Meet Tiel Bowers | Photographer/Videographer

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

Hi Tiel, why did you decide to pursue a creative path?
Well for one, I was an Art major. I graduated from California State University Northridge, this year actually, with a bachelors in arts. To make the most of it I actually need to have some creative endeavors, so I decided to go with what I naturally gravitated towards to the most.

Photography.

I got a camera because I wanted to be a model or do some modeling and I wanted to be more comfortable in-front of a camera and know my way around one so I can take pictures of myself. I didn’t want to have to rely on others for photographs and I realized I had a deeper need for control over the process and how things turned out. I would go around photographing people on Campus and in public and send them the photographs when I was done editing them. I did a lot experimenting, a lot of them weren’t great, the color grading was totally off and I couldn’t tell. A lot of self portraits as well. Photography has also shown me how beautiful my surroundings really are. After seeing the world through a lens, I didn’t know I was missing and over looking so much detail about the world around. It made me really just appreciate everything and everyone around me so much more and really focus in on them. It was a really eye opening experience for me, I’m still so surprised that the sky is so blue. I don’t know what happened. I was editing pictures I took in Yosemite last year in September and the sky was just so blue and I thought I was doing something wrong.

So I took a step outside and man, the sky really is that blue.

It was like I had never looked up before, and I just noticed the sky for the first time.

Crazy really, I could cry about it.

But Ive always thought that the photographs I take are super cool. They are like time stamps, moments in history, collectibles almost and they’re mine. Ive always felt and still feel that I can take an image and make the most out of it. I feel like I can bring the most out of an image and make someone look their best and I feel like I can take pride in that.

Alright, so let’s move onto what keeps you busy professionally?
Event photography is what I specialize in at the moment but I also do portrait work. I do a lot of concert photography photographing celebrities, and behind the scenes video work for photoshoots and movies. Ive shot many big events on my own, just me, my camera and my external flash. Id love to say what sets me apart from others is myself, specifically my ability to be transparent with others and communicate with them, and my ability to deliver. Has it been easy? I wouldn’t say being a photographer has been hard, it hasn’t been easy either, it’s just been a process. A long and educative one. What has been difficult is being a professional and having to deal with the financial side of things. What I can say, is that I’ve learned is that everyone is out for themselves at the end of the day, almost always, and that’s not necessariliy a bad thing. Ive learned that’s its okay to ask for what you want or what you need, if someone is offering you someone or you are in pursuit of some goal, why not reach for all that you can before you settle for what given to you. A closed mouth won’t get fed, and lately I’ve learned Ive got a pretty big appetite myself. Lastly, I’ve learned that your aspirations and ambition rest solely and heavily on your shoulders. You have to believe in what your doing and have to have the steam to keep going, because if you start question who you are and why your doing what you’re doing, your going to fall apart at the seams. You need to keep it together, you’re the one creating, you’re the creative, it’s hard to create or function at all when you’re spiraling.

My goal or my ideal vision for myself and business is to become a necessity for those in need of my services, and to be booked and busy with at least 3 gigs a week, at most 10 gigs a month and Im excited and looking forward to the day that is the case.

I absolutely tend to despise reality at times and find myself almost always reading some sort of fantasy book immersed in another world. Im always imagining, always day dreaming, life can be too grey sometimes even with all its color. The name, Waking Dream Media, is the embodiment of the idea that I believe life should be like a Waking Dream. What you want it to be or at least have the power to make it so. Wouldn’t it be nice If life was a bit more whimsical? A bit more magical? I believe so.

Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.
well I mean I just came back from a trip with my best friend up north. We drove up to Eureka for a few days and stopped everywhere along the way. Me being a photographer I took so many pictures of everything. We stopped at art museums, fossil sites, bowling alleys, rivers, beaches, the redwoods, a zoo, the casino, I photographed everything and it was a great experience.

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
I have. a big sister like figure in my life, that I have to give most of my thanks to, one of my closest friends, Janet. From day one she has taken me seriously and treated me like I was a professional photographer and like what I did and said mattered. She’s put me in positions and helped me meet people I would’ve never met on my own. She’s supported me in so many other ways and id argue She’s one of the most empathetic and nicest people on earth. She has been an amazing friend, an amazing support system, a great manager and mentor, and she deserves so much more credit, more than I have to give.

Website: https://www.wakingdreammedia.com

Instagram: @wakingdreammedia/@TielBowers

Image Credits
I took all images.