Dark Pleasure
COVER PHOTOGRAPHER FEATURED IN EDGY | VOL.2 | ISSUE.20
People in the creative industry recognizes me as “Dee Jay” which comes from the first letters of my real name and surname. I’ve started my craft in 2013 and got really serious about it just a few years ago. Since then it has been an amazing journey. Been doing a lot of research, experiments, working with other creatives and brands from different fields. It was very helpful in building my own brand of “fashionable contemporary art”.
Q. Describe your style of photography and how you developed it over time?
Researching is the number one source of creative power: a lot of stuff from the past - 90s-80s particularly. All the vibe, the independence feeling. Also movies, music, and books. These are the areas that I’m learning from and growing as an artist as well as a person. Elements from the above sources describe my style: body shapes, drama, conflict, perspective, freedom, rebel.
Q. What makes an image stand out to you out of an entire series?
The feeling that the image is either brought to me or not. Don’t want to be too technical here, it could be anything, color, shape, sound. It just has to be emotionally charged.
Q. Tell us about your editing process and what makes you decide if an image should be black & white or not.
I often shoot in B&W so it’s pretty much decided before I even start post-processing. Obviously, I always check if any color setup works on that particular frame and then compare them all, if nothing beats B&W - it stays B&W.
Q. What is one of the most challenging projects you’ve been apart of?
When people trying to put me in the frame of “normal” so the imagery we are working on, can be easily approachable for the masses. This is the most challenging. I’m not here to create what’s approachable. I create a non-destructive perspective-opening piece of art that is here to challenge your way of thinking.
Q. What makes you so passionate about photography?
Freedom, ability to grow and develop and the way photography touches people - from viewers to performers(models, photographers, MUA’s and other associate creatives) in particular.
Q. What makes you so beautifully confident?
The knowledge that we are all made beautiful and that there are no limitations, only the diversity that creates the wonderful mosaic of beauty around the world.
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Photographer: Dee Jay Togg @dee_jay_togg
Model: Jordyn Lloyd @jordyn_r.l
Retoucher: @edita_jay_retouch
📍Liverpool, United Kingdom
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