Meet James Nwobu, Photographer and Content creator in Downtown Phoenix

Today we’d like to introduce you to James Nwobu.

So, before we jump into specific questions about the business, why don’t you give us some details about you and your story.
I remember the first time I purchased a camera. I was a sophomore in college, living in the athlete’s dorm as an RA. I remember thinking then that I felt like I should own a camera because I should keep memories of things happening around me. I bought a small Kodak camera, which I never really used.

I remember thinking to myself, “if I ever buy another camera, it’s going to be one of those ‘bigger ones'” because my hands were way too big to be carrying small point and shoot cameras around. I eventually purchased my first camera in 2007. A good friend of mine was getting married that weekend and asked me to take pictures at his wedding.

I thought he was crazy.

I had literally just ordered the camera and received in the mail a couple days before he was crossing that threshold. Luckily—and wisely—he’d already hired a more seasoned photographer to cover the wedding, and I’d just be there getting extra shots. That was my first exposure trying to shoot with a DSLR, not on the green box (auto mode).

I learned just enough from that other photographer to pique my interest in how to properly expose an image. After a bit of digging, I found a book by a guy named Bryan Peterson called, Understanding Exposure and I was off to the races. Once I understood the trifecta of exposure, it was just a matter of finding opportunities to shoot more. That’s when I knew photography was something I wanted to do for a long time.

I wish I could say the rest is history, but that wasn’t quite the case. I went a few years where I didn’t use my camera much at all. My journey has been up and down and at one point, I thought about selling my gear and taking a whole other direction.

I’m glad I didn’t.

In those periods when I wasn’t shooting myself, I was still consuming inspiration everywhere I could, and one day I decided to take my photography seriously and go for it. I started shooting lifestyle content with friends of mine, and I had the opportunity to create content for a couple local brands in my city.

Soon after, I got laid off from work.

I thought my world was crumbling a little bit. I called my friends the night it happened, seeing what I should do. One of my good friends called me when he heard the news and was completely bummed for me. He mentioned that he wished he could invite me over, but he was in Long Beach that weekend. Several weeks before, I reached out to a company that was hosting a huge event in Long Beach that I wanted to shoot, called ComplexCon. I asked, “What’s in Long Beach?” He says, “We’re working with a company to help set up a booth at this—have you ever her of come-plex con?”

I lit up. I told him I’d tried to get media credentials to shoot the event, but got denied. He took care of all of that. That weekend I was in Long Beach, CA shooting one of the most significant trade show festivals that year, and captured some iconic images that got picked up by the media organization hosting the event.

Fast forward to the new year and I’ve had the opportunity to work with incredible people and document incredible events, of which I only hope to continue doing both here and abroad. There’s something about freezing a moment in time that’s unlike anything else. I love it.

Overall, has it been relatively smooth? If not, what were some of the struggles along the way?
Oh my gosh, absolutely not haha. I’d gotten so sidetracked at one point that I seriously considered selling all my camera gear because I needed the money. Again, I’m really glad I didn’t, and not doing that was one of the best choices I’ve made. I eventually did sell my gear, but only to switch back to the brand of equipment I’d always loved, and I’ve been snap-happy ever since.

My biggest struggles were usually around getting the opportunities to shoot the things I wanted to. You reach out, show your work, reach out again, show more work, and sometimes you feel like you’re beating a drum no one wants to listen to. Rejection can be tough and when you don’t have another source of income, rejection can be that much more stressful. In those moments, personal work and the collaborative projects keep your creative muscle strong and the motivation to create steady.

Alright – so let’s talk business. Tell us about James Nwobu – what should we know?
I’m a commercial lifestyle photographer, videographer and creative director. I love capturing moments as they happen in real time and supply companies and organizations with the content to tell important stories to their audiences.

I’m probably most known for some of the work I’ve done at major trade shows and festivals, particularly ComplexCon, and some of the figures I had the privilege of getting portraits of. That was definitely one of my most proud moments, successfully capturing all the life and connect with all the people that I did there.

I’m a relationship guy at the root, and I suck at small talk, so I tend to really want to get to know people, so that when I take a picture of them, some in-between moments there’s an authenticity that couldn’t be captured any other way than if there were some sort of rapport or relationship there. That seems to be what people mention most when they see some of my work. “You can feel it,” they say.

I’m just grateful I get to do it.

Any shoutouts? Who else deserves credit in this story – who has played a meaningful role?
Whew! That’s a loaded question. Who doesn’t deserve credit? You’ll get me in trouble because I’m sure I can’t name all the people who’ve had a significant hand in my capacity to do what I’m doing now. I’ve had all of the above from mentors and supporters, cheerleaders and advocates, clients and teammates; guys like my friend and mentor in many ways, AT, who’s the reason why I’m in Phoenix, AZ to begin with and got connected with the people who are now some of my closest friends. He’s literally been all of the above, so without question, he gets a ton of credit. If I blow up, I’m cuttin’ him a phat check (no gas, lol!); not to mention my buddy Kyle, who in every rough situation has been immediately responsive to help me figure out the next thing.

When I started to take photography seriously, he hired me to shoot his newborn without hesitation and wouldn’t let me do it for free. That’s real support. And then, there’s Pat. I was feeling pretty low when I got laid off and getting me into what was essentially THE festival to be in 2017, it was a landmark moment that I’ll never forget. So much, both personally and professionally, grew out of that and I’ve still yet to see how far things will grow. So, for the better part of it, among all the other people that I’m sure I’ve failed to mention (please forgive me), those three deserve so much cred.

Contact Info:

• Website: http://www.jamesnwobu.com
• Email: james@jamesnwobu.com
• Instagram: http://www.instagram.com/jamesnwobu
• Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/jamesnwobu
• Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/jamesnwobu

Image Credit:
James Nwobu

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