Albert Gwo: A Senior Profile Portrait by Karna Chelluri (2015)

Albert Gwo is a very accomplished swimmer who swims for the Los Altos High School Swim Team as well as the Palo Alto Stanford Aquatics club. Over the course of his high school career, Albert has competed in national championships and olympic trials. Albert has committed to swim for UC Berkeley next year. He chose Cal after a months-long recruitment process during his junior year and the beginning of his senior year. Albert and I have been best friends since we met in freshman year. Even though he’s an amazing swimmer, there is more to him than just that. He has hobbies and talents that have nothing to do with swimming. I wanted my portrait to show how proud he is of his accomplishments, but also make him seem relatable.

To accomplish this, I positioned him against the fence by the pool at Los Altos High School. I had him look at the pool while resting against it. I had him rest against the fence because it gave the photo a feeling of relaxation. The fence also provides a good source of leading lines that centers the subject in the photograph. I had a softer light on his face because I wanted the atmosphere of the photograph to be more contemplative.