“I have lived in El Paso my entire life and I have met so many people. When I first started my photography journey there really wasn’t much of an “art scene.” Now, artists in El Paso matter, we are making moves that are changing the “Frontera” for the better. My first exposure to photography was through sports and my mother. My mom realized that she hadn’t documented or photographed any of my extracurriculars. So, she decided to buy herself a camera, and at the time it was a nice expensive one. When I wasn’t doing sports, I was really into fashion and would call myself a “sneakerhead.” I had found a niche of sneakerheads that were taking very high-quality photos of their shoes, I instantly got attached to the community. I would take my mom’s camera and take photos of me wearing my Jordan’s, Nikes, and Yeezys. I would spend a couple minutes editing them on “iPhoto,” trying on different filters and borders before posting to my page where my Instagram name was “@thekingabz.” People were noticing that I knew my way around a camera, so my friends would ask me to take senior or family photos. I would get paid $20 or just lunch sometimes. I really like the feeling of making someone confident in their own skin and empowering them, that’s when I knew that I could do this for a living.
The art scene is one big community all dedicated to help one another, but, I would tell anyone starting out in the business to outwork the competition. People will begin to notice when you’re working long hours, having no sleep, and keeping your quality and creativity up.” - @ab.gonzalezz
🎨 🖌 by @tired.fish
