Interviewed by Arhantika Rebello
ROSHAN
Roshan Jacob is a 23 year old photographer currently studying engineering and design at The City University of New York.
" I’ve always been fascinated by how things work and how to make things work better in order to make life easier."
I first met Roshan during a trip to New York in 2019. Our interaction was brief and consisted of a random game of tag on a playground in Brooklyn. It didn't involve much conversation, but I began following him on Instagram and have been a fan of his work ever since.
So tell me, how did you get into photography?
I started taking photographs when I got my first cellphone. I would take photos of anything and everything. I was just a kid that was interested in having fun and taking photos of my friends and family. I was taking photos primarily on my phone until dad gave me his old digital camera when I was around 15, and I started to learn more about how to shoot manually. That lead me to start shooting film when I was around 17. I’ve been shooting on 35mm ever since! One of the biggest inspirations for me is movies. Good cinematography would always catch my attention, even as a kid. I was really interested in how certain ways of framing and lighting worked well to tell a story. It was also just so satisfying to look at.
What do you shoot on?
As of right now, I am shooting on a Canon AE-1 Program. It was a gift to me from a friend when I was a teenager.
What is it that drives you and your creativity?
Creatively speaking, I would say that one of the biggest factors for me is just to be able to document the raw beauty in this world. And that can be anything from serene landscapes, to something gnarly that you see happening in a street. But I must say one of the main reasons why I shoot is to remember how my life is going at that certain time. It’s nice to have photos to look at later on and remember what things were like.
How would you describe your photographic style?
I would say that the way I shoot lies along the lines of a documentarian style. I do dabble in other areas of photography but I feel that primarily speaking, documenting is what I enjoy doing with photography.
Why do you shoot the things that you shoot?
There can be a lot of reasons or none at all. Sometimes you see something that you know will make a good photograph but other times you just shoot something that you think will be nothing, only to find out that you really like it later on. That being said, the opposite is always bound to happen as well haha there are many times when photos that you thought would be sick turn out badly. It’s just a part of the fun.
How did you end up in New York?
I moved to New York when I turned 21. I spent a lot of time in the city through frequent visits during my early years of college. I would stay with one of my friends from high school who was attending NYU at the time. I felt that I could become the person I wanted to be here. There were so many creative influences and people that I was meeting even just through my visits, so I decided to pull the trigger and make the move.
What’s it’s like being a young creative in New York today?
I would say that there is a community for everything out here. I think what really matters is that you continue to do your thing and the right communities will come to you because there are so many people in New York that are wanting to do similar things. It’s also very important to make sure that you go out and meet new people. There are loads of opportunities in this city but a lot of them can only be heard about through word of mouth, and even most likely you will need someone to vouch for you. In regards to responses to my work, I can’t really answer that yet. I don’t feel like I have done enough to put my work out there as much as I would want to. But with what I have seen through my friend's art shows, I can say that there really is a positive community out here that is willing to push each other to grow and get better at their craft.
