Devin Gatling, Urban Photography for Urban Justice

Urban photographer Devin Gatling is a rising leader in the artistic revolution seeking to refocus on authenticity over aestheticism. Gatling’s work captures the raw experiences of life lived between looming buildings and concrete, shining a light on the oft-overlooked subtleties of human experience and connection in New York City.

BLM protesters in Brooklyn, New York 2020

Born and raised in Queens, NY, Gatling began his artistic career with street photography since it was “the easiest and quickest way to produce content.” However, he quickly found that street photography was not only convenient, but compelling, due to the genre’s unique authenticity in comparison with portraiture or commercial photography.

While the term “New York street photography” often conjures up images of Times Square at night or models photographed during Fashion Week, it is notable to differentiate between street photography and its subset, urban photography, which is Gatling’s genre of choice. The history of street photography in general dates back to the 19th century, when the advent of portable cameras allowed photographers to venture outside their studios and into the city for a more authentic atmosphere and inspiration.

Man walking down street in Denver

While street photography is characterized generally as photography captured spontaneously in urban environs, urban photography is differentiated by its storytelling component, seeking to capture not only the architecture and atmosphere of urban life, but the stories of the people who live it.

Gatling is an urban photographer at his core, focused on photographing marginalized individuals and communities to shine a light on social justice issues such as poverty, discrimination, and homelessness. While there obviously isn’t much money in social justice oriented street photography,

“I’m willing to go broke in this pursuit,”

said Gatling.

Gatling is nothing but dedicated to illustrating the less glamorous realities of urban life to create empathy and an appetite for change in New York City and other metros confronting the same issues.

Bus terminal in Denver, Colorado

Gatling’s greatest talent, perhaps, lies in his ability to sort through the clutter of urban environments to find the stories and compositional symmetry that define his photographic style. While individuals doing mundane activities such as riding the subway or waiting for their clothes at a late-night laundromat typically do not draw attention, they are characters that are commonplace to every urban environment and represent a universal, urban phenoms, such as solitude in this example, that makes Gatling’s work fundamentally relatable.

Gatling’s photographs are intimate; from catching eyes with the stranger on the bus, to the awkward and comedic moment when you run into a person on the sidewalk and to pass by you both step in the same direction only to run into each other again.

Woman in fish market in Chinatown, Manhattan

Gatling’s focus is on presenting the organic stories of people in the landscapes they call home. While urban photography is often characterized by cold cityscapes, Gatling’s style manages to be both hyper-urban in composition and atmospherically warm by capturing the rawness of human experience.

While Gatling is primarily focused on urban photography, he occasionally photographs commissioned works for commercial or portrait use. Whether on the streets or in the studio, Gatling is admirably consistent in his dedication to capturing authentic stories, focusing on creating an environment where his clients feel as comfortable and confident as possible.

Motorcyclist in Rocky Mountains

“I have a routine; it’s like a little ice breaker. I try to get them laughing, to know a little more about them. Shake your arms and legs out. Take some deep breaths,” Gatling said. Chuckling, Gatling admitted that he often does his “routine,” with his clients to help them feel more at home.

Being in front of the camera can often make people feel uncomfortable, drawing out insecurities, but Gatling’s goal is to help his clients be their authentic selves in front of the camera, embracing their insecurities as part of the story that has made them who they are. And when Gatling is behind the lens, you can be certain that your story will be captured beautifully.

For Gatling, “good photography” requires a “good message,” which he defines as,

“something a photographer advocates for that brings value to people, helps people, shares your own personal story, and always connects back to the artist.”

Gatling’s work is particularly refreshing in today’s world where photos come easy but content often lacks character and intention. Not only does Gatling’s growing fan base of 11,000 Instagram followers prove that there is an appetite to refocus artistic content on authenticity over aestheticism, but Gatling’s skillfully composed photographs demonstrate that authenticity and aestheticism are not mutually exclusive.

