Julian Dakdouk is a Los Angeles–based photographer whose work centers on people and the moments that reveal them most honestly. Raised within Lebanese and Venezuelan cultures, he grew up attuned to identity, emotion, and the ways personal history shows up in quiet, everyday gestures. Those influences continue to shape how he approaches his work, with curiosity, respect, and attention to nuance.
He began photographing in 2020, drawn less by technical mastery and more by the act of observing. What started as experimentation quickly became a way to understand others and himself. Julian gravitates toward portraiture and reportage, where the camera can feel less like a barrier and more like a point of connection. He is especially interested in what happens between moments, the pause before a smile, the shift in posture, the expressions people do not realize they are making.
Julian approaches each subject without a fixed narrative, allowing space for things to unfold naturally. His images favor honesty over perfection and presence over performance. Whether working one on one or in fast moving environments, he focuses on creating work that feels grounded and unforced.
For Julian, photography is not about constructing stories but noticing them. His goal is to create images that feel intimate without intrusion and reflective without explanation. Through his work, he hopes to offer a deeper sense of how people move through the world and how much meaning lives in the moments we tend to overlook.
Julian is currently based in Los Angeles, California.
