6 Inspiring Portfolios by Members of BWP (Black Women Photographers)

Black Women Photographers and Format have partnered to create visibility for the talents of their community. We’ve gathered six female photographers whose work is sure to inspire, from editorial to documentary to fine art, and more.

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Format is excited to partner with Black Women Photographers (BWP). The aim of this partnership is to create visibility for the talents of BWP members while augmenting their businesses with accessible portfolio tools, a free webinar, and supporting the community through grants and prizes funded by Format

What is Black Women Photographers?

Black Women Photographers disrupts the notion that it is difficult to discover and commission Black creatives. Established in July 2020 by Polly Irungu, BWP is a global community, directory, and hub of over 2,100 Black women and non-binary identifying photographers, spanning over 60+ countries and 35+ U.S. states. 

The community is a home for Black women to receive proper recognition and–most importantly–get hired. Dedicated to providing a resource for the industry’s gatekeepers, BWP supports its members through promoting their work in an active database distributed to brands, photo editors, directors, curators, and art buyers.

Get Inspired by Photographers in the BWP Community

Six photographers from the BWP community share their work, inspiration, and portfolios. 

Karene-Isabelle Jean-Baptiste

Photo by Karene IsabelleJean Baptiste. Headshot of black woman in dramatic light with her short, natural texture hair dyed orange and small daisies placed artistically in her hair.
Montreal. Photo by Karene-Isabelle Jean-Baptiste.
black girl with her back to the camera in an oversized green dress, the zipper closure poking stiffly out behind her. Photo by Karene-Isabelle Jean-Baptiste.
The Closure. Photo by Karene-Isabelle Jean-Baptiste.

kareneisabelle.format.com

https://www.instagram.com/kareneisabelle

Montreal area photographer Karene-Isabelle Jean-Baptiste is interested in capturing and recording the world around her through her lens and telling the stories of the people she meets. Karene-Isabelle worked as an engineer for many years before delving into the world of photography full time and part of her need for change was based in wanting to feel as though she was meeting her true purpose. Her work is both introspective and emotional as she looks for elusive moments of magic that can appear and disappear in an instant within a scene or a human face. Her aim is to have those moments endure and express the depth of feeling that, at times, go unnoticed.

Damola Akintunde

black woman posing with one closed hand held softly by her cheek, wearing a mossy green tweed blazer and black top in front of a textured green backdrop. Photo by Damola Akintunde.
Photo by Damola Akintunde.
Black woman sitting on a white blanket on the grass, wearing a clay-colored dress and white turban, her left hand gently resting on her chest. Photo by Damola Akintunde.
Photo by Damola Akintunde.

damolaakintunde.com

https://www.instagram.com/damolaakintunde

Damola Akintunde is a Nigerian American photographer and visual storyteller based in Durham, North Carolina. Her practice explores the self by constantly asking; “Who are we without the background noise?” Through photography, she documents her narrative as a Black woman and lends her eye as a tool for others to align their self-perception with their physical presentation through portraiture of herself and others. Akintunde’s training in psychology and medical anthropology at UNC-Chapel Hill expanded her understanding of the human desire to be seen and influences her artistry to this day.

Her work has been featured in exhibitions across North Carolina, including The North Carolina Museum of Art and The Center for Visual Artists. She has also been published in The New York Times. As a proud member of The Beautiful Project, Black Women Photographers, and Diversify Photo, she prioritizes collaborating and connecting with other communities that uplift the experiences of marginalized artists.

Edölia Stroud

black and white headshot of man wearing a modern dot-patterned mock-neck shirt. Photo by Edölia Stroud.
Photo by Edölia Stroud.
Woman wearing red and looking at camera through sheer blue and green fabrics in front of a black background. Photo by Edölia Stroud.
Photo by Edölia Stroud.

www.edoliastroud.com

https://www.instagram.com/edoliastroud

Edölia Stroud is a creative director and photographer from Brooklyn, New York. Working in the mediums of both photography and collage, her work explores themes of female identity. Her narrative fine art work weaves images together telling emotional stories through portraiture, still life and documentary, while her fashion work exudes playfulness with a focus on color. Stroud has a bright and funny personality which translates through her vibrant imagery. Her work has appeared in The New York Times, Vogue, Teen Vogue, and Vogue Italia. She has also collaborated with other brands and publications such as Hanifa, Puma, Nylon and ELLE.

