We recently had the chance to connect with Shotsbyskylaflame . and have shared our conversation below.
Shotsbyskylaflame, so good to connect and we’re excited to share your story and insights with our audience. There’s a ton to learn from your story, but let’s start with a warm up before we get into the heart of the interview. What are you chasing, and what would happen if you stopped?
I’m chasing purpose, not popularity—the fulfillment of a calling that’s bigger than my name or my work. For a long time, I was also chasing validation: the recognition, the opportunities, the sense that I’d “made it” if the right people noticed. Even when the intentions were good, the pursuit could become exhausting.
If I stopped chasing altogether, two things would happen.
On the surface, the pressure would ease. The constant measuring, comparing, and proving would fade, and I’d find more rest in the process itself. But on a deeper level, if I stopped chasing purpose—if I stopped moving forward in obedience—I’d begin to drift. The work would lose its urgency, and I’d feel disconnected from the reason I create in the first place.
What I’m learning now is the balance: stop chasing approval, but never stop pursuing the calling. When I release the need to be seen and focus on being faithful, the work becomes more honest, more grounded, and more impactful. That’s where I find peace—not in the chase, but in alignment.
Can you briefly introduce yourself and share what makes you or your brand unique?
My name is Skylaflame, and I’m a visual artist and photographer from East Baltimore, Maryland. My work lives at the intersection of faith, darkness, and redemption, using photography as a way to tell stories that are often overlooked or misunderstood.
What makes my work unique is that it isn’t just about creating striking images—it’s about testimony. I draw heavily from my personal journey, my relationship with God, and the environment that shaped me. I’m interested in contrast: light and shadow, beauty and struggle, doubt and belief. Those tensions are central to both my life and my art.
Right now, I’m working on a project called Inferno, which explores themes of salvation, suffering, and hope within the context of my community. It’s my most intense and honest body of work to date, and it represents a shift toward greater vulnerability and clarity in my purpose. At its core, everything I create is meant to be a reminder that light can exist—even thrive—in the darkest places.
Okay, so here’s a deep one: What relationship most shaped how you see yourself?
The relationship that most shaped how I see myself is my relationship with God.
It taught me who I am beyond circumstance, beyond environment, and beyond the labels placed on me. Through faith, I learned that my identity isn’t rooted in where I come from or what I’ve been through, but in who I’m called to become. That understanding gave me the confidence to embrace both my flaws and my gifts without shame.
At the same time, my relationship with my community—especially growing up in Baltimore—sharpened that self-awareness. It showed me resilience, vulnerability, and responsibility. Together, those relationships shaped my sense of purpose: to create honestly, to lead with compassion, and to reflect light in spaces where it’s often missing.
What did suffering teach you that success never could?
Suffering taught me humility, patience, and dependence in ways success never could.
Success can make you believe you’re self-made—that talent and effort alone are enough. Suffering strips that illusion away. It forces you to confront your limits, your fears, and the parts of yourself you’d rather avoid. In those moments, I learned how to sit with discomfort, how to listen instead of rush, and how to trust God when there was no visible outcome or reward.
Most importantly, suffering taught me empathy. It gave me the ability to see people beyond their surface and to create work that comes from understanding rather than observation. Success can validate you, but suffering reshapes you. It gave my art depth, my faith weight, and my purpose clarity.
Alright, so if you are open to it, let’s explore some philosophical questions that touch on your values and worldview. Whose ideas do you rely on most that aren’t your own?
I rely most on God’s guidance and Scripture—ideas that didn’t originate with me but continually shape how I think, create, and move through the world. They give my work structure, meaning, and direction beyond my own perspective.
I’m also deeply influenced by the lived experiences and voices of my community. The stories, struggles, and resilience of the people around me constantly inform my vision and keep my work grounded and honest. I don’t see myself as creating in isolation; I’m responding—to faith, to history, and to real lives unfolding around me.
Together, those influences keep me accountable. They push me to create work that isn’t just personal, but purposeful.
Okay, we’ve made it essentially to the end. One last question before you go. If immortality were real, what would you build?
If immortality were real, I would build a living body of work, not a monument.
I’d build stories that evolve across generations—images, spaces, and archives that grow with time and continue speaking long after trends, platforms, and names fade. The goal wouldn’t be permanence for my ego, but continuity of truth: documenting faith, struggle, redemption, and resilience as they change through eras.
I’d also build infrastructure for others—creative sanctuaries, mentorship networks, and platforms rooted in purpose—so the work outlives me through people, not just artifacts. Immortality would give me time, but legacy would still require intention. What I’d build is something that keeps pointing forward, reminding each generation that light can be cultivated, even in darkness.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://shotsbyskylaflame.kavyar.site/
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/shotsbyskylaflame__
- Other: http://vsco.co/shotsbyskylaflame
Image Credits
Models:
Sachet (@sachet_deaun)
Ki (@kithephotographer)
Jay (@jay_wil_)
Phylicia (@phythemodel)
Sky (@shotsbyskylaflame__)
Photographers:
Sky (@shotsbyskylaflame__)
Jay (@jay_wil_)
Caron (@dopeitscaron)
