Personal Projects &
Photo Essays
About the Project
I am in an 8 month long mentorship for a class called Creating Deeper Documentary Images. Each month we do something a little different, and this next month we are instructed to find a subject to follow and create a photographic series (or a photo essay) portraying someone’s life. The goal is to find a story, and to purposely select and organize images in a way that tells that story. The requirements are that I meet with you (or the subject) a minimum of 4 times in order to gather enough information to tell the story. The story can be very simple (what it’s like to have a new baby) or it can be very complex. Please don’t put any pressure on yourself to perform in any certain way! What I need most is for you to be your genuine self.
It is common that the story changes from the original idea to the end. If this happens, I may want to do more than the required 4 sessions. The first meeting/session that we do might be more for gathering information and me just observing the family while taking photos. Once the story is being built, I will need you to communicate with me things that are happening throughout the month that might be good for me to attend (such as appointments, events, meetings, parties, etc.) I am an open and over communicator, so please don’t hesitate to keep me in the loop about things going on in your family!
I’ve asked for 2 things, life with an elderly person and life with a newborn baby only days old. Both of what I’m looking for and what I’m passionate about is outlined below. Also, I just threw this sh!t together as best as I could so bare with me if some of it doesn’t make sense or if there’s typos ;)
Family Photojournalism
This project is based on photojournalism. It’s basically journalism that uses images to tell a story, but with your family as the main subject. The purpose is to create a story through photographs put together in a series. While I will be making good single images, that is not the goal with this project.
The rules of photojournalism that I follow are: don’t move anything, don’t ask anyone else to move or pose, don’t adjust the scene. Sometimes, I might need additional lighting, and in that I might make minor adjustments.
What I love about this style of photography is that you get to be a part of the most intimate moments for families. In my own definition, intimate moments are moments that most people don’t ever see or appreciate. It’s the mundane. It’s those moments that occur so frequently that it’s perceived value is lost. However, you take that same image and review it 5 years later, or 10 years later, or after the death of the loved one… and it has become priceless. The value goes up over time.
Life, as it is
Most would never think their life was unique enough to photograph. But the truth is, no one lives life the same way you do. No one has the same routines you do. All of our personalities and quirks are so different, and that’s what makes photos interesting. Even the photo below of a widowed man (my Grandpa) seems like it’s nothing. Fast forward to now… his dog (which used to be mine) is blind and deaf and at the end of his life. That home they raised their 4 kids in, he had to walk away from just 1 week ago to move to an assisted living home. The story of this home in this moment, in the image is how his life looked after my Grandma died. The other 2 images are of his midday coffee and creamer, and a portrait of him outside of his home, displaying his bruises from “running into that daggum doorknob”. There’s more to this series but I picked these images just to show you the variety of what I’m looking for.
The truth is, you may never see it like I do in that moment. You might feel scared or embarrassed for me to photograph your life in that way. We all have these moments when some photographer is walking around in your private space with a camera! I want to assure you it’s normal and it’s something that you get used to over time. I am a very empathic person who holds zero judgements. When I have my camera on me, I am in my creative brain and I am in a different place. I do not view your life or your home, or your mess any different than my own.
The image below of the dirty back door, this Mom was super embarrassed I got pictures of it. She was so self conscious of her backyard that was a mud pit from her 3 boys. I told her… you see dirt and I see love. You see a broken toys and a yard that has no grass, and I see a kids who are allowed to be themselves. I find beauty where others typically don’t.
When in doubt… remember that every parent goes through the same things. We all feel defeated at one point, we all cry, and we all get what it’s like to raise wild children. You are not alone when I am with you.
Postpartum
The days following the birth of a baby are very special, and in today’s society it’s typically kept private. Those first few days to even a few weeks are very sacred, in my eyes, and is why I am taking the extra step here to talk about it. Not only are you suddenly trying to figure out your new life routine with a baby who wants to be fed every 2 hours, you are having huge fluctuations in hormones, you are sleep deprived and probably hungry, and the last thing you want is someone coming in with their camera. Why do I know this? Because I’ve been there!
I truly believe these moments must be photographed. Just as much as I believe birth is sacred, these first couple of weeks are sacred too. You may not be in labor land but you definitely are in a twilight phase of not knowing what is going on, why your baby wont stop crying, needing lactation help, and the list goes on.
These photos below were taken when baby was 3 days old. I was there for 15 hours for a real day in the life session. I arrived when they woke up, and left when they went to sleep. In the middle of the day, I slept when they slept. I simply hung out and was just around. I talked when they wanted to talk, and I didn’t when they were in their routine and element.
