Photographer Interview:
Wayn O’Hara Reid
BIO
Wayn is a Jamaican-American artist based in South Side Jamaica, Queens. His work is rooted in the black experience across diasporas, operating in the realm of memory and re-memory, finding the beauty in the “in beteen” moments. Working largely through the mediums of film and photography, his ambition to tell black stories is driven by his innate curiosity and will to connect with others learning more about himself and the world around him.
35s & 45s:
Vision and direction are the two words that come to mind when looking over Reid’s work-video or photography. His ability to set the quiet moments into focus and give life to the ordinary is unique in the way he captures it. The portraiture work is calm, collected and feeling very intimate. While his interpretation of scenery places the viewer in a natural atmosphere..
Where are you from? Where do you currently reside?
I’m from South Jamaica, Queens, still here. Eastern home forever.
Tell us a little about yourself beyond the what/where and bio info?
I used to play football in high school. I think that's what kind of took away from my art and creating for a while because it was so demanding. Once I stopped playing, I kinda, got back to myself in a different way.
How long have you been shooting for?
I got my first camera in 2016 when I was a senior in school. I shot for a little bit, but then I stopped. I just walked around and took some images of people around the neighborhood for like a month and then I stopped doing it. I picked it back up after, cause I went to the Marines for a little bit, like 8 months long story short, I got hurt. Had surgery, came back home and I started shooting again. And that was in 2017. So from then, till now, I been shooting consistently.
How has your photography evolved over the years?
I think in the beginning, it was more documentary style. Just shooting my friends, hanging out, walking through the city, me telling somebody, “Oh, just stand here real quick.” Now it's mostly deliberate and planned out, but I still keep that energy. Just looking around and finding interesting angles, interesting frames and shooting through stuff. I also really enjoy architecture too. I like to incorporate that. That was a big part of my work early on too. I think where I'm at now with this year is kind of just experimenting. During quarantine I like tapping into different photographers and seeing what they've been doing and kind of try to incorporate that into my work.
Did you buy your first camera or was it a gift?
I bought it, but I don't know where I got the money from. I can't remember. Cause I was looking at how much it costs. It was like $260 or something like that. I was just like, “Damn, where did I get that money from?” I was broke in high school.
Is there a moment that stands out when you knew you wanted to pursue photography?
I don't know if there was like a specific moment. Actually I do, it was more so for filmmaking. But I'd say since I started, I was just shooting, shooting was working, just trying to get better. It was kind of like a way for me to get out and meet people. Go to events shoot people. And that was always fun and interesting. I think I took a trip in 2019 to Jamaica. I just took some images of my family. Once I received all of them, I was like “Yeah, this is something I could really do.” I think I just took my craft a little bit more serious from that point.
Was that a personal reflection of yourself when you saw those pictures that made you start taking photography more seriously?
I only ended up taking like one roll of film. I developed all of the images myself and scanned them. When I got them back, it was just so powerful to me, felt so personal and I felt moved by them.
Does your environment influence you as a creative?
Oh hell yeah. I think it's a large part of who I am. My family is from Jamaica, grew up in a Caribbean neighborhood. It’s curated my sensibilities of artists and what I'm really drawn to. I'll have to think about it some more as to how it affects me specifically. I noticed while reflecting on my work how certain things catch my eye, I'm drawn to a particular thing. I know my neighborhood has to do something with that.
What's one thing that you want to do with photography that you haven't done yet?
I kind of want to get into the printing process. I think, that's another level of control, right? I've seen, people do some creative, great stuff. So I think I want to tap into that see if I can fuck around and do some interesting, yeah. Printing and scanning, print it and scan it, paint over it.
You are also a Director of Photography, what are the kind of projects you like to work on when directing photography?
I was trying out the director of photography thing for a little bit, but I feel like I'm more so a director. I'm more image driven, direct. The visuals are important to me. That's what I'm finding out. Like I shot my first short film, in October. I DP’ed myself, it was fun. It was interesting. I learned a lot, but afterwards I was like, “Nah, I think I'm a director.” I think I'm interested in narrative driven stuff. Commercially, I'm drawn to branded content. I'm getting into some music videos a little bit more, but is not where I want to be. Unless it's a specific, music influences my life incredibly. I love music. But as far as the music videos, I think it would have to be with a very specific artist, FKA Twigs kind of vibe. Somebody who's like the full package. They take every piece of what they create seriously.
Does your work as a DP impact your photos to be more cinematic?
I think they influence one another. They're connected in some way. I'm interested in the in-between moments of things, moments that people don't really pay attention to. My eye tends to linger in those moments. Maybe it’s the way I direct the model or when I'm taking street photos I tend to focus on scenes. Developing and scanning my own work really affects how I edit or color. Just having an eye for color and the way I saturate and expose black skin. Cause when you're scanning it, you're doing a reversal yourself. I guess it kind of trained my eyes to that to get it the way I want it.
Which do you love the most now, videography or photography?
I have phases. There'll be a month where I'm like, am I even thinking about video or filmmaking? And I'm just like 100% into photography. Then the next two months I’m into filmmaking like crazy. They do different things to me. I feel like photography is more so like a lifestyle. So like I always have a camera on me and if I see something I'll snap a picture.
What camera would you want to be your last?
I've owned a lot of cameras. Um, but I would say for 35, I would say Nikon FM 2. Cause, it works without the battery. It's a tank. I know this is really reliable in Nikon is cool because they have so many lenses. For medium format,you know, the typical RZ 67 is it's just a solid camera. I love it, every time I whip it out everybody’s like “Ooh, I like that. That's cool.”
