Novato, California (USA)

Brooks Fletcher is a San Francisco Bay Area artist with a passion for photographic education and philosophy. After receiving a BA in Communication Studies from California State University, Sacramento, Brooks served 11 years on active duty in the U.S. Army as a public affairs specialist trained in photojournalism, and strategic and mass communications. 

Following his military service, he earned an MFA in Photography from the Academy of Art University in San Francisco, volunteered as a youth photography mentor for San Francisco-based First Exposures, worked as the lead at the flagship store for photography and adventure brand Peak Design, and served as a member of the East Bay Photo Collective and artist-run gallery Mercury 20. 

Now, having earned a Career & Technical Education credential from CSU, San Bernardino, Brooks works as a full-time photography teacher at Marin School of the Arts, a specialized art program offered through Novato High School in Northern California. As an educator, the Oakland native works to empower his students to express themselves creatively through photography and develop the tools necessary to shape their community, society, and future generations.

website: theintimatevessel.com

instagram: @theintimatevessel

Taipei, Taiwan

Stan is a freelance photographer based in Taiwan. After moving from San Francisco, studied for his master’s degree in photography. Wang’s work includes Fashion, Commercial, Event, Culture, and Creativity.

Stan’s signature style is reflective documentary photography. He likes to shoot things with “gritty realism”, which shows the dark side of society. As he spent more and more time doing the documentary, it was integrated into his daily life. He always carries a camera with him every day now, and will randomly shoot something when he just walking around. The city can be a mirror, which could reflect our very fragility and our immense strength.

website: https://stw4to.wixsite.com/0612

instagram: @standakid

facebook: @Stan Wang

San Jose, California (USA)

Bryana is a travel photographer, California native, and outdoor enthusiast. With a passion for traveling and exploring the natural world, Bryana shows others more than just scenic views or visual landmarks; she focuses on its resonance. 

Her goal is to inspire others to want to travel, learn about other cultures, gain new insight and experiences, as well as raise awareness of the nature around us. Her photos highlight the very beauty of these places and, ultimately, the importance of their beauty. 

As a visual artist, her style is shown through unique perspectives and strong use of color. She’s inspired by the charming, the authentic, and the soft-spoken; the quiet, “unseen” beauty that surrounds her. 

She is currently based in San Jose, CA.

website: www.bryananakayama.com

instagram: @bryananakayama

facebook: @bryananakayamaphoto

Jeddah, Saudi Arabia

Turki is a documentary photographer from Saudi Arabia. He showcases raw and candidness through his photography. Genuinity is his photographic virtue whether observing his subject from afar or intimately near by forming rapport and truth. Turki’s images, for sure, project strong storytelling. 

He documented various photo series like the California Streets, Saudi Streets, Hued, and EOBA - a series of motivated individuals that promote discipline and camaraderie through boxing. 

Turki’s interest in photography started when he took an elective class back in 2007 and fell in love with photography

website: iamturki.com

instagram: @slickslab

facebook: @Turki Alan@Turki Alan

Yichun, China

Joss Wanjun Li is a freelance photographer based in the San Francisco Bay Area. He holds a BFA from Tsingtao University, with a major in Landscape Architecture, and an MFA in photography from the Academy of Art University. 

He thinks the camera is only a tool, his passion for life and appreciation for art is what helped capture the beautiful moments. He is not only capturing a moment but also capturing an idea.

Joss is currently located in Foster City, California.

website: https://www.jossli.com/

instagram: @jodoubles

Osorno, Chile

A Chilean documentary photographer and filmmaker. She documents visual stories focused on social and cultural issues using an anthropological methodology. In her work, Constanza seeks to explore the complex relationship between memory, loss, and mortality.

She began her career in the arts as an Audiovisual Communicator. For 7 years she worked as an Assistant Director in the Chilean film industry. In December of 2017, she obtained a Master of Fine Arts in Photography in San Francisco, California.

In addition to her academic training, in 2017 Constanza was selected to attend the Eddie Adams Photography Workshop in New York, and in 2018 she was invited to attend Review Santa Fe Photo Festival in New Mexico. She is a member of Women Photograph, Foto Féminas, and Diversify Photo.

Constanza uses photography, audio, and video as tools for social observation and as a language to communicate narratives that usually are not represented in mainstream media and society.

Currently, Constanza is based between Chile and San Francisco, CA.

website: www.constanzahevia.com

instagram: @constanzaheviah

facebook: @constanzaheviah

Lucknow, India

Kushal Kapoor was born in Lucknow on 7th January 1991, began his journey with photography at the age of 10 at his Alma mater La Martiniere College, Lucknow. 

During his graduation in Journalism & Mass Communication at Amity University, 

Noida, he continued to pursue his passion for photography and took up several photography internships, including Novosibirsk Opera for the Modern Art Festival in Russia, 2011-2012. 

His efforts in photography soon showed results when he was awarded the National Award in Photography at the 12th All India Photography Exhibition, 2014.

