Meet Razi Wilson | Photographer & Art Therapist

We had the good fortune of connecting with Razi Wilson and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Razi, we’d love to hear more about how you thought about starting your own business?
I was a project/operational manager in my home with my three children for 18 years while my husband worked to support our family. All the while I was part-time photographing families, pregnant women, weddings, actors’ headshots, and anything portrait related. I got my degree from the School of Visual Arts, a Bachelors’s in Fine Art Photography & a certificate in Art Therapy, I always loved taking portraits and I wanted something that was creative, brought in some money, and felt like mine. Being a mother was amazing, such a blessing to be able to stay home with my kids, and while it was so fulfilling on many levels it wasn’t all I needed. I need to feel like I was honoring my talents and gifts. Starting my own business allowed me to have both.

Let’s talk shop? Tell us more about your career, what can you share with our community?
My art has evolved over the years. I started out fascinated by documentary/reportage imagery. Real-life portraits that told a story. I ended up being chosen for an internship at Newsweek magazine where I did photo research and eventually photo editing. There I got to choose which images would go with the stories. After I graduated I stayed on at Newsweek for a while. That was a special experience. It really informed my art and style, while I did portraits of families and even headshots I always strived to capture people’s essence, their truth, and story. I wanted my portraits to feel real and evoke a sense of connection. I also studied to become an Art Therapist. This allowed me to more deeply understand and connect with people. And it actually helped me in my photography. I have been told by most of my clients that I make them feel at ease in front of my camera. They feel comfortable to be themselves. This eventually led to what I am doing now. Healing portraits, this is where I combine therapeutic tools and photography to actually do deep healing work as we make portraits of them. We dive deeper into trauma, body issues, and wounds from the past and use photography to create a new story, one where they see themselves in a beautiful new way. Often we don’t see ourselves as others see us. And that can be a very cathartic experience.

Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?
First, my parents deserve a lot of credit for me following my dreams. They have always supported me in all my efforts. They always encouraged me to pursue my talents, both of them are artists who ended up with practical jobs and they knew the value of being an artist while also being able to support myself. Second, my husband, was always supportive of me doing my photography and he encouraged me constantly. Lastly, my friends, I have always had people around me that rooted for me and want to see me win.

Website: www.raziphoto.com

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/raziwilsonphotography/

Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/razi-wilson/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/raziphoto/

Yelp: https://www.yelp.com/biz/razi-wilson-photography-los-angeles?osq=Razi+Wilson+Photography

Image Credits
Razi Wilson Photography Picture of me holding camera photo credit to Jess Fernandez