Meet Roneka Patterson

Today we’d like to introduce you to Roneka Patterson.

Roneka, let’s start with your story. We’d love to hear how you got started and how the journey has been so far.
While working on my graphic design degree at TCU I took a few photography classes and really fell in love with the medium. After graduating school I started a career in advertising, but a few years into my career I realized that I needed another outlet for my creativity. Working as a visual communicator should be the perfect balance of art + commerce, but I wasn’t getting the artistic expression that I needed out of my day job.

I was taking photos as a hobby, but I decided to start investing more energy into photography, reading, taking classes and learning as much as I could to develop the craft. Eventually I started working on paid freelance projects. I’ve worked on portrait shoots, weddings, travel photography, conference/event photography, fashion shoots, promotional shoots for local artists, product photos, architectural photos and commercial photography for different businesses. I even once spent a summer working for a company to shoot real estate photos.

Photography is the perfect mix of science, math and magic. An understanding of light, an eye for visual harmony and honing your instinct can lead to some really beautiful work. For me, I’ve found that I can get to something I personally find beautiful more efficiently with my photography than other mediums. My brain and hands can sometimes fail me with painting, drawing or even writing, but with a camera I’m much more adept at getting what’s in my head out into the world for others to see.

Great, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
My biggest struggle with photography has been time. I’ve worked on tons of projects and shot some really special images. But even with as much joy as photography has brought me, it’s only a small part of all that I do. As I’ve grown, keeping a healthy and happy homelife has been the priority for me and that’s resulted in a little less photography projects I can take on. The benefit is that it’s helped me focus on the kinds of photos I really want to be taking. I shoot less than I did a decade ago, but the images I shoot now mean much more to me.

We’d love to hear more about your work.
I’m a photographer who can do a little bit of everything, but I specialize in portrait photography. I’m truly fascinated with people and their stories, and I grew up obsessed with magazines like Ebony, Essence, Time, Rolling Stone, The Source, Vibe and even my dad’s Black Enterprise magazines. I believe that every portrait I shoot today is simply me trying to cover the magazines I grew up adoring.

What moment in your career do you look back most fondly on?
A few of my portrait images which I shot on a trip to the Ivory Coast were featured in the juried gallery exhibit BlkArt214. The exhibit showcased artwork by Dallas Black artists. Seeing my work alongside truly amazing work from other visual artists was an honor.

Contact Info:

• Website: ronekapatterson.com
• Email: roneka@ronekapatterson.com
• Instagram: ronekap

Suggest a story: VoyageDallas is built on recommendations from the community; it’s how we uncover hidden gems, so if you or someone you know deserves recognition please let us know here.