Tosin Rufai, CEO of Teefal Studios, describes herself as a proud female Muslim photographer breaking numerous cultural barriers by being in this field and we couldn’t agree more.
Tosin’s journey into the world of photography is quite a unique one; she came back to Nigeria after bagging a degree in the US with her eyes set on getting into the workforce. After applying for a job at NLNG and she was not shortlisted in the last stage, she reluctantly enrolled in makeup school.
Discovering that she loved the sales aspect of makeup, Tosin went ahead to open a full service beauty lounge where she also sold makeup products. She also enrolled at Bio Sculpture in Dubai to learn how to do gel nails to expand the range of services that she could offer.
Working on her website for her new business, she decided to start taking pictures of her products. And that’s how she got started in the field. The photographer she employed to teach her the basics then advised her to pursue photography fully because of the quality of pictures she was able to create.
From that point, Tosin began to hone her skill in photography, doing further research and getting enrolled for further training. Exploring her passion fully, Tosin started out as a beauty and fashion photographer, but later decided to specialize in child and family photography when she had her son. According to her, she enjoys working with children because they are innocent and beautiful souls. “It also amazes me how rapidly they change and it is a privilege to help document that.”
Today, Tosin is not only the CEO of Teefal studio, but she has also launched her fairy tale package, where she creates customized magical backgrounds for clients. With photography, Tosin can pretty much bring anything to life.
