Despite having been “CitrusPhoto” since 2007, the name has never entirely felt like the right fit. It’s always left this just a little left of centre kind of a feeling in me, especially when asked “Why Citrus?” The moniker was just easier for the longest time. I stayed out of the spotlight, preferring to let the work speak for me - which it did do to some extent. Its taken until now to realize that all I’ve really been doing is limiting my own voice as an artist, despite the art itself continuing to develop.
‘Citrus Photography’ is now a retired brand
The time has come to just be myself, the artist. So I thought a re-introduction was in order:
Hi, I’m Tim Nguyen! I’m a first-generation Vietnamese-Canadian and have had a camera strapped to me full time since high school. I’m alumni of the University of Calgary’s School of Creative and Performing Arts (BFA ‘06), and am entirely self-taught in photography. I currently operate Studio323 in downtown Calgary. I’m probably best known for my theatrical work, which I describe as a blend of cinematography-on-the-fly and photojournalism. The stage drives my heart and my business, and has permeated all aspects of my artistry.
My business has been growing steadily over the past few years, especially in The Arts. But this year that all got put on Pause. On the upside, its freed my time and energy up enough to return to the personal and creative work that has gone unfinished.
My creative work is about real people experiencing real emotions in real time.
I’ve only released a handful of art pieces since 2017. Freelance was simply overwhelming and I never had a free moment to get back to it all. I’ve managed to pepper creative shoots in between my freelance gigs, but there’s never been time to do the post production until now.
I’ve been creating all new work on m Lumination stages. I’ve been sitting down to chat with artists that inspire me to share energies and create compelling portraiture as we share experiences. There are over 50 shoots that have yet to be released, and an untold number of others that I feel I dropped the ball on releasing properly.
So here’s what I want to do: I want to be honest with all of you about all of this. The successes and failures, the discoveries and disasters. I’m putting it all online, because holding it all in has done nothing but slow me down. There’s no time for that anymore.
This is the new Tim Nguyen.