Casey “Jade” Levine’s photo
By Yessica Casias
Casey “Jade” Levine, a photography student at the College of Southern Nevada, enjoys living life through the lens.
Levine speaks about what captures her attention as a photographer. “I love sunsets. I love beautiful landscapes. I am very interested in abandoned things and graveyards, oddly enough. I love people with depth in their eyes that have emotion in their faces.”
She is an avid photographer always snapping images everywhere she goes.
“I like finding beauty where there is none or where it’s taken for granted,” Levine says. “I like reminding people of what they have forgotten.”
Levine was fond of the camera ever since childhood. “I was always that kid that took a disposable camera everywhere I went.”
More recently, Levine decided to enroll in classes at CSN because she wanted to learn the basics of photography. “I wanted to learn from people who had been tenured, who had photography jobs as their careers. I wanted to learn from people who had done this for years.”
After taking a few classes Levine decided she would start her own photography business.
Levine explains what it was really like to take that first step. “It was scary. I doubted my ability at first and thinking there are so many people that are more talented than I am and have more resources and have more funding.”
“I kept thinking about the reasons why I shouldn’t open a business instead of why I should,” Levine says. “The minute you start focusing on positivity and the minute you start focusing on what you have above the rest, that is when everything starts to come together.”
Doug Bibo, one of CSN’s photography lab technicians, says, “A lot of people, perhaps most, go the assisting route. They assist a pro for a period of time to learn the ropes. Some people prefer to go directly into having their own businesses. She has the energy to give it a go.”
Bibo says, “She’s a real go-getter; she’s full of positive creative energy.”
Sasha Cohen, a friend of Levine, says, “She knows how to take something simple and put it in a different angle that makes it classic. She is not just one type of photographer; she can be anything that you want her to be.”
“I don’t want to be in one category because not only one thing inspires me in life,” Levine says. “You don’t have to have just one interest. You can shoot whatever makes you happy and somebody will like that.”
Levine hopes to one day be nationally recognized as a photographer. “I want to get a ton more people, not just in Vegas, to see my photographs. I want to be either a fine-arts photographer or street photographer,” she says.
“I want to work as hard as I can now so I can build my future for later,” Levine says. “I want to keep getting better and keep shooting and keep trying to convey my message through photos to the world.”
To check out Levine’s photographs head to her website www.caseyjadephoto.com.
Casey “Jade” Levine’s Photo
Coyote Student News at the College of Southern Nevada 