Lians Jadan is a worldwide known creative self-taught photographer. He is a visionary whose passion for the visual image is lush and unique. Lians began his career in high fashion, having editorials appearing in notable publications as BG, Prim, Graphis, VogueItalia.com, Business Destinations, Hint and Cliché magazines. Lians captures rich, dramatic photographs and chic fashion exposé’s with cinematic flair.
His rich experiences and collaborations have fostered his wide variety of styles including beauty, advertising, lifestyle, motion, portraiture and still life. In addition to his photography, Lians has since moved on to become one of the leading consultants in the creative industry including film and advertising, building relationships with fellow talented innovators allowing him the ability to make any production come to fruition.
Always with a generous smile, grace and devotion to the task, he travels the world with intense dedication for every aspect of production including music and art, creatively matching his client’s overall vision and needs. Lians lives with his beautiful wife, Monica, and their two daughters Lareina and Stella.
It was a pleasure for us to take an interview with Lians Jadan who shared some interesting facts of his biography. We wish you a pleasant reading of Lians Jadan success story and viewing of his amazing high-art photography.
The First Steps in Photography
AP: Hi Lians, thank you so much for finding the time to share your success story. That is a great honor for us to take an interview with you. Could please tell us what got you started?
Lians: I always loved photography, throughout my early childhood years, I was always behind the camera taking family photos, capturing memories, staging photos, as a kid I don’t have many photos of me since I was always taking the photos. At about 21, my now wife, Monica, inspired me to chase my dream as a photographer and to never look back, soon after I took my first steps in achieving my dream. I immersed myself in every image (Helmut Newton, Avedon, Sorrenti, Testino, Meisel, Mert and Marcus, Klein, Penn, Weber, etc.) magazines, websites (very few back then), art that I loved, who near me was the best so that I could possibly assist/intern. I devoured everything I could get my hands on.
Education
AP: What an amazing start. This is so great that your wife was the one who inspired you to chase your dream. Could you please tell us about your education degree?
Lians: I applied and got accepted to a few prestigious art schools, but then looked at the tuition and decided I couldn’t afford it. So then I decided to take classes I loved at a university to gain the knowledge and the technical side of photography, so then I can create my visions. I used their studios, dark rooms, paper, chemicals, printers, etc. I then picked up every photography book and magazine I could get my hands on to help enhance my knowledge. After I felt, I was strong enough and I started duplicating images that I love.
AP: Oh, wow, you gained priceless experience at the university. What genre are your photos?
Lians: People. I love people, fashion, lifestyle, portraits, anything that has to do with people, interacting, creating. The challenge was growing up in Detroit that there aren’t very many outlets for photography outside of automotive and fine art. I had to reach out to different markets/locations to get my work seen, doing work in New York, UK, Peru, Ecuador, Italy, etc.
AP: Traveling across different countries helped you to acquire diverse and multicultural experience. How would you describe your work?
Lians: High-art.
Equipment and Techniques
AP: You are a very creative photographer. We enjoy every single picture that you showcase on your website. What kind of equipment and techniques do you use to take your photographs? Tell us a bit about your creative process.
Lians: There is pre-production, production, and post-production in my process. The pre-production involves research and inspiration, from dreaming to going to art galleries, libraries, bookstores, and/or online for inspiration. Production, the camera gear changes depending on output film vs. digital, but the one thing that stays consistent is my capture software when I’m shooting digital, Capture One Pro, love the power of the raw processing. Then post-production, the editing (one of the hardest part in my opinion), narrowing down the images; then retouching (if needed).
AP: Thank you for your detailed explanations. Please tell us about your recent project you worked so far. What inspired you to start working on it?
Lians: I did a series called Lexi Drew, it was about capturing freedom and beauty and the beauty of freedom.
AP: What is the formula for success in your activity?
Lians: Networking is probably the most important advice I can give, that’s having face time with clients, galleries, entering contests, etc. My assistant(s) and I had to do this ourselves over the years. Over the past few years, I’ve been busy enough that I had to take on an artist rep that has relationships to help me grow and connect. Regardless of how talented you are if the right people don’t see your work, your art-work will never truly be seen.
AP: We totally agree with you. Networking is an integral aspect of the modern world. Is there someone who supports you in your creativity?
Lians: It was a difficult road to go after my dream, being 1st generation Chaldean-American (my parents emigrated from Iraq to the U.S. in the 70s). They didn’t see a future in the arts, they wanted me to become a lawyer or doctor, I didn’t. My girlfriend then, now wife, pushed me to go after my dreams regardless of obstacles and never to give up, and believe me there were so many times I wanted to, but knew I wouldn’t be happy doing anything else. Soon, after I landed my first international fashion cover, my first campaign, my first award, my parents started to understand that I could make a living at art and photography and happiness, then started to support me.
Five Golden Tips in Photography
AP: Tell us five lessons you believe are really important for every photographer?
Lians:
- Drive/hunger. This can’t be taught, this comes from everything that you are and want to become.
- Assist the best and many of them. This will educate you in more ways than schooling and will lead you into my No. 3, 4, 5 points.
- Network. Meet the right people/clients/editors/creatives.
- Understand the business because you are your business. Schools rarely teach the business of photography or teach it well, assisting a successful shooter will teach you that.
- Marketing. You are your brand; you need to spread the word with competitions, social media, website, galleries, etc.
Lians, it has been a great pleasure for us to take an interview with you. Thank you very much for sharing such incredible success story with us. We wish you continued success, amazing accomplishments and many more great ideas to come up with. To learn more about Lians Jadan photography feel free to visit his personal website with beautiful high-art photographs.
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