As a photographer, Joshua Lee’s approach as a storyteller is to share stories of creators from every field to show the person they are behind their products, and what and where their passions originate from.

Lee won the Fujifilm Students of Storytelling competition for his portrait series on the behind-the-scenes takes of different creators’ craftmanship and their tools.

Fujifilm created the contest to identify the next generation of U.S. storytellers, and to provide them with Fujifilm X Series or GFX System gear to bring their vision to life.

Rangefinder: What interests you as a storyteller? Which stories are you drawn to? 

Joshua Lee: I don’t necessarily want to tell these types of stories as a storyteller, but I’m really interested in success stories. It’s not because I like putting successful people up on a pedestal. I just love listening and learning about what those people did in the face of struggle and hardship. It honestly motivates me to work harder and hustle.  
 
Through my work, I want people to be able to connect in any way. For instance, if I took a series of photos of a forest in upstate New York, then I want those seeing it to be reminded of their past when they played in their backyards. Or if I had some portraits of successful or interesting people, I want the viewers to believe that they themselves are also interesting and have a story to tell. 

Rf: How has your style and approach changed over time?

JL: My photography has drastically changed over the years. It’s progressed through several different styles—from nature photography to street photography to landscapes to portraiture to lifestyle. I think that my photos went from being very general, to finding the things that I love to shoot and produce. I used to love hard contrast and highly saturated images because a) that was the only thing I knew how to do in Lightroom, and b) I thought those were the coolest pictures ever. I also always shot poorly-composed photos and placed everything in the center. Then, as I started to be more open to the rest of the photographic world, I quickly realized that I was flat-out wrong. One of the biggest influences to my work was a photography class in my second semester of college because my photos were critiqued like never before. It gave me a new perspective in that I couldn’t just shoot photos, and make a career out of it by having a nice camera; I had to distinguish myself with composition and thought behind each photograph.

Rangefinder: Who has influenced your work and how? 

JL: There are three photographers who greatly impacted my style. The first was my professor, Amy Toensing. Her unique storytelling compositions inspired me as she taught me to think before shooting, and that it takes time to make an image. The second photographer is Ahae, a South Korean photographer who showed me that the intent behind an image or project reflects its worth. The third photographer is Peter McKinnon, a YouTuber/photographer/creator who is just a beast at everything he does, and he showed me how to enjoy any adventure that I’m on no matter what I’m doing.  

Rf: What are the key things you have learned or done that have helped you advance your career since you began shooting? 

JL: One of the most important things is thinking about composition in my images. I’ve always struggled with composing a good image, and I still do. However, being able to learn from some of the best professors at Syracuse University, I became aware whenever I put my eye up to the viewfinder that I needed to tale my time to shoot instead of shooting and thinking later. 

Rf: What is the most helpful piece of advice you’ve received and followed? Who gave it to you? 

JL: Professor Tensing and some of my other professors always said to go out and shoot with intent, with a purpose. For some reason, this part of photography was alien to me because I would always just carry my camera and snap photos of things I saw as I walked around town. I never gave myself a set agenda to shoot, and I certainly never really went out with a purpose other than “I want to take some nice pictures today.” My professors helped me start to think about what I wanted to convey through my images, instead of just creating pretty pictures.  

Rf: You mention in a previous interview that, “portrait photography was always a passion of mine because I always felt challenged when photographing people.” Can you elaborate on that experience and on your interactions with your subjects, and describe how that drives your photographic style? 

JL: Whenever I photograph somebody, I almost always get nervous and doubt myself because I want to deliver a nice image to the person that I’m photographing. This project with Fujifilm is actually the first proper portrait series that I’ve done. So far almost all of my experiences with photographing people have been amazing. Not only did I get awesome photos of the individuals, but I also learned so much about each person’s story and background. Of course, there’s always that initial awkwardness of introductions between the person and myself. But as I practiced more, that fear and awkwardness started to go away, and I only focused on the story at hand and finding the best way to share it. My photographic style is very minimal with a lot of negative space but I always think that telling the person’s story properly is the first priority. Therefore, I sometimes struggle to find the harmony between the proper portrayal of one’s story while also highlighting my own style. 

