Justin Johnson (unedited).

This is an excellent photo.

I did not take it.

It was taken by Kenyatta Cheese, doing an impression of me.

Watching someone else use the technique and aesthetic that has come to be associated with my work (additionally, kenyatta has shot with me about a million times, and we’ve collaborated before, and here he’s using my camera/ light/ pose etc) is disarming.

My first knee-jerk reaction is to not use those techniques anymore. To do something new.

I love that challenge.

While I always desire to do something new, it would be just as dishonest of me to NOT use a technique or style just because others are as well as it would be to USE it just because others do. So I’m going to keep taking the pictures I want to take, no more, no less.

But it’s actually exciting for me to see images like this I did not actually take. I get to enjoy their aesthetic objectively.

It’s also really exciting to see others see things the way I see them, and like it. It’s touching, honoring, and excited for artistic ideas to spread.

KC’s work also has his unique eye, which does things mine does not. I am generally a fan of his work, but collaborating with him always brings uniquely satisfying results.

Yet for as much as this picture clearly reflects much of my technique and aesthetic, it is also a picture I would never take. In its fashion, it is uniquely Kenyatta.

And, damn! if JustinJ doesn’t look awesome :)

Good stuff, KC

(PS- check out Justin’s new vidblog)