Candid or posed? Flash or no flash? Why?
I say no flash. if I'm shooting in the studio, I like continuous light just so I can see it. Um, candid or pose? It doesn't really matter to me really. Typically I tend to like go off or like riff off whatever the model is doing, whatever their sensibilities are. Cause I sometimes I'll try to pose them and then I go up to like change the film or something and then they do something I'm like, “Oh wait, hold on, hold on.” Because I find that people's natural movements are really interesting. And then I tweak it to my liking as well. So I don't mind pose it's depends on the situation.
“I want to remember that.. I want to look back at the photo, maybe I didn't catch it at a specific moment, but if I see the photo, I’ll remember the day and I’ll remember the feeling..”
Do you feel you have more freedom when shooting video or photography?
It depends who I'm working with. I think sometimes I tend to put myself in a box. Like, “Oh, I have to do it this way.” Cause I'm just a geek. I got to know all my cameras, I know the ins and outs of all of them. I know how they work. This year I'm kind of reframing my thought process. Now that I have a deeper understanding of my tools. I feel like I can kinda explore more. But when I'm working with a bigger team or clients there's a barrier. Like, “Oh, we have a big plan.” There's all this money involved. It's like harder to be like, “Oh, let's try this real quick.” Because you have certain shots you need to get. But I find if I'm just shooting with friends aside, we have this in mind, but I'm seeing this now. So, yeah it depends.
What is one thing you want to do with film that you haven’t yet?
I've only been doing it for about two years. I think right now I'm just kind of exploring my style and my voice. Compared to photography, because photography is so easy you're just walking around with a camera it hangs around your neck and be so minimal with it and create something amazing. Not saying that you can't do that with video or film making in general. For me, I need to do it more often. So it will be more consistent. I need to do some more trial and error to see what works for me and what I don't like. Um, so I would say just shooting more. I just want to see all the colors that are out there.
Can we expect a project of your own blossoming in film soon?
Hopefully, I just shared the first cut of it. Well, it's not the first cut, but the first cut I'm sharing, with my producer, recently I think it was Sunday. It's a big deal for me because it is like the biggest thing I've ever done. Im doing it all with my own money and things of that nature. I'm still learning what the process is. I’ve submitted it to film festivals. When I can show it to the public? For me, film festivals are cool, but I just want people to see it. But I also got to do my due diligence and make sure like that the right people see it at the same time.
Can you share what the film is about? A blurb?
I can say what I intended it to be, because it feels kind of different now that I'm working through the edit. I intended it to kind of be focused on travel. I like how it shows up through our relationships. Just really exploring that and seeing where that takes me. I think it's kind of shifted through the edit too. That's an interesting thing as well. When I'm done with it, I think I'll have some time away from it. Then take another look and see what it is for myself before I share it with everyone.
During the selection process what makes the final cut? What details do you usually look for in the images.
Did I catch focus? That’s the biggest one. I think what I love about the photography, shooting on film, you get separation from seeing it. You don't see the images when you take them, like you gotta wait. Like even if you develop it and scan it the same day, there's still the time between when you've seen it. If it surprises me when I scan it and I started messing with the colors, and it makes me go like, “Ooh” you know? I'll save that one. But I find when I shoot digital, I don't get that feeling that often. I think I don't get that for that, cause I saw it already. But when I'm scanning it and developing it, if it makes me make those weird sounds it’s cool. I try to not send as many photos, then they won't post the ones I want them to post. That’s annoying, but yeah, I think that's the process.
What mood/vibe do you like to curate on set? How do you do it?
I just like things to be really chill, relaxed, you know, easy going. Like I like to try to make everybody feel safe to be themselves and myself as well, because sometimes it's intimidating. I think doing photography, making images with somebody is really intimate. You kind of have to bring that barrier down. Sometimes it's hard for me too, because Im like “Should I ask her to do this? Or do that?” Will they think it's crazy or like weird? But I think once you got into the groove it’s a cool experience. So the way I kind of curate the vibe, obviously, like I try to talk to everyone. Not even talk about what we're going to do that day, just kinda try to figure out who they are as fast as possible. And find a connection that we both could like relate to and just dive in deep on that.
Is there any particular element of shooting you would like to tackle or explore that you haven’t?
I've been playing with slowing down the shutter speed and allowing motion, blurring things. I just shot the EP for one of my peers, the cover for his first project is coming up. I was just playing with motions, allowing myself to shoot allowing the lights to be really dark. I just recently started testing as well with agencies. I was trying to the “minimal clean look”, you know? Which is cool. I like it, sometimes. I think I want to explore that and what that looks like for black people. The inspo I grab are usually people who are white. So I’d like to see what that looks like for black people. Playing with some exposure in motion and some movement.
When it comes to photography what moves you to shoot?
I think my peers, like, just seeing what they do. I think events, conversations, interactions with people-I think that's what drives me to shoot. I want to remember that, I want to look back at the photo, maybe I didn't catch it at a specific moment, but if I see the photo I’ll remember the day and I’ll remember the feeling. So I think that's kind of what drive drives me.
What would you like people to take away from your work?
I want them to see my work and understand what I'm trying to say. What I care about. You know? But also I just want them to feel something, anything. I don't want my work to feel vain. I don't think it’s any of my business how they feel, it's okay. As long as they get a feeling from it. I always think it's really fulfilling when people can connect with it or it connects them to a memory. Cause I think memory is a big part of my work as well. Just remembering the people I’ve captured and honoring them. So I hope people feel that.
Interview by 35s & 45s
03.17.21