Orlando Prince is not used to being the subject. Well-known for his portrait and wedding photography and videography, he is usually the man behind the camera with the concepts and the scenes producing the perfect shots for his clients’ memories.
This week The Scene turned the spotlight on this artist who followed his calling and the completeness he feels with a camera in his hands, staring down the lens.
Orlando and his brother Paul DeMendonca own DreamWorks Photo Studio, which is situated on South Road, Georgetown. Paul has been in the business longer, but when he and Orlando began working together, Orlando told The Scene, “We went to the Linden Town Week, Berbice Mash, on the West Bank and as far as Parika and Timehri. We frequented those areas so much, many people knew us. We were known countrywide. We invested in the equipment which gave us better pictures.”
They learnt how to improve their photography through the internet, learnt poses from Victoria Secret Magazines and read up on lighting so that they could take perfect pictures. “While freelancing many years ago we drove around and showed up uninvited to functions but we preferred to have a stable place,” he said. “We talked with other photographers about opening a studio and everybody said it wasn’t a good idea; mainly because of the new government in 1992.” But they decided to take the risk and launched at GuyExpo.
“When we partook in GuyExpo, the other booths would have one or two persons; [some others] had 10 to 20 persons while ours had 50 or more,” Orlando said.
They needed no more encouragement. With Orlando’s three years plus experience and Paul’s six they pooled their monies and bought their first studio. “We could only afford to rent a very small place. The place was very hot also. My brother and I started with very little,” Orlando recalled. “We sat down trying different names and threw it out to our customers and they thought DreamWorks was best. We wanted our customers to know that here their dreams can come true. They could be whatever they want to be. Aries and Obrey’s [photo studios] were our biggest competition. When we came into the market, we were the second persons to introduce the digital backgrounds and electronic roll-ups, but we were the first to introduce fantasy costumes. We have costumes to make you a firewoman, cheerleader, angel or racer and many others.”
Orlando’s route to photography came by way of art. The 36-year-old Scorpio born grew up between his parents’ residences in Meadow Brook Gardens and East La Penitence. Orlando attended the West Ruimveldt Primary School and then the Christ Church Secondary. He always had a knack for art, since his father, Michael DeMendonca, was an artist who did stencil designs and screen printing.
Orlando was in third form when he registered for his first art competition, which was held in collaboration with then ministry of culture, youth and sport. The topic was forestry and he drew a rainforest. At that time he had also done ‘summer’ art courses at the Burrowes School of Art and he copped the first prize place for the junior level of the competition.
After successfully completing the Caribbean Secondary Education Certificate examination he secured a position at Demerara Mutual Life. As a second job, he began working as a freelance photographer on the weekends in the Botanical Gardens. During his lunch break from work he would deliver photographs to his customers around Georgetown. After a few years, he bought a bike which made delivering his photos so much easier.
Although Orlando’s brother was already in the profession, his first inspiration was “Aries,” the owner of that photo studio, he said, “was very good. Constantly going to print pictures at Galaxy, we’d all meet up in the lab. He’d give us tips from time to time, although he was one of our biggest competitors. We used to carry in a lot of rolls of films. Every week we took in 15 to 20 rolls. We ended up buying our own machine and started to print our own pictures.”
He continued, “Photography is a beautiful profession. It takes you places. You get to meet some of the most interesting and also influential persons… It allows you to be your own boss and has flexible hours. Photography is a sexy job; it is always been portrayed in a sexual manner. A photographer brings out the sexuality of a person but the best part is it is a lucrative business.”
For him, the setbacks in the industry are few. The major one being that there is no copyright protection. This means unscrupulous persons can and do take your photographs and use them for all sorts of purposes. They can even present them as their own.
He also noted that the average person has a very good camera on his/her phone and everything is digitalized. “It is harder to maintain a business with overhead expenses because of technology. However, it has bettered me financially and made me more sociable,” he said.
“When it comes to doing a wedding; you have to meet with the clients, find a comfortable location, and print off packages and pamphlets. Part of photography is about discipline; [you have to] be on time, dress appropriately and have backup equipment. Photography is not just point and shoot. Photography is science.”
Orlando considers himself a workaholic since after office hours he remains at the office many a time into the wee hours of the morning working on videos. When he’s not taken up with his job he enjoys spending time with his family and browsing the internet.
“If you want to get into photography, you have to get into it for the right reasons. Only get into it because you love it. Be disciplined and always be willing to embrace change. What might be the demands for today; will not be the demands for tomorrow,” he advises upcoming photographers.
DreamWorks Photo Studio provides services such as: photography, printing of photo books, canvas prints, metal printing, framing (wooden/plastic), videography, personalized calendars, greeting cards and a one hour photo lab. The studio also has a boutique which has all sorts of brand name clothing, costume jewellery and such for sale. It is located at 228 South Road, Lacytown and can be contacted via telephone number 223-6360. DreamWorks Photo Studio is also on Facebook.
(Portraits are by Orlando Prince)
