Desean Ragland
- By |
- In: Interviews, Shuttercrack
We first spotted this young photographer from Baltimore through our shuttercrack network. As your regular readers may know we are all about pushing great work and the people behind it. We really like the work and eagerness of our man, so we had no other choice then to reach out to him..
Tell us, who is the person behind these images?
The person behind these images would be me! Desean Ragland. I’m 17, a high school student, and reside in Baltimore, Maryland. Check out my portfolio!
How did you get into shooting photos?
Well, either last summer or the one before that one of my friends, John Bonilla, had a Nikon D40 and would bring it around when we chilled. I saw the results that he got and I knew I wanted in on it. It took me a couple months, but I finally saved up enough to buy my own D40.
Tell us about your work as a young photographer, did you just picked up a camera and educate yourself?
I educated myself for the most part, John helped me along the way, and I read some internet articles and books here and there. Everything and everyone was a help to some extent.
You seem to make a lot of portraits, is that something you just rolled into or is it your main focus?
Portraits have developed into my main focus. It didn’t start out that way but I get the most satisfaction out of taking pictures of people. Maybe it’s the reaction I get when they see the final product, or the moments that you can capture when a person involved, whatever it is, I love it.
How does the city of Baltimore influence your photography?
Baltimore has had an influence on how I view a lot of things, so I guess it influences what I actually photograph and what my environments will be, but other than that Baltimore itself doesn’t have too much influence on my photography.
What’s your camera set up?
I work with a Nikon D40 & a 50mm f/1.8 lens. Poor man’s setup, lol.
Tell us , what’s your motivation or inspiration to pick up the camera every day?
Visiting people’s flickr albums every day, checking sites like Shuttercrack every day, with places like that, I can’t help but to be inspired. I also have a great group of friends around me who are into photography, Makala, John, and Dave, so those three are also a motivating factor.
What’s the strangest thing that ever happened to you when you were out shooting photos?
That would probably when I was in downtown Baltimore at the Inner Harbor with Dave and he tried to photograph two young ladies without them knowing, they saw him attempt it, and cursed him out on the spot, lol. Unfortunate.
As far as we know baltimore and her people are really inventive creative wise (seeing al the great music and such coming out). How’s the creative scene in the rugged city of Bmore?
There are a lot of different type of people, so with that comes a lot of creativity and different ideas. You can pretty much find whatever creative outlet you’re looking for somewhere in Baltimore or the general area. It’s nice.
How does your environment react on you taking your camera everywhere and shooting all the time?
It depends, I get some weird looks sometimes depending on where I am, but then again, I guess cameras are a normal thing considering the Harbor and other attractions that are in Baltimore.
Let’s say we gave you a bag of money to buy some new equipment, what’s on your whish list?
Man, I wish. haha. But, a Nikorr 35mm f/1.8 and a 85mm f/1.4D. Maybe an upgrade from my D40 to a D90 or D300 and a SB600.
How do you feel about post-processing your images?
I feel that post-processing my images gives me a chance to seperate and distinguish my photos from other photographers, but I always try to limit myself and keep my pictures looking natural and not over-processed.
Do you have any master plans or ambitions for your photography?
Well, I am currently in a photography group with David Butler, John Bonilla, and Makala Hairston called Speak Volumes Photography, and we plan on expanding that to it’s full potential as soon as possible. Hopefully a studio will develop out of it sometime in the future.
Pick out one photo from your portfolio that has a special story behind it
http://www.flickr.com/photos/dmvdebo/3361412984 – I picked this picture because I took it at a point where I was starting to get frustrated with where I was with my photography to the point where I almost sold my camera. I decided to take it out with a few friends and I came out with some great results from that day. I haven’t thought about selling it since.
My little Addition (if it’s okay haha)
Shoutouts! Shoutout to my whole fam! Mom dukes, Derean, Slade, Cwood, Linder, E, John, Jon-Jon, Makaykay, Dave, Boogey, Konan, Remi, Scotty B, Mike, Uch, and whoever else! You know who you are. Sorry, just had to get my shoutouts in. haha. Speak Volumes!
Also big thanks to CFYE for the feature! gimme a t-shirt! hahaa.
Okay machine gun fire:
Cats or Dogs?
Dogs.
City or Nature?
City.
Squares or Sines?
Squares.
Uggs or Crocks? Uggs, if I had to choose. haha.
Public transportation or Horses?
Horses.
Bill or Steve?
Steve.
Ray Ban or Stunna shades?
Ray Ban!
Tea or Coffee?
Tea.
McDonalds or Burger King?
McDonalds, easy.
