Meet king of portraits Liberty Mudenda Liberty Mudenda (left) with Simphiwe Ngema

Mbulelo Mpofu, Showbiz Reporter

THEY say, “A picture is worth a thousand words” but to cinematographic portraitist Liberty Mudenda, a portrait is worth thousands of kilometres to America.

 Mudenda, from Chinotimba in Victoria Falls, quit pharmacy for the lens and the move has paid off handsomely as he has assumed the senior photographer position for a cruise line in Florida.

 From his base in Florida, Mudenda told Chronicle Showbiz that he did not know that what started as a hobby would soon butter his bread.

“Growing up, I remember being fascinated by taking pictures of nature using my phone and just doing that as a hobby, without any intention of making it a viable career. My first real encounter with a digital camera was in 2016, but professionally, it has been three years since I’ve been doing this. It’s starting to sink in now that with photography, one can make it big time,” he said.

Liberty “Leo” Mudenda

 Dubbed, “Leo: The King of Portraits” Mudenda has worked with film and music greats to help them achieve aesthetic appeal. These include South African singer and actress Simphiwe Ngema, Boity Thulo, Master KG, Ammara Brown, Vuyo Brown and MziStozz Mfanafuthi. His work has been most noted during the Vic Falls Carnival where issues of opulence were the centre of attention.

Ammara Brown’s portrait shot by Leo Mudenda

 The photographer surely mastered the art of cinematic headshots as this helps the subject in focus stand out from the more standard portrait against a normal background.

 Mudenda said his switch to The Land of Opportunity has afforded him the chance to see photography in a different light.

“Here, photography is different from what we do in Zimbabwe. At home, we focus too much on editing than we sell our products. This side, they value photography and every snap must be of the highest quality,” he said.

A portrait of singer Vuyo Brown shot by the king of portraits Leo Mudenda

 From his new occupation in Florida, Mudenda has been able to extend his family home in Chinotimba.

 Lately, the photography business has been on a swift trajectory with local creatives exhibiting vocal prowess, accompanied by clean visuals.

 Mudenda said he will be working with MziStozz Mfanafuthi on a music video early next year. – @eMKlass_49 

You Might Also Like

Comments