Culture & Community | Photography | Arts & Culture | Film & Video
As Christopher Rodriguez peered through his viewfinder, he held all of Broadway Island in the palm of his hand. He could capture the magic of small moments, from the sign-adorned light posts to the strolling pedestrians. With a click of the shutter, he froze moments in time, the afternoon sun bringing each photo to life.
Rodriguez is a rising sophomore at Gateway Community College majoring in general studies. Better known as RodReels online, he’s on a quest to become what his friends describe as “best photographer in Connecticut,” highlighting his connections with others and the beauty of his surroundings.
Rodriguez started documenting the world and the people around him in 2022, at the end of his senior year at Achievement First Amistad High School. Wanting to record the momentous changes in his own life, he worked part-time at Target to save up for his dream camera, the Canon Rebel 7.
After graduating, his passion for photography soon expanded into videography on multiple platforms. Rodriguez created a YouTube channel, started making short-form content on TikTok, and streamed gameplay on Twitch.
Staying in New Haven was a calculated decision, he said in a recent interview on Broadway Avenue. He felt that he had more to learn in the city, and could save up money and build his portfolio. He wanted to have time for self discovery, which led him to a two-year institution rather than a four-year university.
“It's a big decision because you know, you can go a lot of different paths in life [after high school] ... right now, I'm just trying to save up, invest my time into important things like, seeing family,” he said.
But the adjustment from high school to college was still drastic. Rodriguez failed a class his first semester. He struggled with balancing his schoolwork and his creativity. To improve his grades, he had to take a pause on making photos and videos—which was initially hard for him, he said. He rebounded, earning high honors in the spring semester as he also branched back into the worlds of photography and videography.
Through Gateway, he also got the hang of new creative software, learning how to use Adobe Photoshop, InDesign, Illustrator, and Premiere Pro. Each of those software programs have different applications, he said—and help his craft in different ways. For instance, he learned that videography requires different analytical and technical skills.
Abiba Biao Photos.
“When you take the photo, you got to find that moment where it's eye-catching to you or you think it's eye-catching to somebody else,” Rodriguez said. “Once you take that moment, you're good, but with video you have to think about the music, some of the dialogue that’s said … It's all like choice and thought that goes behind the video process.”
Now that he’s back at it, he’s also quick to say that his work doesn’t happen in a silo. He credits his uncle, Jeffery Cisneros, with inspiring him to do photography and to stay with it. While Cisneros took a different creative path than Rodriguez—he makes remixes of indie songs into Spanish and rap—it inspired Rodriguez to follow his own creative endeavors.
He also didn’t have to look far to practice his videography and photography, he said. Before he had made the city into his canvas, he started with photos of friends from high school. Some of his earliest “models” include fellow young New Haveners Zion Smart, as well as early career real estate agent Leonard Smith.
Through his journey in becoming a freelance photographer and videographer, Rodriguez has learned the importance of balancing mental health and self-care with his craft, he said. For him, working out and listening to music are both outlets that help him de-stress.
He also safeguards his mental health by creating content that he enjoys, giving himself space to experiment with different ideas. His YouTube channel currently consists of vlogs, but he is hoping to branch out into gaming, aerial drone videos, and concert coverage.
“I really want my content to be personal but also want to help other people promote their stuff,” he said.
Left: Amistad High School Graduate and rising Jackson State University sophomore Zion Smart Right: Leonard Smith, Career High School graduate and real estate investor at Smith Management Company. Christopher Rodriguez Photos.
Rodriguez’s connections from Amistad have nurtured his passion, a love that he wants to reciprocate by amplifying the initiatives and work of his friends and family. He praised Smart, now a rising sophomore at Jackson State University, for encouraging him to soar.
The “personal” flair in his photography, meanwhile, is the fuel that allows him to record moments he can reminisce on in the future.
“In a couple of years I think it'd be good to look back on some of the posts I have now and just remember the good times, just living and keeping the hustle.”
His journey into photography hasn’t been all smooth sailing, Rodriguez said. He’s struggled with lighting and camera settings, and had a few shoots that felt off. He said he takes each photoshoot as a lesson to improve his craft, pointing to weekend appointments that he’s had with a lighting expert in Milford to make sure he understands what he’s doing.
While he wishes for more engagement on his social media platforms, Rodriguez cautioned against letting metrics define an artist and urged creatives to avoid comparison.
“Its not like ‘I’m doing something better than the other’ or ‘They’re doing something better than me.’ The comparisons will only be our downfall really,” he said. “If we could just help each other up and view each others paths in a good way then we’d be a better community.”
“Just live, have fun, and if you got to work, work," he added, sharing a dream of covering Playboi Carti’s Antagonist tour at Madison Square Garden in October. “Just be patient and your time’s gonna come.”
Abiba Biao is a graduate of the Arts Council's Youth Arts Journalism Initiative and has stayed on with the Arts Paper as a freelance writer and photographer. She is currently a rising sophomore at Southern Connecticut State University (SCSU).