Today we’d like to introduce you to Sophie Cheung.
Alright, so thank you so much for sharing your story and insight with our readers. To kick things off, can you tell us a bit about how you got started?
I grew up in Hong Kong and England. For college, I went back to Hong Kong and majored in architecture design, but I didn’t really know what I wanted to do with my life. During that time, I fell in love with travelling and I travelled all around the world, as well as documenting my travels through photography and videography. After that, I started taking more photos of people, and slowly, I would art direct shoots with models, fashion lookbooks, etc.
After I graduated, I got accepted to Parsons’ School of Design for an MFA in photography. I quickly dropped out because I realized I’m not interested in becoming a fine art photography. Instead, I’m interested in creative & art direction. I realized that I have a really strong vision for what I want to do, and so I transitioned to another master’s.
After graduating, I shot with a lot of influencers, celebrities, musicians…
However, COVID hit and it heavily impacted my work. I mainly shoot on location, and I absolutely hated shooting in studio. The idea of shooting in the same location is so boring to me.
During that time, I reflected on my life and picked up my design roots again. Combined with my photography & creative direction experience, I now work at a startup as their Creative Director. I still create and shoot on the weekends. On the weekdays, I lead the creative direction (content, ads, graphic design, design, assets) of an iOS app.
Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way. Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
Definitely not a smooth road!
When COVID hit, I struggled a lot. I thought about giving up many times. I had only just moved to a new city at a time. I was in a foreign place, with barely any friends, and with my work heavily impacted.
I spent a lot of time trying out new things, reflecting and learning new things. A year later, I’ve bounced back and I feel way better than before. I enjoy my work tremendously, and I am excited for life. I’m super grateful that I am lucky enough to have work, and to be healthy as well.
What has been the most important lesson you’ve learned along your journey?
Trust yourself! You’re often right.
Contact Info:
- Email: so@sophie.vision
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/sophie.vision/
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCAToL3xFImA7jkscHHMTZLw
Image Credits
Whitley
Michael
Cindy Zhang
