FAST x Editorial Spotlight
What makes FAST such a special club is the different array of skill sets coming together to showcase everyone in the club in their own unique way. One of the many committees includes our Editorial team. FAST is so lucky to have so many talented photographers to capture total #fashionmoments each in their own individual style and vision. This week we highlight some of these photographers and ask them to reflect on both their experience in FAST, and their own personal work as well.
Meet some of the Editorial Team
Jason Chua (director)
Moe Moussa (director)
Amir Freeman
How did you originally get into photography?
Moe: I originally got into photography in 6th grade when I did the reflections program in elementary. Later on in high school, I started reselling shoes and got back into taking pictures and since then I’ve kept doing fashion photography.
Jason: I originally got into photography because of my first heartbreak haha. My (now) friend is a model and she inspired me to pick up a camera and photograph other people who weren't her. It was more so a competition in my head, like “I need to get good enough to shoot her”. But at one point I knew it wouldn’t work out, and photography wasn’t working for me either. I was only doing portraits and it wasn’t creative at all. I was stuck in this constant spiral of wanting to take creative pictures and not having people who would want to try it/ people who couldn’t do it as well. In the end, I quit photography for about 6 months. Then, FAST invited me to be a photographer (specifically Marissa), and the rest is history.
Amir: I actually got into photography because I was managing a car rental and needed to take pictures of the cars. When I stopped managing the business, I figured I might as well keep putting the camera to use and the rest is history!
How has your experience in FAST been overall?
Moe: My time in FAST has been a blessing. When Azelia first told me to join I was hesitant because I didn’t like dealing with people and preferred to keep to myself. But once we did our first shoots I was surprised at how much creative freedom we had and I started taking pictures I didn’t even know I was capable of. Every year I meet more amazing beautiful people and it keeps me coming back.
Jason: This year has been my most fulfilling and productive year in FAST! As a 4th year who is close to graduating, I took it upon myself to try out as many committees as time allowed for me, and, while barely keeping up, I became an Editorial Executive, a model, and a designer. My main focus this year was getting content out with as many models as possible with my team, and although we couldn’t complete my goal of shooting every model (yet), we did a pretty good job. I had loads of fun honestly. I loved organizing shoots, going out to places to do those shoots and having looks prepared for each one. I love concept building and I love how the models were able to keep up with my ideas. This year’s FAST team was definitely one of the better ones I’ve been a part of, so thank you.
Amir: I liked FAST because it allowed me to connect with other people who were passionate about the same industry as me. It’s a lot easier to be creative when you have other creatives giving you feedback and you feel like you're growing together
What’s the process for coming up with a piece, and do you tend to have a vision or style that you go for in your shoots?
Moe: When I’m shooting for FAST my vision breaks down into two parts: warmth and beauty. Plain and simple I like to shoot most of my photos warm because it just makes me feel good. Something about looking into my Viewfinder and seeing yellow and orange hues make me feel like I’m being hugged. As for the beauty aspect I like to focus on features that make a person stand out. As superficial as it may seem, everyone has their own unique physical attributes and it plays a big role in deciding how and what I want to shoot with them.
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Jason: There’s a lot of ways that I come up with a sort of direction I want my photographs to go towards. My first approach is to always look up online fashion magazines (such as Balenciaga’s Fall 2019 collection) and see if there are any looks I am influenced by. If magazines aren’t working for me, my second approach is to look through my favorite photography tags on IG (such as #777luckyfish) and see if I can get any inspo from there. And, if that doesn’t work, my last approach is to just watch a movie with the intention of looking at photography, cinematography, and art direction. My policy is to always try new ideas and creative boards for my shoots.
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Amir: When I create a piece, typically I go through Pinterest or IG to find inspiration. @ahowc on Instagram is my inspo for all things and the one who taught me my lighting techniques! Normally, I do dark style stuff so I have a specific artist that I look to for inspiration, and then from there I decide if it’s technically feasible for me and what model I feel would be comfortable doing that idea and would fit the idea. Currently, I don't have a broad guiding vision besides darker and deeper colors. I really want to transition to more thematic, and mysterious as my guiding vision for shoots.
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To see more of their work check out their Instagrams:
AMIR FREEMAN- @based_amirr
JASON CHUA- @ikfj_
MOE MOUSSA- @lolmoemoe
FAST Guest Blogger
Angela Sourial