In the realm of creativity and introspection, Sheilby Macena stands as a beacon of authenticity and innovation. With a captivating body of work spanning photography, advocacy, and community-building, Sheilby’s journey unfolds like a tapestry of resilience and self-discovery.
Hi, my name is Sheilby Macena and my pronouns are she/her. I am first generation Haitian-American born and raised in Orlando, Florida. I went to college in New York and am now based in Oakland, California working a full-time corporate job in SF. I’m hella passionate about photography and have been pursuing it since the beginning of 2020. I also love nature, hikes with my dog, late night drives, a good film/show, and a last-minute trip to anywhere.
You are currently based in in California correct? How long have you been in that space for ?
I moved from Brooklyn to Oakland in Fall 2019.
How can you describe the art community/scene in CA, especially for young black photographers…?
In Oakland, the art scene is dope. I was lucky enough to move right before the pandemic hit, so I got to experience events like Oakland’s First Fridays, Dope Era Poetry at Gallery Art Bar, and Gold Beam’s Second Mondays. The talent and individuality that exists in Oakland is inspiring, nonetheless, smaller than your typical LA and NYC scene but I love the connectedness of the community – everyone is down to collaborate. For young photographers, it’s a great place to shoot what you want and stand out with your style. Photography isn’t saturated here, so photographers are given a bit more room to be and do versus the tight spaces LA and NYC boast.
Based on your engagement with different art communities in the world, what would you say is the most fundamental part of being in the art world, and what is missing?
Well, my engagement in the art communities in the countries I visited were limited due to the pandemic unfortunately, but I will say with what I did see and experience, the most fundamental part is being authentic and that can also be what is missing time to time. It’s easy to compare and imitate especially in the social media world we live in. There’s also a fine line that is easily blurred when it comes to being inspired by someone’s work/style and taking it as your own without giving credit…which happens all the time. It’s a lot more complex than I can put into words at the moment, but I encourage us all as Beings to always seek truth for ourselves. What may be true for me may not resonate with you and that’s OK. Art is perception, just like life.
Had you already started exploring photography when you were out in CA, how was the reception from friends, family and the community?
I started photography back in 2020 as just a hobby; I had a full-time and part-time job at the time and was miserable with my ‘life after college’ so, I quit my part-time and went out on walks/bike rides on the weekend with my camera doing landscape and street photography. I really enjoy learning and practicing so by the 2nd month, I was dm’ing people to shoot around but by the 3rd month the pandemic hit, which was late March. I ended up building an in-home studio and inviting people over where I did a COVID waiver and temperature check to continue shooting and practicing. My family and friends were all supportive and honestly have always been an advocate for my photography even when I was just snapping on an iPhone.
Many upcoming photographers are intimidated by the idea of equipment being an important part of creating a brilliant image, what do you say about that?
I say its bs, you can create a brilliant image with a point and shoot phone. It’s about the shooter, not the camera so start with the basics; learn the fundamentals, practice, and you will naturally elevate.
Your work is very captivating. The portraits are very honest. What sort of relationships do you build with a model on set?
I create safe spaces for people to be themselves unapologetically. Bring me your full self; however you show up I’m accepting, and I show up the same. I’m not ashamed to be vulnerable and talk about my challenges and hardships because we all have them, we’re human. I have hella anxiety, I get depressed and stress myself out on life daily LOL and I’m working on all those things. Most importantly, I’m learning to love and trust in me. And when models come to my lil home studio or we meet up at a location, I let them know ‘love and trust in you. Fuck beauty standards – I’m here to shoot YOU.’ From there, we just be. I’m becoming more intentional and slowing my process down with each shoot but that energy that I set doesn’t change. We’re all worthy and we should hear that on a daily, so I make it a point to anyone who steps in front of my camera know that they are and will always be enough.
What are some of the places you’ve visited and what is your favorite piece of work, please share with us and let us know the story behind it and why you love it.
I visited Marrakech, Morocco; Dakar, Senegal; and Cape Town, South Africa. If I had to choose, ‘Somone Boy,’ is a current fav shot in Senegal. From capturing the image to post-production…we were on a boat ride back to the docking station when I saw him on his horse – so I got out as quickly as I could and approached him for a photo. There’s something about the way he clutched onto the ropes and his direct eye contact with me…I spent no more than 3 minutes with him, but it felt so much longer…I always get lost in who ‘Somone Boy’ is.
A Long Way from Home can you tell us more about that project and how it came about?
My project, A Long Way From Home, is my intentional journey to self…what started as a simple project of me taking images as I travel through Africa has now taken a more complex role in answering questions that have arisen through my journey. Questions about self, about interactions, beings, corruption, no borders, relations, and so on. My plans to travel through selected countries didn’t go as plan, nor has this project and there’s beauty in that I’m still unveiling. I haven’t even scratched the surface of this project and am in no rush to call it; I’m enjoying going with the flow of the project and doing the work necessary to establish it as the project it’s destined to be.
What memorable responses have you received about your work?
That my talent is worthy, and I was destined for greatness. It came from someone I highly respect in the game as well and made me realize I want to validate my own self from here on. Don’t get me wrong, validations from people I look up to and am inspire by is the best feeling; I just don’t want to diminish my worth or talent to only what people think of me. I want to stand on my own and trust wholeheartedly in my talent and skill – a feeling you can’t beat… Beyoncé is the exception though LOL.
Sheilby! You’re also the founder of a brilliant movement; NARRATVES? Let us know how that came to life?
NARRATVES is my baby; an idea I birthed and brought to fruition last year and have had the honor to work on with some of my closest friends. The platform is dedicated to preserving the authenticity of Black voices through 2 documentary-style projects: Neighborhood Narratves (NHN) and Pop-Up Narratves (PUN). NHN is an archive project committed to recording the stories of Black folks in the Bay Area (with hopes to expand internationally) through portrait-style photographs and interviews. PUN is an in-person project designed to document Black communities spontaneously. We are in actual plans to start back up with interviews and took a pause since I was traveling. Currently, the platform is co-led by Jzov Najea and I. Jzov was part of the NHN project as a Narrator and I, along with a friend, had the pleasure of interviewing and photographing them in the early stages of the project. Since then, they’ve joined NARRATVES as a writer and have helped tremendously and now we have a strong front. I’m super excited to see where we take it.
Professionally, what are your hopes for the coming future?
Lots of hopes and dreams and I’m going after it all. Professionally, I want to make the transition into doing photography full-time; I’m not in a rush though and want to be financially strategic before I make that jump. I also want to ground myself in my work and develop my artistic style and I’m in a stage where it’s constantly evolving as I learn and practice. So, for now, its building to all that – I’m working on personal projects for the most part and going to start doing assistant work + shadow on sets to soak up as much as I can and apply pressure – respectfully and unapologetically.