After his graduation and after receiving several 

awards and appreciation at the local and national level, Kushal went on to earn his post-graduate degree in Masters of Fine Arts at the Academy of Art University, San Francisco, California, USA. He is also an alumnus of the Eddie Adam Workshop XXX, New York, USA, 2017.

website: www.indianshadowman.com

instagram: @indianshadowman

Shan Xi, China

The artist’s name is Wenying Liu; she was born and raised in the middle part of China. Now, she is living both in Beijing and Bay Area. She has been double educated in China and United States. In this circumstance, she has built such strong artists’ aesthetics and creativity.

We can tell by her work, as we use photography language, compositionally, she applied Blank space in her series, which is a traditional Chinese painting aesthetic characteristic that gives a sense of balance, rhythm, and connotation. On the other 

hand, A bold attempt at vivid color and dramatic cinematic lighting approaches enormously helped her conceptually and visually show her ideas.

In 2012, she left the place where she grows up and starts her new chapter in the United States. Nothing has come too easy for her culturally. She studied English and business. After a year of seeking, all the effort she put in did not fulfill her then she decided to drop off the business class get her into the hotography course. Since then, she finally down to the earth, step into the art world.

Up to now, she is still active in the Art field. However, she said that she felt the journey is just about to start with her mental and physical changes.

website: www.wenyingliuphotography.com

instagram: @wenyingliu_focalpoint

facebook: @liu.emma2

Kingston, Jamaica

I pride myself as an observant portrait artist with over a decade specializing in photographing every people. The faces in my world are amongst the many that are not being acknowledged. 

Constantly pushing my eyes and camera to see beyond the surface, each person(s) that graces my lens presents a distinction that challenges me to capture an iconic portrait. This is what I call the essence of individuality. I constantly push myself and the medium to curate images that speak volumes and spark conversation. 

I am very self-aware of who I am as a man, and as an artist, and I proudly bring my culture with me to each set I step on in an effort to expand the world of imagery as it slowly grasps the idea that we, black creatives and talents have something important to offer. 

In my photographs, I seek to share feelings, communicate moods and vibes, and present the world through the lens of black artistry.

website: www.demetriusphilp.com

instagram: @portraitsbydp

Charleston, South Carolina, USA

A San Francisco based artist, Candice Rollerson, obtained her Master of Fine Arts from the Academy of Art University in 2016. Originally a family portrait, travel, and event photographer, she was inspired by the work of Irving Penn and began focusing on still-life. Later, the work by James Casebare and Laurie Simmons inspired her to hand-build scenes and use miniatures along with a large format (4x5) camera to express herself creatively. That has been her focus ever since. 

When she is not working with her miniatures, Candice is also a ceramic, sculpture and mixed media artist and enjoys spending time in the darkroom, processing and developing film. She is passionate about art forms that take time and allow her to create with her hands in order to make a personal and meditative connection with her work. Spending time with her projects provides a form of therapy that she relies upon. 

Candice’s work has been featured in publications, such as “One Twelve Publishing” as well as in gallery exhibitions by PhotoPlace Gallery and the Society for Photographic Education (SPE).

website: www.cjadephotography.com

instagram: @cjadephotography

facebook: @cjadephotography

Puebla, Mexico

Leticia Flores was born in Puebla, Mexico. A colonial city; where art, culture, and history captured her attention early and where her journey as an artist began. She was born and raised in a conservative family, where art and creativity were a key part of her upbringing. As a child, she used to watch her father create sketches and architectural designs. Her mother would create crafts, exposing her to constant forms of creation and inspiration. As a child, sketching and painting were a big part 

of her life. Later, she would enroll in college to get involved in multimedia design, where she initially crossed paths with photography and other visual arts. Her first DSLR was a gift from her parents. This is where she got seriously involved with photography. That is when she began to understand that photography would play a far larger role in her life; the missing piece she had been looking for. 

Photography became the medium that she needed to understand and find her way of communicating what she thinks and feels to the world. Over time, she has perfected her technique and vision through the lens. She found in the work of Aaron Siskind a new perspective and inspiration, from where she learned how to really observe and appreciate the mundane and ordinary, transforming it into something extraordinary. Jackson Pollock, a significant Abstract Expressionist painter, also inspired her to find subtle ways to communicate in an unorthodox manner, where technique and creativity are key in visual 

outcomes.

instagram: @letuzaflo

Guadalajara, Mexico

Born from a lawyer mother and an architect father, Frida was raised in Mexico. Family activities, personal interests, and youth extracurricular classes were always art-related. This led the artist to have an overwhelming desire to communicate and express herself visually, deciding to pursue a Bachelor’s Degree in Graphic Design at the Autonomous University of Guadalajara, Mexico. One of her Graphic Design courses required her to have Photography as a subject. 

