Jennika Ojala

Artist, PlaygroundSquad 2020

I'm a photographer and now an aspiring Lighting Artist.

The way a camera allows you to save moments that later might fade from memory. That’s where it all started. My love story with lights. I learned that light and shadows is the main source of all images. That if lighting changes, the mood changes. How difficult it was to control. To make the light do what I wanted and not the other way around. I tried to get to the core of light and its relation with the environment. Constantly trying to understand its behavior. 

This curiosity led me to study art and professional photography for three years. Later on I started working with music and Esports. Traveling with companies like DreamHack and ESL since 2016. Constantly under tight deadlines, time pressure and relying on teamwork. 

When having time off I looked for games with realistic lighting to play, always astonished how it's becoming more and more true to its actual behavior. Intrigued by working with lights and not being limited by the weather that day or if your studio lamp all of a sudden breaks mid session.

Now I'm a Lighting Artist Intern at Sharkmob, trying to learn everything I can about making lights in games. Yet again trying to understand its behaviour, trying to control it.