THE BRIDGE
2022 Mentors
Gail Mooney
Gail Mooney started out studying architecture at Syracuse University. After two years, she realized she was more interested in seeing the architectural wonders of the world, rather than learning about how to design them. After her sophomore year, she decided to take a two-month break from college and meet up with a friend to travel around Europe. That two-month trip turned into a yearlong backpacking odyssey around the world. When Gail returned, she knew she wanted to purse a lifestyle of travel and exploration and thought that photography would lead to that end, and enrolled at Brooks Institute of Photography in Santa Barbara, CA. At the time she was one of only six women in a school of six hundred students. It was the first time she experienced being in a predominately male environment. She also met her husband, Tom Kelly at Brooks and after graduating, they moved back to the East Coast where they were both from. She worked for a commercial photographer Ron Schwerin in NYC for two years. Her husband assisted another NY photographer and after a couple of years they decided to go out on their own and formed the team Kelly/Mooney.
They worked together on numerous editorial assignments for Travel & Leisure Magazine and later on shot Annual Reports for Fortune 500 companies. Gail and her husband and partner Tom also pursued their own individual assignments and Gail naturally gravitated toward editorial and working for magazines. She is a born storyteller and her love for the experience was as great as her love of photography. She shot eighteen feature stories for the National Geographic Traveler and numerous stories for Smithsonian, Islands and other publications.
Gail is also usually working on her own projects, which she refers to as self-initiated projects as opposed to personal work. When digital video first appeared she knew that this “new” medium had endless possibilities for stories that needed to be told with sound/audio. Her first multi-media project was The Delta Blues Musicians. Her first feature film, Opening Our Eyes was a joint creation with her daughter Erin. They traveled around the world for 99 days, making a film about nine ordinary people, on six continents, making a positive difference. Her latest film, Like A Woman is about women, who are working in male-dominated professions and breaking barriers that had not been open just a short time ago.
Rod Goodman
Rod Goodman is an NYC based portrait photographer. Born and raised in Los Angeles, Rod opened his photo studio in 1997 specializing in actors headshots. Within three years Rod was one of the busiest headshot photographers in LA. After operating at full speed for 8 years, though, at the same time feeling that L.A. couldn't give him any more and needing to shake things up, he moved to NYC in 2005. In NYC he eventually shifted his photography business to corporate portraits and headshots.
Rod’s unconventional path started when he was 18 years old with a job in the cartoon industry, working at Hanna Barbara for the next 10 years. He then made a quick left turn into Real Estate and realized that a creative path would better suit him. It was then that Rod discovered photography and soon found his niche in portrait photography.
His interest in portraits runs from the professional work he does to personal projects he explores. Currently Rod is working on a personal project examining the portrait from the perspective of a visually impaired person, his most personal project to date, it’s a very exciting challenge for him.
Rod has a photo studio in Chelsea, serves on the board of ASMP-NY and lives in Harlem with his wife and 17 year old pug.
Jai Lennard
Jai grew up in the Bay Area of northern California with deep roots in Texas & Louisiana. He studied at Morehouse College in Atlanta, Ga where he started taking photos more seriously, then London where he took his first photo course and finally New York where he received his BA in Photography at the School of Visual Arts. He’s lived in Brooklyn ever since.
His clients include The Hollywood Reporter, CNN, HBO, NY Times, Warby Parker, Club Monaco and more. However diverse his work is, the binding element is always the stories his subjects tell; perseverance, triumph, legacy, love, and strength.
Aside from shooting editorial and advertising Jai founded the non-profit Color Positive which aims to network Black photographers, stylists and directors in the editorial and commercial world. As well as promoting artists, Color Positive works as a mentorship program providing artists in NYC schools to speak and mentor the youth.
Kesha Lambert
Kesha Lambert is an international wedding, portrait, and commercial photographer based in New York. She is a Fordham Law School graduate whose journey into photography was an unanticipated but welcome detour from her career in law. A Sony Artisan of Imagery and ardent creative, Kesha has had the honor of working with a breadth of high profile, commercial and private clients from all over the globe. Kesha enjoys sharing information with her peers and aims to be a resource to fellow photographers.
Erica Reade
Originally from Montreal Canada, I am now a Brooklyn-based freelance photographer. I am self-taught, and I have a background in youth development and women’s empowerment, with a focus on using photography for social justice. I worked in the non-profit world for 12 years before taking the leap to becoming a full-time photographer in 2018. I am the Founding Director of Camera of the Month Club, a NYC photography collective. I was a Nikon Scholarship winner at the Santa Fe Photography Workshops, and an Artist Member of SohoPhoto Gallery in NYC. My work is held in permanent collection at the Rockaway Hotel, and privately across the United States, Canada and Europe. I have collaborated with photo partners Lomography, Nikon and The Get Gallery on various photo projects.
I spend most of my time photographing the beaches of NYC, with a focus on the Rockaways and Fort Tilden. I have been working on my current series, Beach Lovers, for over seven years. My first photographic book was released June 7th 2022, and I am represented by Daylight Books.
When I am not shooting photographs, I am spending as much time by the ocean as possible, swimming when it’s warm enough, and taking care of my many plants and my two cats.
Duane Lyken
Primarily a fashion and travel photographer, Duane Lyken’s images have been featured in publications like Essence, Forbes, WWD (Women’s Wear Daily), VIBE and Instyle magazines. While working in High Fashion with major sponsors like Nissan, Macy’s and Pandora, throughout the year Duane donates his time as a photojournalist to many non-profit organizations around the world covering their efforts to bring awareness to a variety of social causes.
Photography is his ultimate passion so you will never hear him call it work. Making a difference with each and every person he encounters gives his photography purpose that can be seen in all his collections.