JIAYI L.

More about JIAYI L....

What do you love about your job?

My favorite part about my job is finding the balance between helping local brands showcase their identity and pursuing my own aesthetic expression. Photography allows me to beautifully blend my work with my personal passions, like traveling and exploring different cultures. Every commercial assignment becomes an opportunity to apply my global worldview and love for storytelling, turning everyday moments into art. For me, it’s incredibly fulfilling to see my personal artistic vision directly helping a business succeed.

What types of shoots have you done and how did you make them special?

I have done numerous food shoots in Cairns, capturing a diverse range of international cuisines. To elevate the visuals, I love incorporating raw, fresh ingredients into the background and styling. For instance, placing fresh lemongrass and chilies beside a Thai curry, or dusting flour near handmade pasta. This technique doesn't just showcase the quality of the food; it creates a rich, immersive atmosphere that instantly tells the viewer what this restaurant is all about, making their menu stand out on any platform.
Besides, I also have done a lot of travel shoots and I specialize in capturing the authentic soul and heritage of a place. For instance, when I was shooting in Kashgar, I was deeply captivated by the vibrant, colorful architecture and the meticulously styled, traditional clothing of the local people. To make that project truly special, I used those distinct cultural textures as my core theme, and later used precise post-processing to accentuate and elevate those rich color palettes. I always strive to bring out the unique visual character that belongs solely to that specific culture.

Awards, honors, and recognitions received

While I haven't entered formal photography competitions, my creative work has received strong engagement online, including top-performing landscape and travel posts that gained over 4,000+ likes on social media <rednote>.

A fun fact about this photographer

As I love traveling especially the food part of it, I always choose local food wherever I go. I’ve tried everything from mysterious night market street food in Asia to traditional dishes in remote corners of the world. Because I am always curious about trying something new, I can be a bit too adventurous sometimes. This curiosity has led me to mistakenly order some absolute culinary disasters, resulting in my stomach staging a full-on protest!
But honestly, even when a dish 'bombs,' I still find it fascinating because I see it as a unique experience. For instance, when I visited Pu'er which is a city famous for its tea and coffee, I ended up tasting so many different types of local tea and coffee all in a single day that I suffered from terrible insomnia and a massive stomach ache. It was a rough night, but it taught me a lot about the local culture.