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Angles
Stranger
Street photography is probably my favorite form of photography. I love how candid and real each photo feels, so personal even though it’s someone you’ve never met. I love the thrill of it-taking pictures of people without permission or preparation is both controversial and anxiety-inducing, but for me, it’s part of the thing that makes this medium so special. Most importantly, however, is the ability to tell the story of a complete stranger, and to capture a part of their life that would otherwise be hidden to the world.
Serenity
I took this photo while I was in Japan. We went to a village where you could see Mount Fuji very clearly, and I was in awe by how beautiful the mountain really was. Not even this photo can capture how breathtaking it really was. For months before, I’d been absorbed by screens and work, and so the chance to go outside, relax, and see a phenomenon as spectacular as this one was very special and calming.
Aging
I took this photo during a street photography session. I thought this one represented aging well because of the hurriedness of the background, but focus of the subject. His attire suggests he’s going somewhere important, like work or an event, and he is looking straight forward, intent on going to where he needs to be. This photo reminds me of the repetitive, yet hurried nature of life, and how things can fly by so quickly without us realizing, especially when in a repetitive, dulling routine.
Center Frame Portrait
In this image, I wanted to use center framed self portrait to tell the story of artistic self doubt. I added surrounding images of posters on my wall, but centered myself in the frame with a camera to represent personal creativity. I had one eye showing and looked directly at my lens in a mirror, which also helped achieve the fuzzy affect shown in the photo. I also wanted it to feel dark and confusing, with the lights dim, to represent doubt.
Leading Lines
I love taking photos of street signs. I feel like even signs with the most simple of meanings can have complex and interesting ideas when placed into a scene. The letters stick out in a way that they didn’t before, and that’s what I wanted to capture here. I used leading lines, like the cross of the pole and the wires, to draw the eye towards the bus sign, so that it would become a focus of the photo.
Sunsets
I’d originally gone up to the roof of a friend’s apartment to see the parrots. There’s a famous parrot colony in San Francisco, and you can hear them from miles away, squawking. We saw them out the window and decided to climb the stairs to see if we could catch them, but unfortunately, by the time we got up, they’d moved on to their next target to search for food. Instead, I got to watch a beautiful San Fransisco sunset, and I did see the parrots from a distance, so it wasn’t all bad.
Symmetry Landscape
I am always shocked by the size of buildings in the city. I am fascinated by way they seem to tower over me, almost feeling larger than life, even if in reality, they only exist as office buildings. This building in particular caught my eye because not only was it tall, but wide. Each window contained a purpose, a space for some person to do a job, and I felt overwhelmed and insignificant by scale. In this image, I wanted to capture how the building looked to me in the moment.
Weight or Mass
For the theme of Weight or Mass, I originally wanted to get a photo of my friend’s cat, since he’s probably the largest, fattest cat I know. However, after availability became a challenge, I decided to take a photo of my own cat instead, next to one of her favorite toys-a little squirrel. I thought it would be fun to photograph the difference of the tiny squirrel toy and my big cat.
Mood
I took a trip to San Francisco to hang out with some family friends and find some photo inspiration. While walking, I spotted these two guys doing some kind of yoga, and I knew I had to take a photo. It was hard to capture them, and I had to be both fast and inconspicuous. When I finally got the photo I wanted, I was disappointed to discover how out of focus it was when I got home-however, I was proud of my ability to get the shot at all. Next time I see something like this, I’m going to be more confident and direct with my photo so that I can get a more accurate shot.