Scroll through shoe brand Sperry’s Instagram feed and, if you’ve spent time at URI, you’ll see some familiar scenes. A skateboarder at the Narragansett Sea Wall and someone sitting on the shoreline wearing Sperry sneakers, among others.

The skateboarder is Corey Favino, who, less than a year after graduating with a communication studies degree, has a fledgling career as a digital content creator. Besides Sperry, he has also worked with the yerba mate maker Guayaki, and bracelet brands Lokai and 4ocean.

“For me, it’s all about the photography,” says Favino, who grew up in Warwick, Rhode Island, and currently lives in Narragansett. “So I steer more toward the content development side of social media.” There’s a difference between what he does and being a brand ambassador or influencer, he explains. As a content creator, he creates images for companies to use on their own marketing and social media channels, rather than spreading the word via his accounts.

In addition to surfing and sea photography, Favino shoots adventure and landscape images, often including himself subtly in the frame. “I try not to make myself the focus of the photo,” he says. “It’s more about what I’m doing, so you could imagine yourself there. I want to inspire people to get out and explore.”

Favino has also become known for his striking astral photography. His 12 mm, wide-angle lens, with a wide f/2 aperture, allows him to capture the Milky Way and stars while shooting in complete darkness. He purchased the lens with help from a $1,000 URI undergraduate research grant, and the resulting images have been used in gallery shows and for promotional purposes around campus.

With all he’s accomplished, it’s difficult to believe that Favino first picked up a professional camera only three years ago. A longtime lover of the ocean, he entered his first year at URI as a marine biology major. It wasn’t a good fit, and he spent the summer before sophomore year trying to figure out what to do. “A friend told me, ‘Dude, you’re always taking photos, why not pursue that?’” Favino says. “So I invested in a real camera, and haven’t put it down since.”

Jenna Pelletier