Lubinga pictures himself out of classroom

For 13 years, James Lubinga has done nothing more than photography. He lives and dreams it and sees photo opportunities where you see none. 

It is the story of a man, who 13 years ago had settled into being a classroom teacher, but dared to dream and has now built a deep relationship with photography. 
He has mastered and connected all the dots, that it is difficult to match him on any day. 

With a greying beard and receding hairline, Lubinga stands at about six feet tall. 
He is a well-built man and, quite conversational, but toned enough to stick to the subject of discussion. 

After leaving university in the late 90s, Lubinga stuck around the classroom, which he had been part of while still a student at Makerere University. 

For years, he juggled life between Seeta High and Seroma Schools but left a profession he dearly loved after 11 years. 

“It was not giving me enough money,” he says with a straight gaze that suggests he does not regret the decision he took in 2011. 
While he taught, Lubinga had been doing photography for fun, but later adapted it as a side hustle. 

The side hustle, however, became so good that it started giving him some money that it would take him months to earn through his main job – teaching. 

“Out of love, I started doing photography as a side gig and I started seeing some money. I would do gigs that would earn me as much as Shs6m in a month or even a week, which would take me months to earn through teaching,” he says. 

Thus, the decision to quit the classroom became so easy and it was just a matter of how, not when.  
Lubinga had been teaching Geography in Seeta High and Seroma Schools. 

Years later, he runs an investment that is worth millions of shillings. 
His office at the Serena Conference Centre in the leafy Kampala Central Business District is a testament of how far he has come and perhaps where he wants to go. 

Lubinga’s hustle with photography dates back to 2005, when, as a Geography teacher, he would take landscape photos his class illustrations, which was helped by his deep love for nature that exposed him to real photography when he took aerial photos of River Nile.

However, around the time – at the final bend of his teaching days – he had also been introduced to wedding photography that would later become more rewarding. 

“I had thought I would manage because it was just on weekends. But I was wrong because after I had taken the photos, I would have to sort and print them. I would be busy throughout the week, yet there were other gigs in the line,” he says. 

“That is when I had to choose between photography and the classroom,” he says. 
For many years, Lubinga continued doing photography as a gig but this denied him an opportunity to do serious business. 

“It was getting difficult to access some contracts. Some companies would want company-to-company dealings. But here I was with only a personal account. Now that the money was coming in, it was only logical to register the gig as a business,” he says. 

It is this decision that has introduced Paramount Images to the real world of serious business and big contracts, including the recent wedding of the Kyabazinga of Busoga William Gabula Nadiope and Queen Jovia Mutesi.

“We were approached as a company and later hired as the official photographers of the Kyabazinga wedding,” Lubinga says, setting back the clock of time in which he says, there was no room for error. 

“It was tough. But for 13 years I have been doing photography. That was enough confidence for me and my team. And I was comforted by the fact that those who had chosen Paramount Images, were sure that we would do the best job. Thank God we delivered.” 

Background
Lubinga, a father of four boys, started his elementary education at St Alphonsous Primary School Nkokonjeru before joining St Peter’s Secondary School, Nkokonjeru in Mukono District for both Ordinary and Advanced Levels. 

From here, he joined Makerere University, where he obtained a Bachelor’s degree in Education.
He is the only child of his parents, which has been a major inspiration for him in building networks and friendships. 
“In our kind of business, you have got to rely on networks and friendships. It is from those that you will get the best referrals,” he says. 

Away from photography, Lubinga does some farming, mentoring and is a member of Business Network International, a loose collection of selected companies and people in events planning. 

Challenges and future plans
However, in all this, it has not been a smooth sail for Lubinga. 

“Technology keeps changing and the kind of equipment that we use is very expensive. Clients will expect you to be up to date. We have very little room to maneuver, especially when it comes to quality.”

However, he says whereas technology has brought challenges, it has come with many advantages such as publishing photos as and when they are taken and the introduction of Artificial Intelligence, which is now being used in photo editing.

“Clients no longer have the patience to wait for albums. They want to see their photos instantly. Well, there is time for the albums, but social media has allowed us an opportunity to publish instantly,” he says. 

Beyond the challenge of technology, Lubinga also points out the challenge of an industry that largely depends on people who are taught on the job with little or no professional skill set tailor-made to make them better. 

“There are very few of us who have attained this skill in a lecture room. Many of us have to be trained and mentored. So, it takes a lot of effort and time to bring out a professional photographer,” he says. 

Therefore, Lubinga plans to build a sustainable business by diversifying into agro-tourism and mentorship as well as expand Paramount Images from just two office branches – one at Serena and another in Naalya. 

He also plans get involved in beekeeping and expand his piggery, banana and grass growing businesses.