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My name is Ryan Ally, and I am an artist and photographer based in New York City. My work revolves around analog and digital photography, where I explore themes of cultural and personal connections across regions. While attending Syracuse University, I was originally a Computer Engineering major before realizing my insatiable thirst for photography and creating. I eventually switched to a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Art Photography at Syracuse's College of Visual & Performing Arts. After graduating in 2023, I began working as a Studio Technician at the School of Visual Arts for the BFA Photography and Video department. While working there, I’m currently pursuing a MFA in Photography, Video, and Related Media. While residing in Queens, I continue to photograph, travel, and water the seeds of ideas that are essential for documenting my environment.
Thank you for being with us today. I’ve followed your work for some time and greatly admire it. Could you tell us more about your recent series?
My photographs are deeply rooted in the surrounding environments, as they have a major influence on how I feel as an artist. Currently, I am tracing the origins of my family's path before arriving in Queens. Starting in the small South American country of Guyana, my parents emigrated to the United States for the proposed “American dream." As I grew older and realized my stake in this world as a child of immigrants, my outlook on life altered in ways I never would have imagined. With each passing year, as my parents age, I’m able to see the necessary sacrifices that were made to provide me a semblance of the "American dream" they were once sold.
I can tell there's a lot of emotion and history behind these images. What pushed you to start digging into your roots and documenting them this way?
Since 2022, I have been returning to Guyana and photographing my father's home region of Berbice, my mother's birthplace, and the country's capital, Georgetown. Additionally, other diasporic Guyanese places, such as South Florida and various regions of New York.I actively photograph to answer the questions that come forth from being torn between self-discovery and my reality. The pictures I curate, whether in my parents’ home country, the New York City streets where many Guyanese immigrants have relocated, or other foreign areas that represent this diaspora, offer some sort of answer to my lingering confusion.
Looking at where your work is now, it’s wild to think how it all started. Do you remember the moment you really got into photography?
I grew up in Queens, where I developed a love for art early on. Influenced by the big city just across the pier, my high school friends and I would reenact fashion shoots wearing the latest trends, roaming around Manhattan looking for the ideal backdrop. That hobby soon became a passion for the medium itself, and I started seriously photographing the streets not only to enhance my skills but also to create narratives with pictures.Through a Summer job as a Media Manager for a Brooklyn-based entrepreneur, I realized the inherent need to change my studies from computer engineering to photography. It was quite the switch, but I only thought of photography as nothing more than an amateur interest until there were professional opportunities for it to be a full-time endeavor. After borrowing one of my uncle’s crop sensor cameras around 2019, I began venturing onto the road ahead as an artist and haven’t looked back.
You mentioned feeling torn between self-discovery and your current reality — how does that tension show up in your creative process, if at all?
Before traveling to a site, I will stock up on color film, and the format would depend on the camera I bring, usually 35mm and 120mm. After acquiring the essentials, I ponder why I want to shoot in this location. With the idea of tracing my roots as the reasoning for pressing the shutter most of the time, I recognize patterns and gestures that can happen elsewhere. I focus on the bigger picture, as well as the smaller ones. I survey the land and people, keeping certain plot lines at the forefront. Whatever speaks to me in that moment controls my intuition to capture, as I trust my instincts enough to rely on them when I need to autopilot in unfamiliar settings. Thanks to the magic of film, there is a buffer before seeing the potential of my frames. After stepping away for some time, developing the film, scanning each frame, printing contact sheets, and finally cataloging for the sequencing, I’ll see what to be attentive to for the ideal story.
Do you still photograph in digital format? How do you perceive the differences between analog and digital photography? When do you choose one over the other?
I often capture in digital format, that is how I started, and believe it’s the ideal format for all photographic needs. However, my perception and process for the medium is contrary to analog. Referring to the digital age we live in, information comes and goes, and I feel a greater disconnect from the world due to the pace, despite its global reach. These days, a digital camera might as well include a phone plan with all the features and specifications bundled in with the basic functionality of taking a photo. Despite the hyperbole, I do think the lifespan of the individual digital photo is short, and that can be from the playback button ready to preview 100s of JPG files to the comings and goings of projects. This drawback is why I shoot digital for commissions and photographs that need to be streamlined for a client. My choice to work in analog depends on the final presentation, my relationship with the subject, and the acceptance that there will be a length of time before any images come to light. This would be the case for personal bodies of work conceived as the camera progresses through each frame until the roll is done. There is no deadline or due date, and when I finally put out the images, time moves on, and hopefully so do I.
A big thank you to Ryan for sharing his story. To see more of his work, head to @stuntrally on Instagram.