Check out his exhibition;

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Shako Khiski, Redesigning the Portrait

Shako Khiski composes his portraits as he composes his music—with adventurous creative direction, meticulous attention to detail, and unapologetic artistic license. Khiski’s talent lies in his creative use of editing, atmospheric elements, and props to enhance his subjects while never overpowering them, resulting in a unique, borderline mixed-media approach to portraiture.

Khiski attributes much of his adventurousness and adaptability as an artist to his experience as an immigrant. Georgian (of the country, not the state) by birth, Khiski’s family immigrated to New York when he was ten. Khiski noted that learning a new art form is similar in many ways to assimilating to a new culture, requiring openness to new things, dedication to learning a new mode of self-expression, and a focus on opportunities rather than impediments.

Khiski began his photography career working in product photography for his uncle, a local jeweler, while he was still focused primarily on music. While Khiski’s first photographs were simple product photos with blank backgrounds, Khiski quickly realized that the key to effective product photography, much like all other photography, is creating a narrative…and learning how to actually use a camera.

“Everyone’s a photographer until they reach manual mode,”

Khiski laughed.

Khiski is completely self-taught, and he hopes that his artistic evolution over the past two years can serve as both evidence and inspiration to other aspiring photographers.

“It’s possible to make yourself look like a million-dollar photographer with a really small budget if you just use online resources like YouTube, seek out artistic mentors, and…don’t forget that you still need to apply the theory you’re learning by shooting in real life—a lot,” advised Khiski.

Shako works to redesign portraits post-production

After Khiski began incorporating lighting, props, and photo editing into his work to create a story and sense of atmosphere, it wasn’t long before he began incorporating people into his work too. Starting by shooting his family and friends, he quickly refined his skills and began shooting with models.

While he still occasionally dabbles in music, Khiski now focuses primarily on photography. He is stylistically partial to contrast, vibrant colors, and unique use of light, exemplified by one of his favorite shoots featuring model Xhris Watson at Toronto’s Neon Demon Studio.

Khiski had reached out to Watson on Instagram, pitched his vision for the shoot, and in a few weeks’ time they had both booked a day trip to Toronto just to work together. Offering advice to aspiring photographers, Khiski emphasized the importance of building an artistic network.

“I reach out to people all the time just to tell them I admire their work. Sometimes it turns into something; sometimes it doesn’t. But when it does turn into something, it can be really helpful, whether they’re another photographer giving you advice or a model who wants to work with you—that’s how you build your career.”

The shoot with Watson is one of Khiski’s favorites because of how he distinguished his work from other photos shot there. He brought a spray bottle to create the appearance of rain, integrated prisms to bend the neon light, and used Watson’s lighter to create contrast lighting with the neon. Despite doing the shoot in a cold studio in the dead of winter in Canada, “I was sweaty by the end of the shoot,” recalled Khiski. “I’m constantly moving around, trying to capture every perspective, every angle.”

Another one of Khiski’s favorite shoots was one in which he created rather than captured the atmosphere, exemplifying his talent at toeing the line between photography and mixed media. The red shadows cast on the model, Suzanna Komyshan, were created using a red gel strobe light.

If you look closely, her face is lit differently than the rest of her body, which Khiski accomplished using an angled reflector. Perhaps the most impressive aspect of Khiski’s post-production process though is the ocean, which Khiski painted into the photo when the window was overexposed in the original image.

Khiski is truly an artist in his ability to not only capture moments uniquely and beautifully, but to transform moments into masterpieces through manmade atmosphere and creative editing.

If Khiski’s work has piqued your interest, check out Clicke’s YouTube channel for an inside look at his creative process.

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Ed Lefkowicz, Artisanship Exposed

Ed Lefkowicz specializes in not only photographing artisans, but in redefining the term itself. While Lefkowicz does photograph artisans in the traditional sense, such as craftsmen and bakers, his talent lies in his ability to expose the artisanship in every occupation that requires building something from scratch, whether it be a brick & mortar business, a restaurant, a political movement, or a family.