Rf: What will be your approach, then, in defining your photographic style from now on? 

JL: Practice. I realize that no matter how many tutorial videos I watch or how much camera gear I have, experience and effort beats everything. As I photograph different people and things in different places, I think I’ll find some things that I absolutely love and other things that I’m not too stoked about. But I’m never going to know these things if I don’t try them.  I just have to try it all, and slowly find my way to molding my own style.

Rf: How have your studies affected your approach to photography and storytelling?

JL: I’m currently a double major in journalism and management. Although the business side isn’t too connected with either, journalism goes hand and hand with photography and storytelling. I think learning how to properly tell a story has strengthened my fundamentals so that I can experiment with more complex stories and ideas. Also, just being in a university has opened my eyes to the rest of the world and all these different issues, cultures and people. I, as a human being, have been searching for what matters most to me so that I can share those stories. Simply put, my studies have widened my scope for searching for stories because I’ve just learned about so much from all over the world.  

Rf: Can you tell us about your submission to Fujifilm’s Students of Storytelling program? How did you come up with the project?  

JL: I’ve had this project idea in mind for a while because I’ve always admired people who had the skill to create. It always seemed like an elite community that was different from everyone else, and I remember that I always wanted to be a part of it. The idea came to mind because I really wanted to just meet awesome people and listen to their stories, and I wanted to showcase them with their tools in their workspace. Everyone could see the products that they make, whether it be a composed song or a sneaker, but I wanted to show the world what goes on behind the scenes. The ultimate goal that I had in mind was to create a book, and with every flip of a page another creator is portrayed. The original idea was set for a longer-term project, but I’ll always be grateful for the kickstart that Fujifilm provided.  

Rf: What works have you produced with your new Fujifilm systems?  

JL: I had around five shoots so far that have been successful with the Fujifilm system, and they came out great. I shot a singer-songwriter, a couple who are classical musicians, a partnership of a denim wear brand, a fashion designer, a concert and lifestyle photographer, and an artisanal bread baker. Aside from the project, I’ve been bringing my Fujifilm X-Pro3 everywhere I go, so I have a bunch of lifestyle and street photography shots as well. It’s an awesome compact camera, and I’ve just been having a blast with the film simulations. 

Rf: Where do you see your work going from here?  

JL: I don’t really have too many physical goals like getting published in The New York Times or scoring a job at Nat Geo. Of course, those opportunities would be amazing, but I’m still trying to find my own photographic style. To find it, I need to practice as much as I can. From here I see myself looking for opportunities and grabbing anything that I see so that I can produce content that is enjoyable. Fortunately, through this project, I’ve realized my love for portraits and lifestyle/fashion photography. So, I think a lot of my work is going to start leaning towards lifestyle shots or portraiture, but that is definitely subject to change.  

Rf: Which brand, media outlet or agency is your ideal client? And why? 

JL: Right now, I would love to work with a magazine called Hype beast Magazine. They are basically a lifestyle magazine that covers everything from music and art to street culture and fashion. Their magazine has expanded into more of a brand and lifestyle rather than just a media outlet, which is what I love most about it. It would be an amazing opportunity to shoot with awesome people, and I just love that part of our culture that has to do with art or creating. Also, I think that my style of photography right now fits perfectly with their vision. Other than Hype beast, I would really love to work with Uniqlo because I’m a true believer in their brand. They make quality, affordable clothes for everyday wear, and the brand is a huge advocate for global issues reform. As both a consumer and creator, I would love to have them as a client in the near future. 

Visit the official Fujifilm Students of Storytelling site for more information about the complete program. Follow @phozilla to stay up to date with Joshua Lee.