JS: I've engaged in three specific areas of photography documentary, fashion, and fine arts. I became interested in photography around 1975 after viewing an incredible body of images from a member of a gang called the Jolly Stompers. The photographer’s name was Sundance (Cornel Reid); he was an (Warlord) official in that particular gang, and the cousin of one of my good friends.
The photographs in the albums were of gang members and their affiliates; all dressed in the latest fashion of that time and posing with strength and confidence. After seeing those images I was captivated and decided that I wanted to take pictures in that same manner. I borrowed my mother’s 110 Kodak Instamatic cameras and went on a mission to document my peers, in a fashion similar to that of Sundance.
Upon taking my first photographs, I was amazed with how I was able to compliment my subjects and make them feel good about themselves a nd the whole experience of being photograph. Photography then became a way of life for me, and I then knew what my purpose was.