Today we’d like to introduce you to Crystal Power.
Crystal, let’s start with your story. We’d love to hear how you got started and how the journey has been so far.
My passion for the arts stems from my desire to capture the essence of time in the moments of life. I thoroughly enjoy finding the unexpected angles and candid scenarios of creation and personal stories of all my clients. From the age of 15, I have been intrigued with freezing time. I became more enamored with photography when I realized that time is an element of life that man can not control. If we think about it, time cannot be stopped, paused, fast forwarded or rewound. Time is constantly moving forward. Photography is a great way to capture the essence of time that can never be relived. January 21st, 1984 at 6:53am will never come again (which is my birthday) but through photography, it can be captured.
It took me a while to get to this place but I am a humble, impeccable, creative artist with a gift of capturing the unique perspective of life through the lens. This is done by freeing my client’s creativity from a box of boundaries that only exist because they allow them to. My main goal is to make my clients comfortable enough to become vulnerable so that creativity becomes limitless. I do what I have to do for the shot! Safety is always a priority but I will get dirty for the shot I need to capture. Climbing over chairs or even laying on the ground, the shot I see in my head will be captured.
I have been blessed in my career to have had the opportunity to serve as the exclusive creative director and photographer for Ambassador Dr. Juanita Bynum for over 12 years and have extensive international travel experience with photography shoots in London, Amsterdam, Durban, Johannesburg, Nigeria, Ghana, and across the nation. I have served as an event photographer for the City of Atlanta, which also includes Mayor Kasim Reed and Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms and other major corporations.
From that little spark in my soul when I was 15 I just continued to follow the light in my heart and it has led me on an amazing journey that I have only scratched the surface of all I will achieve.
Overall, has it been relatively smooth? If not, what were some of the struggles along the way?
It absolutely has not been a smooth road getting to where I am now. There have been many obstacles or as I like to call them “stepping stones to new perspectives” along my journey. One main stepping stone along the journey was not having access to accurate representation. Which as a result I have started a vlog (YouTube: iamCrystalPower) to share different ways to overcome obstacles as well as presenting myself to be representation for other young African American ladies interested in pursuing photography.
One odd advantage yet obstacle was having success within my journey at such a young age. I was in my twenties when I experienced the biggest leap of my career. Of course, when we experience things for the first time, it’s new but for me being so young made certain aspects of my journey not smooth.
Another obstacle that I will speak about in my vlog is understanding that your art expression will not be accepted by all. Learning how to properly process rejection was a big part of my journey as well. I used to take rejection to heart and feel as though I was not good enough, which in fact was totally not true.
Alright – so let’s talk business. Tell us about Crystal Power | Powered Pixels – what should we know?
I have evolved my company from just photography to become a one-stop Media Creative Group. Services range from photography, video recording and editing, graphic design for web and/ or print as well as producing content for TV or web.
My company specializes in photography.
I am primarily known for being a lifestyle photographer.
As a company, I am most proud of being fluid enough to evolve yet strong enough to grow. Media spreads into so many different areas in life and I have taken my craft into a lot of different areas without losing focus on the craft I am mastering.
My creative ability is the main thing that sets me apart from others. I am a strong creative as well as a strong analytical and methodical thinker.
Any shoutouts? Who else deserves credit in this story – who has played a meaningful role?
First and most importantly, all glory belongs to God for the gifts and talents He has bestowed upon me. I am forever grateful and forever humbled willed with a heart to become pleasing in His sight. I want to hear Him say, well done, when it is my time to leave this earth. I want to make God proud.
I want to thank my mother for loving me and supporting me when I would have a lot of creative ideas that were new to my family. She never limited my ability to dream.
I want to thank my Aunt Connie for always showing me how hard work really does pay off. And if you want something, go get it!
I want to thank my mentor Dr. Juanita Bynum for believing in a gift I was too young to acknowledge or mature enough to to fully carry out. Her tutelage matured me and made me a stronger creative. She really helped me grow in my craft and has been a vital instrument to my freedom as a creative.
Contact Info:
- Address: 1984 Howell Mill Road Suite 20103
Atlanta, GA 30325 - Website: www.poweredpixels.com | www.thecrystalpower.com
- Email: cpower@poweredpixels.com
- Instagram: @iamcrystalpower | @poweredpixels
- Facebook: @poweredpixels
- Twitter: @iamcrystalpower
Image Credit:
Samuel Bright, Crystal Power
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