Meet Javane Stewart

Today we’d like to introduce you to Javane Stewart.

Javane, we appreciate you taking the time to share your story with us today. Where does your story begin?
Hi, I’m Javane Stewart. I am a visual creative living in Atlanta, Georgia, working primarily as a photographer and at times a videographer, and designer, and everything in between.

I was born and raised in Jamaica but I’ve been living in Atlanta for 10 years now. Assimilating to a new culture has been an extremely daunting task, especially given that I was really quiet and shy as a child, traits that still affect me to this day.

The thought of me pursuing creative/artistic endeavors is quite surprising to me because I didn’t have access to many creative outlets growing up, and when I did get access, I didn’t embrace them enough. So this all feels very new, frightening but also exciting.

I’ve always had an interest in photography but it wasn’t until late 2019 when I purchased my first camera and started capturing photos everywhere I went that I took it seriously. The real reason I opted to get a camera at the time was that a couple of my friends and I wanted to create a media production team, focusing on automotive content, which we did (Dime Media). A month later I would find myself at a friend’s album release party, camera in hand, completely clueless. I ended up taking some portraits of performances and people who were in the crowd and sent them to my friend on a whim. Long story short, they ended up liking the photos and thus started my love for portraiture. Not only did I find a genre of photography I liked, but I also found that I enjoyed how I was able to intertwine my love for music and photography in one. I find joy in creating work visually through images or videos for people who create music.

I’m not entirely sure where I am right now as it relates to the question. I’m still learning, experimenting, finding my voice, and finding my way creatively. I have such a long way to go and so much I want to accomplish. The good thing is I’m becoming much more confident in my work and my abilities as a creative and I know I’ll get there as long as I put the work in.

We all face challenges, but looking back would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
Smooth road? I wish. Like a lot of people who undertake creative/artistic endeavors, I suffer from extreme imposter syndrome. It has crippled my ability to learn and progress with my work. Like I mentioned before, this creative thing is new to me, and looking around at the people who also share this space, and seeing how long they have been doing it, and how great their work is, I often shied away from sharing my work or even actually creating it. I would feel like my work doesn’t compare to others and this has severely hampered my progress.

It has also made me uncomfortable pricing my work when people ask for my services. Which of course affects the business side of things.

Another way this has affected me is being unable to appreciate the genuine admiration people have for my work. I used to feel undeserving.

I’m improving though. I am growing in confidence and trusting my judgment when it comes to creative decision-making. So it’s time to grow and move forward.

Thanks for sharing that. So, maybe next you can tell us a bit more about your work?
Within the photography space, I focus mainly on portraiture and at times dabble in automotive and whatever else I find interest in. As for videography, I do visuals for musicians. Whether it be studio session recaps or even music videos. I do want to move into cinematography at some point, once I learn the foundations. I’m venturing into various fields of design right now as I believe it’ll be beneficial in my overall growth and advancement as a creative.

The thing I am most proud of is the fact that I’m still doing this. At various points, I felt like calling it quits because I wasn’t sure I was good enough. So the fact that I’m here doing this interview means that I have found some belief and I’m starting to value my work, my effort.

I’m not sure if there is anything that sets me apart from others at this very moment. Maybe there is, I just haven’t realized it. I haven’t examined that too much. But let’s circle back in a few months and see.

Alright so before we go can you talk to us a bit about how people can work with you, collaborate with you or support you?
I genuinely enjoy collaborating with others. With that said, should someone want to collaborate, reach out from any of my social media profiles, my email or my portfolio. To support, just do the same. Follow, like a post or two or share my work.

Contact Info:

• Email: javane.stewart@gmail.com
• Website: https://javanestewart.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/javanestewart/
• Twitter: https://twitter.com/JavaneStewart
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC4P43hSza4WcunQEBvLAClg
• Other: https://www.behance.net/javanestewart

Image Credits:
Javane Stewart