J. Pamela Stills

Black woman wearing red top standing on a yellow and aqua playground structure, looking to the left side of the picture. Photo by J. Pamela Stills Photography
Photo by J. Pamela Stills Photography
Madison Mollck shows off her tennis style while attending the tennis camp during Billie Jean King Cup
Madison Mollck at the Billie Jean King Cup. Photo by J. Pamela Stills Photography

https://www.jpamelastills.com

https://www.instagram.com/jpamelastills

J. Pamela, a freelance photographer located in the Washington, DC metro (DMV) area, has been intentionally varied in her photography; creating a library of images held in a wide-ranging portfolio. Every day there is something or someone that calls to the camera–her camera is a tool to see the world she lives in. J. Pamela has photographed sporting events to include softball, baseball, basketball, soccer, tennis, and most recently rugby.  She has photographed corporate events, community events, and conferences, and provided portraits for 50+ high school graduating seniors.  She has also done portraiture for personal and business branding, at times creating images showcasing an active lifestyle or brand-conscious content.  

J. Pamela strives to create imagery that conveys a mood, a desire, a feeling. She describes photography as the way a mood, a desire, a feeling, an emotion–life–is captured in a blink of an eye. She uses photography to take clients on a journey to live, love, learn and sometimes to heal.

Jessica Bethel

nude black woman sitting backward in a bamboo chair, her legs resting on the back and her arms wrapped around them, in front of a black background. Photo by Jessica Bethel.
CRADLE. Photo by Jessica Bethel.
black surfer girl wearing a pink and black wetsuit standing near crashing waves and a concrete boardwalk at the ocean. Photo by Jessica Bethel.
Photo by Jessica Bethel.

https://www.jessicabethel.com

https://www.instagram.com/4eyedcameragirl

Jessica Bethel is a Jamaican-American fine art and portrait photographer based in Los Angeles. She received her BA in Art with a minor in Art History and a concentration in photography from Florida International University. Raised in Delray Beach, Florida, her upbringing has fueled how she views the world and the Black experience. Jessica centers her work around community and culture, documenting and curating authentic experiences about what it means to be Black and how being Black looks and feels in different forms. 

Eno Inyangete

black and white image of a woman with short hair seated in a chair outdoors, wearing a voluminous white dress. Photo by Eno Inyangete.
Photo by Eno Inyangete.
black and white image of a nearly empty street from above, light reflected from windows nearby and one figure crossing the street casting a shadow. Photo by Eno Inyangete.
Photo by Eno Inyangete.

https://www.enoinyangete.com

https://www.instagram.com/enoinyangete

Eno Inyangete is a Tanzanian and Nigerian photographer specializing in film photography. Based in Berlin, Germany, she currently works between Berlin, New York, and Dar es Salaam. Her photography serves as an archive of all that exists in her world, and ranges from portraits of loved ones and strangers to patterns of light on the street to a campaign in response to the murder of Michael Brown Jr. Her aim is to shed light on the people, places, and narratives that often go unnoticed.

Eno credits the strong presence of photographs in her childhood home–from the stunning portraits of her parents on their wedding day to the awkward passport photos of herself and her sister–for the way she learned to value images; not just as memories but as archives and proof of existence.

“The process of selecting and curating my best work has been a really important skill in continuing to refine my eye, and I think that’s important for any artist. I’m challenging myself to constantly see my work, not just as individual photographs, but as a more cohesive body of work that I’ll continue to build over time.” – Eno

Visit their website to learn more and apply to join the community for free.

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