Meet Dev Anglin

We were lucky to catch up with Dev Anglin recently and have shared our conversation below.

Hi Dev, appreciate you sitting with us today to share your wisdom with our readers. So, let’s start with resilience – where do you get your resilience from?

I’d say my resiliency derives from a strong determination to follow through on my ideas. Ya know, there’s nothing worse than having a great idea and not following through on it. Then, later in life imagining what it could’ve been,
I hate that feeling, feeling regret. Also, overcoming life altering situations with community violence & homelessness in the past has given me the confidence and strength to tackle future challenges in the creative business world. Knowing that i conquered those obstacles, I can withstand almost anything.

Great, so let’s take a few minutes and cover your story. What should folks know about you and what you do?

I am a self-taught photographer who has forged a career as a Director of Photography (DP) on numerous business campaigns and as a producer of behind-the-scenes film productions in California. My passion for creating visual stories and aesthetics that drive a message with emotion has extended into the fashion industry. The ability to design, sew, and shoot the campaigns for my clothing company has deeply vested me in this form of expression, leading me to become a designer in 2019.

Looking back, it’s remarkable how different phases of my life’s journey has woven together different skills and experiences into a unique career path. Early on, I was capturing moments with disposable cameras and a bulky JVC video recorder, photographing friends, and recording family gatherings to preserve life’s moments. Later, my love for hands-on creation with electronics and cars led to a seven-year career with BMW of North America. That time cultivated my eye for detail and elegance, skills that were essential for delivering a finished car to a customer. These experiences ultimately shaped my artistic vision.

Today, I am deeply in love with visual arts. The presentation of products, whether a car, a pair of shoes, a piece of clothing, or even a person, excites me. In my teenage years, I covered my room with magazine articles on the walls and ceiling, captivated by the distinctive power of imagery. I was fascinated then, as I am now, by how a message could be conveyed with just visuals, no words. I felt connected to what the directors and creatives were aiming to express.

Lately, I’ve been focusing on utilizing my visual storytelling skills within the photography industry and shaping the voice of my clothing company, Nine Sixteen Luxuries. These experiences have opened doors for steady commissions as a marketing consultant and as an instructor at various school districts. Teaching the youth the importance of visuals and storytelling, while also strengthening workforce development and entrepreneurship within the fashion industry and film production. Many young individuals aspire to start a clothing company but lack the skills or knowledge in sewing, manufacturing, technical aspects. Drawing from my experiences, I aim to pay it forward by helping them bring their dreams to life.

If you had to pick three qualities that are most important to develop, which three would you say matter most?

The most impactful quality I’ve maintained throughout my journey is being teachable. Remaining a student of the game allows me to absorb new processes and strategies constantly. Staying open-minded enables me to take ideas and techniques and fuse them in a way that works for me when creating. Knowledge on any subject allows for further progress within that field.

For instance, if you’re a camera operator or photographer, learning as much as you can about the functionality of your camera and lighting equipment will significantly improve your ability to bring visual ideas to life. It starts with educating yourself to understand your equipment and how to use it effectively.

Another essential quality is confidence—believing in yourself and having the ability to follow through on your ideas. Confidence greatly boosts self-esteem and plays a key role in becoming the person you know you’re meant to be. It also empowers others to do the same.

As for advice based on my experience, I suggest that individuals starting their creative or entrepreneurial journey should keep their vision of where they want to go strong and relevant in their minds and daily practices. This focus will help ensure that you’re always moving in the direction of your life or career goals. Even if some details change along the way, consistently revisiting your goal will ultimately help you achieve it or at least get close to it.

We’ve all got limited resources, time, energy, focus etc – so if you had to choose between going all in on your strengths or working on areas where you aren’t as strong, what would you choose?

Being well-rounded and improving on your weaknesses, no matter how small, can significantly enhance your craft.

For example, consider a basketball player who has an amazing jump shot but poor dribbling skills. If that player works on their dribbling ability with both hands, they become a better overall athlete on the court. Being able to dribble effectively with either hand to evade defenders and create open shots—something they’re already great at—makes the player more versatile and valuable.

I believe this because I’ve experienced it personally and have seen the benefits firsthand. My cinematography skills and production quality were much lower when I didn’t understand the audio aspect of visual production. We’ve all had the experience of capturing a video that looked great, but the audio was too loud, crackly, or simply unusable. After numerous frustrating experiences with poor audio, I became determined to improve my knowledge and practices in capturing quality sound.

Since then, I’ve invested in strengthening this weakness by educating myself on audio equipment, terminology, and specific recording methods. This effort has significantly raised my production quality and allowed me to secure larger projects and work with ideal clients.

Continually adding to your skill set will make you a more powerful asset, both individually and for the teams you collaborate with.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://Devanglin.net
• Instagram: Dev_anglin
• Facebook: Dev Anglin

Image Credits

Dev Anglin
Kevin Fiscus
Mason Trimaine