it too seriously until a friend called Joan asked me to take some pictures of her fashion designs that she wanted to submit for a competition by Kenya Fashion Awards (KFA).

So, we did the shoot, and after submitting the images, I asked her about the competition. She shared about it and even suggested that I try it out as well since there was a section for student photography. I was sceptical but still applied, even though the deadline had passed.

A few days later, I got a call from KFA that I had been accepted to participate in the competition. I travelled to Nairobi for it and met professional photographers such as Keef, Trivet, Radek and Emmanuel Jambo just to name a few, and that’s the moment everything changed for me.

I got exposed to a different kind of photography that I didn’t even see from my dad growing up. That’s what drove me to take it more seriously. After that, my life and photography journey as a whole took a turn. I have been able to meet and work with people and professionals from all walks of life, worked with brands I never thought possible, and travelled the world to numerous destinations.

Photography has opened doors I didn’t even know existed, and all I can say is ‘Thank you to God. I am still learning and growing. There are more places to travel to, more people to meet, more pictures, and most importantly, more stories to tell.

I am Africa

I am Africa was a personal project in collaboration with Bilha (make-up artist), to celebrate and promote Africa through art, and to put our voice out there. The idea was to work with models from different African nations to represent those countries.

We were able to cover eight countries, and our goal is to get through all the African countries or as many as we will be able to. The project started on October 3, 2019.

Make-up artist: @makeupby_bilha

Model: @rahmashamim15

Location: Nairobi, Kenya

Date: 23/10/2019

Settings

Shutter speed: 1/100 sec.

Aperture: f/9

Focal length: 85mm

ISO: 200