Brianna Lopez is a freelance photographer and videographer with a focus on travel and documentary visual media creation. She also works in lifestyle branding and overall content development. Brianna started creating visually in 2012 in Philadelphia and has since taken her artistry to Los Angeles since early 2015.
Working with a diverse client base, Brianna is recognized for her intimate candid captures that show emotional easiness and isolation. She has worked in the fields of music, marketing, fashion, editorial and commercial photography. She is a traveler at heart and lives for open spaces and landscapes that aid in her visual content creativeness.
She obtained her BA in English from West Chester University picking up photography and film during her senior year. Though she did not go to school for either, Brianna has an extensive background in production and photography almost never putting her camera down since the day she began. Brianna is a dynamic spirit whose goal is to create beautiful, but more importantly, emotionally impactful imagery that is timeless.
[fullscreen]
[/fullscreen]
How would you describe your style of photography?
My style of photography, if I had to say, is observational. I shoot in a way that mimics my intellectual and spiritual connection to the world. I’m just there to see without judgment and to capture the moments set before me. I approach people and places ready to learn and engage in silence and in excitement.
Whether I’m shooting BTS with Snoop Dogg for VH1 or The Karen Long Neck Tribe in Chiang Rai, Thailand, its all the same. An embodiment of who I am, meshing with what’s happening in any given moment.
Can you share the backstories behind these two photos?
The two photos I submitted are from two very different places.
The sunrise and salt plains image is from a sunrise caught in Death Valley, CA. It was during my first few years in California when went camping with a few friends, something I hadn’t done since I was a kid. We woke up at about 5:30am, hopped in the car and drove to Badwater Basin. We had to walk and run close to a mile to reach the point where this photograph was taken. It’s one of my favorite images because it is something I could have literally stared at for hours.
The image is just a reminder of that moment.
The photo of a taxi driver in Cuba is my favorite image from that trip. He was the first person we encountered on the island and his attitude and joy created the foundation of what I was soon to discover about Cuba, its culture and its people.
What are your dreams as a photographer?
My aspirations for creating photos and films are to just be able to do it. Not in a self-absorbed way, but in a way where I’m aware that God has blessed me with a skill to deliver my part and my stories to the world. Aside from wanting to be published and work with amazing companies and brands, the thing I value the most is just being able to make a living using a camera.
My obsession with imagery is rooted way beyond the technical part. I am working on not attaching myself to anything so in this I am aware that right now this is my purpose. Right now it’s the thing that is giving me a voice to share what I feel and how I see.
If I had to choose a goal, it would be to introduce, encourage and show people how vast and beautiful the world really is. It’s to take people out of their environments and to prove that both our nightmares and fantasies are real just simply by existing.
Follow her here – Portfolio | Facebook | Twitter | Instagram
The “Snapshot” series are mini interviews with fellow black travel photographers to inspire others and myself. As I’ve navigated the world of travel photography over the last few years, I’ve found very few fellow photographers of color who are also doing this professionally with a heavy focus on travel documentary. So this inspirational resource of professional travel photographers of color is a way for people to always find us. Please get in touch if you’d like to be featured or know of others to feature.