Concentration

Senior year is the most formative year of our high school life. It is the year where we face changes, but also the year where we begin to understand ourselves. I want my classmates, the people who have shaped me, to be remembered for who they are, not for the forced smiles that appear in their yearbook portraits. My concentration focuses on portraying their unique characters, in their most candid states – to show personalities beyond a yearbook portrait. This is how they will be remembered.

In portraying distinct personalities, I wanted each photograph to show range and varied compositions. Some images are full body portraits (1 and 12) to show the details in the surroundings and the person that adds to the narrative; some are half-body (9 and 6); and most are head and shoulder portraits with different positioning in the frame. Beyond the different composition, the style is different. While images 8 and 9 take place inside a studio to include colored sighting setting two different moods – the blue and orange in image 8 being contemplative and somber, and the red in image 9 being fierce and determination – most images take place outside or in a natural everyday setting (i.e. a classroom) incorporating colors and external items to accentuate their personalities. One testament to this range is the contrast between images 2 and 6: the story behind image 2 is more abstract – the leaves in the foreground takes up most of the image and creates a mysterious and mellow mood that reflects the subject – while image 6 is more straightforward and lighthearted showing a saxophone player practicing.

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