Imbued with Nairobi grit, people noticed Rogers’ work, and granted him something of an underground cult-status. Rogers is an OG on the East African scene. His early work—self-taught —began gaining traction, and landed a feature on Vogue Italia while he was still a student. A huge full circle moment, to which Rogers says, “at first, I was replicating the kinds of visuals I’d seen in Vogue, and for people around me, it was something completely new. That visibility gave me momentum.”
Even as his technical skills evolved, Rogers’ vision stretched beyond beauty for beauty’s sake. Though principally a fashion photographer, Rogers’ subject matter spans across social, racial and environmental justice, all intersections he feels are intrinsic to African sartorial and creative identities, “I’m very open-minded in what I shoot,” Rogers notes, “90% of the time, I gravitate toward non-conforming styles. Highlighting queerness or social justice in my work can be dangerous in Nairobi—it’s illegal to be queer here. But for me, it’s important to tell these stories.” Rogers has had collaborators scrub themselves online after shoots for safety, their identities erased to avoid violence or backlash. One such project, featuring queer creatives, found itself exhibited in New York through OKAYAfrica, “That was major. It meant that stories from here, our truths, were being seen elsewhere,” Roger notes with conviction.
Rogers is deeply committed to the potential of East Africa, but points out that how the region is framed by the global creative industry is still problematic. “East Africa is still so untapped when it comes to fashion and creativity. There’s so much happening, but almost zero visibility internationally. That’s why collaborations like the ones I’ve created with The New Originals matter, they’re actually committed to amplifying voices from here. Eben and the team from TNO are one of few international teams who travel somewhere and collaborate directly with the creatives in that place.”
Rogers is strategic about changing this narrative, as he lays the groundwork for a more equitable creative ecosystem in East Africa. His call to action is simple; work with the local creative community. “If I have a client who wants to shoot in a different location—Lamu is there. Mombasa is there. I’ll take care of everything. We have equipment, we have a team. If you want to transport something to Lamu, I know people who fly jets. If you want to shoot in the Maasai Mara, I know the people, I know the way there.” This issue is intimately tied to the continual tensions and reclamation of ownership on the continent. Rogers recalls international productions parachuting in and using Kenyan soil as backdrop, without engaging local talent. “There was a day when a huge brand flew in an entire crew, and the only locals on set were two of my friends—one a makeup artist and designer, and the other assisting by carrying the umbrella. That’s it.”
Rogers’ own education in the importance of authorship arose from his background in humanitarian-led news. While studying, Rogers landed a job at Camera Pix—an esteemed Kenyan production house founded by the son of legendary photojournalist Mohamed Amin. “Being employed in that company gave me a lot. People in my class were in lectures; I was on planes, travelling across Africa. I used to film for CNN, BBC, Al Jazeera, NGOs—all of that.” Those years on the ground, immersed in real stories, taught Roger how to find the human thread in every story, to document without spectacle, and to shoot with a sensitivity and respect for the context and people involved. This hard-won documentary sensibility has never left his fashion work, as is evident to the deeply enriching and compelling portrayal of his imagery; “we’d create human interest stories, political stories, health stories. That’s why my fashion photography looks like a documentary. Even when I’m shooting fashion, I’m telling a story.” As Rogers emphasises, he has worked on sleek commercial campaigns—products, clean backdrops, imbibed by sterile minimalism—but these briefs don’t ignite him the way fieldwork does. “I can shoot the fancy stuff, clean backdrops, whatever—I’ve done those campaigns—but I won’t show them. What I want to show is the documentary side. That’s what makes it all click for me.”
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