“Good art has to be engaging. It has to draw you in, and once it draws you in, it has to hold you”

said Lefkowicz.

Lefkowicz is skilled at identifying and capturing the “magic,” as he calls it, in the quiet human moments that occur as people go about their daily work. Lefkowicz's fascination with the magic of photography began when he was just a kid, helping his father develop film in the darkroom. "I just got interested in people who make things by hand early on; my granddad did, my dad did, and by extension, I did," recounted Lefkowicz.

As a student in Massachusetts, Lefkowicz explored his interests through various part-time jobs, working part-time at a Leica store and at a rare book shop; both interests evolved into careers. “I bought film in bulk, 100 foot rolls, rolled them in cassettes myself and developed them myself, but it was what I had to do because I was a student,” Lefkowicz recalled.

Woman making a chupalla inspired hat

As Lefkowicz forged a path for himself in the rare book industry, he also allocated more financial resources and time to photography. His specialties in the rare book industry world were American and military history, and it quickly became clear that just as rare texts allowed him to preserve history in the publishing world, photography could also allow him to preserve history through images. With practice and passion, what began as a hobby transformed into Lefkowicz’s career.

Lefkowicz’s artistic focus has always been centered on capturing “real people doing real things.” His stylistically original and quietly powerful work is especially refreshing when so much of contemporary photography is focused on attention-grabbing rather than attention-holding. “If you look at most Instagram feeds, it looks like people are only trying to outdo one another, and that has never been engaging to me,” Lefkowicz commented.

Lefkowicz’s rare ability to adapt to contemporary content needs while maintaining the quiet creativity, authenticity, and old-school charm of his work has created a demand for his photography in the commercial and corporate worlds especially. Lefkowicz elaborated that while many amateurs can capture amazing photographs in certain conditions, the hallmark of a professional photographer is being able to dependably capture amazing photographs regardless of the circumstances.

“Sometimes, I will walk into a corporate space, and I think, ‘please do not have me take photos in this room,’ but the reality is that a photographer has to hone their ability to work in any environment,”

said Lefkowicz.

Religious Statue craftsman of ornate jewelry and crowns

Lefkowicz enjoys the challenge of creating the conditions necessary to capture a great photo and the thrill of needing to click the shutter at the exact, right moment. Lefkowicz began his career working as a film photographer, which required him to identify the perfect shot without the luxury of the continuous shooting options on contemporary digital cameras.

“I have had secretaries tell me I have five minutes to get the CEO’s picture.”

laughed Lefkowicz.

In addition to impeccable timing, Lefkowicz’s experience allows him to approach every shoot with the adaptability and confidence that only years of experience can provide. When clients are concerned about being photogenic, Lefkowicz tells them that making them look good is his problem.

“It is not their job to look good, it's my job to make sure they look good,”

Lefkowicz said, and he has consistently delivered on that promise for over twenty years.

Worker welding for a food cart

Lefkowicz understands camera shyness on a personal level, admitting that “this all started as a shyness, hiding behind the camera was easier.” Ironically, the talent Lefkowicz cultivated because of his camera shyness is what has allowed so many people to be and feel seen.

During the COVID-19 shelter in place, Lefkowicz has been focusing his creative energy on building his social media and online presences. Despite his slight aversion to social media, Lefkowicz recognizes that his work represents an inspiring authenticity that he feels artistically obligated to share with others.

Grand Opening sign and closure sign

Reflecting on the immediate future of photography in a post-pandemic world, Lefkowicz looks forward to working with commercial clients to help stimulate sales and rebuild their brands. Many photographers with Lefkowicz’s dedication to authenticity struggle with corporate work since its focus is ultimately in creating revenue rather than art, but where some artists struggle, Lefkowicz thrives. Lefkowicz’s talent is not just in capturing artisanship, but in helping people and businesses expose and pursue the artisans within themselves.

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