Seeing the photographs come alive in the darkroom and having the possibility of editing them while printing, made her turn her attention to Photography. After working for three years as a graphic designer, she decided to pursue the MFA in Photography as a means to develop her career as a professional photographer. That was only the beginning of a photography career. She now specializes in Business, Landscape and Architecture Photography.

website: www.fridarivas.com

instagram: @fridarivasm.portraits

facebook: @fridarivas.foto

Bucharest, Romania

Manolache’s first experience telling stories with images goes deep into his past when he discovered his father’s typewriter. He imagined fulfilling a newspaper with absurd stories. He understood that images would bring validity to his stories, so he started to make drawings. This was when he was in the second grade. Later, in 5th or 6th grade, he began to experiment with his parent’s video recorder and created several stop-motion animations showing accidents and interactions 

between toys. He took to music in his teenage years as a means to express his creativity and feelings. He followed that path to university but dropped it. It somehow deepened his search for something to make him feel complete. Two years later, he rediscovered the attraction toward storytelling through a good friend. He bought himself a camera and began to photograph things in a way that reminded him of the stories he used to tell when he was young. So continued his journey.

Horia spent two years in a technical university until he finally decided to follow his artist instinct and to search for a meaning and a way of self-expressing. Several years later, he got his Bachelor’s degree in film making, and he went to San Francisco to achieve his Master’s degree.

In San Francisco, during his studies, he created several photo series that earned him his first major photography awards, and thereafter many exposures to different solo and group shows, magazines, prints, and online publicities. He is also one of the Forbes 30’s under 30 in Romania.

website: www.horiamanolache.com

instagram: @fog_butterfly

facebook: @Todaynoteveryday

Cincinnati, OH (USA)

Dawn Elizabeth Johnsen is a young professional photographer, born and raised in Cincinnati Ohio. Dawn received her Master’s Degree in Photography, with an emphasis in Commercial Fashion Photography from San Francisco. 

Her style is all about fun and color, and she loves working with people! She is all about how color can affect and mood and bring out so many different emotions. Her thesis was called “The Personalities of Color”, which was a look at color psychology through monochromatic fashion and is a project she still draws inspiration from and continues to grow. You will always be able to tell one of Dawn’s images by the use of bold and compelling colors, dynamic light choices, and an emotional connection to the subject. 

Currently, Dawn is the Lead Photographer for a Men’s Fashion start-up in San Francisco. While she has a full 9-5 job, she still finds time for personal projects, collaborations with other influencers, and freelancing for various creative agencies and brands.

website: www.dawnelizabethphoto.com

instagram: @Dawnelizabethphoto

facebook: @Dawnelizabethphoto

Augsburg, Germany

Fabian got a film camera when she was a kid. Since then — She never stopped photographing.

From 2014 to 2016, She made her apprenticeship as an advertising photographer at Hunger & Simmeth GmbH, an advertising photo studio in Königsbrunn, Germany. Since then, she is working as a freelancing photographer and photo assistant in the fields of advertising, still life, editorial for fashion, beauty, and lifestyle. 

Fabian’s stylistic aesthetics is always a strong contrast between the subjects, colors, and graphical elements.

website: www.far-photography.de

instagram: @vgry

Istanbul, Turkey

Manav is a photography artist from Istanbul, Turkey. After having her Master's in Fine Art in Photography in San Francisco and living in the United States for several years, I moved back to my hometown. She is interested in ideas, psychology, magical, surreal elements in life and expressing them in my fine art works as well as sharing my inner world with people. Manav's work has been exhibited at galleries throughout San Francisco, publications, and magazines.

website: www.melismanav.com

instagram: @melicieuse

Taipei, Taiwan

Hwang was a runaway. But she finds herself through photography. 

During her career as a photographer’s assistant in Taiwan, I realized that I preferred to create fine art rather than doing commercial shoots. Tsu Han had to move on. Thus, she begins her overseas study at the School of Photography, Academy of Art University in San Francisco. While she enjoys San Francisco, she wants to explore conceptual work and give Taiwan a different perspective on photography. 

Hwang is a photographic artist based in San Francisco. She enjoys experimenting with black and white darkroom, alternative processes, mixed media, and digital imaging; working with photography beyond photo paper.

website: www.tsuhanhwang.net

instagram: @tsuhan_hwang

Marseille, France

Chloe Meynier is an artist based in San Francisco whose work explores gender roles and identity. Born and raised in France, she holds a PhD in Cognitive Psychology from Aix-Marseille University and a MFA in Photography from Academy of Art University where she is now an instructor and a member of the thesis advisory committee in the graduate School of Photography. Chloe creates images that communicate social commentary and draws from personal experience to use her image making as a form of exploration of societal norms. Chloe’s work has been exhibited nationally and internationally and her photographs are in the permanent collection of the Fort Wayne Museum of Art, and the Kinsey Institute for Research in Sex, Gender, and Reproduction.

website: www.chloemeynier.com

San Francisco, California

Mariya Stangl is a contemporary commercial photographer based out of SF, who pushes the non-traditional. Her visual style is showcased by strong emotion, vibrant color, and attitude from her diverse models. She uses stylistic narrative to comment on contemporary gender roles, social justice, racial equality and redefining beauty standards.

You can find her near a graffiti wall, up in the mountains, or making a funny face in the studio. 

website: www.mariyastangl.com

instagram: @mariyastag

Taipei, Taiwan

Avie Liu is a Marketing Coordinator at International Cosmetic Suppliers based in Portland, Oregon. Previously, Avie was a Fashion Stylist at Academy of Art University in San Francisco. She enjoys fitness, traveling, and blogging.

website: www.avieliuu.com

instagram: @avie7021