Meet The Pros : Dustin Cohen
This Meet The Pros was focused on Dustin Cohen, he is a photographer who was born in San Jose, Los Angeles. Dustin grew up in the newspaper business, it was a family owned business therefore he would work there after school and every summer. He would even be up at 4 am to deliver them in his neighborhood. After a while he realized that he had an interest in photography, during his senior year of high school he began to explore it more. The following year he attended UC Santa Barbra as a business major (to please his parents) however by the end of his freshman year he switched to photography. When he started his photography major, he thought that he wanted to write stories also travel the world and take pictures. Unbeknownst to him he would find a niche elsewhere in photography.
After college he decided to take a risk and move to New York. He only had his brother in New York and decided that he would pave his own path. He began to network his way around the city, and initially began shooting musicians. From that he saved up his own money to buy his cameras and equipment. He lives by his motto which is, “Never stop hustling”. Dustin stated that his success did not happen over night, he had to take a risk and believe in himself. In 2012 he joined an agency called Merge Life, he feels that joining this agency took his career to a new level. I took it upon myself to view the growth of his pictures; I agree that they have grown tremendously. They are more intimate and detailed; it feels as if they have a personal story to share.
Dustin explained to us the significance of networking. Networking built his career and clientele. He told us a brief story of getting the cover shot for Elle King’s album cover. He was fond of her music and introduced himself through MySpace (at the time it was the main music platform for artists). He explained that he would love to do a photo shoot with her. Elle and her mother met him in Philadelphia, the shoot went great, from that experience Elle chose to do yearly photo shoots with him.
After attending this MTP, I felt more comfortable with my decision to move and start my career. Dustin did the same and relied on his skills and networking to get to where he is today. I also realized that it takes time to build your career. Sometimes as individuals we are in a competition with each other, to see who can get to the top first. However you can miss out on vital things. Therefore taking the time to properly build yourself is significant.
