Mentorship 2.0 | A Panel Discussion

Last week’s mentorship session, Jasmine invited two photographers, Adri and Jamilla, to join our group and share the stories that shaped their careers. Both photographers started by introducing themselves and explaining how they started. Listening to them talk about their stories, the type of work they do, and personal experiences is a reminder that everyone’s creative path is different. They showed their websites and the work they have done; one photographer focused on family portraits, graduation portraits, corporate, and maternity photos. The other focused more on maternity, newborn, and family portraits.

The session ended with an open Q&A, and answered any questions the mentees had. Overall, this mentorship session went over pricing, confidence, networking, and experiences. Bringing in photographers who have walked this path for years was a great opportunity for the mentees to connect. We are grateful to Adri and Jamilla for sharing their time, their stories, and their knowledge.

Mentorship 2.0 | Collaborative Project

For this week’s Mentorship session, our mentees gathered to work on their collective project, a magazine dedicated to Proviso and Maywood. Each mentee is highlighting different things about Proviso. Mya is photographing families, capturing the heart of Proviso through the people of the community. Saffron is photographing local businesses, spotlighting the owners who keep the community moving. Melina is capturing events and highlighting the history, putting together past and present, honoring the stories held in Proviso. Haley is documenting sports, the athletes, teams, and traditions that energize the neighborhood. Ethan is designing the layout of the magazine, bringing every piece together visually, and finalizing the magazine.

The mentees had a quick check-in with Jasmine on their project progress, then moved on to giving each other feedback and updates. We also spent time interviewing the mentees, giving them time to speak about their experience and things that they have learned so far during mentorship. As it gets closer to finalizing their project, the mentees are learning how to collaborate, communicate, and create with purpose.

Mentorship 2.0 | Final Session

The final chapter of Mentorship 2.0 was a celebration for our mentees and their accomplishments! The last couple of sessions were about learning, experimenting, being creative, and coming up with a project of their own. For the final session, we celebrated the mentees’ achievements by having a celebratory dinner, followed by showing their final project and presenting it. The mentees went over the challenges and solutions they had come across and their entire journey of Mentorship 2.0.

To our mentees: Adlemy, Mya, Gabi, Keilani, and Saffron, thank you for your time, creativity, and determination. It was great to see each mentee show up and talk about their projects, and being able to see the process from start to finish.

To our Co-leads: Lu’Cretia and Jasmine, thank you for the ways you have shared your knowledge, skills, and wisdom with our mentees. We are forever grateful!

Mentorship 2.0 | Week 9

Week 9 of Mentorship 2.0 was all about the mentees finalizing their mentorship projects. Jasmine, our Executive Director, has been supporting our mentorship as a Co-lead, and gave creative guidance to the mentees as they helped their visions come together. We want to thank our mentees for their creativity and their great collaborations with each other.

Moving forward, we are excited for the final week coming up next week

Mentorship 2.0 | Week 8

We can’t believe our first cohort for Mentorship 2.0 is almost over. It was media day for our mentees to highlight their skill sets. They collaborated with other mentees and small businesses to make this media day a success. There were three setups: A studio setup with a backdrop, lighting, and additional props. A coffee cart featuring Gabi’s goal of having a mobile coffee shop. Lastly, a creative setup, where the photographers had freedom to place their models wherever they wanted them.

The photography team - Mya, Saffron, and Adlemy- rotated through each station, capturing content and experimenting with different looks. They worked closely with another mentee, Keilani, a digital artist developing an album cover concept, and Gabi with her coffee brand.

It was a day of shared ideas, various setups, and a space filled with creativity!