Understanding the project:
For my photography work, I went into it trying to capture the areas of the world we typically give little attention to. Some photos represent society’s ugly aspects, and some express hidden beauty. I wanted to create a set of photographs that give off a feeling of peace and question what is happening. I enjoy capturing pictures that allow the viewer to create their narrative. Photos can mean different things to different people.
Process:
For my process, when I take photographs. I like to drive around in my car and find locations that give me the desired feeling. Sometimes I have places in mind that give me a specific idea of what kind of photograph I will come out with. Of this set of photos, some were taken on the fly; I was going somewhere, had my camera, and felt that a particular place I was passing would be able to express what I wanted.
When I get to a location that fits the picture in my head, I take 3-5 shots of each different type of photo. I get around ten different kinds of images at each location. This is because sometimes the ideas in my head don’t come out as well as I thought.
When I finish up and go home, I download them to my computer and try to get a few out of each set for my overall topic and feeling. Sometimes I put photos together that are a little unexpected, but that’s on purpose. In my mind, my collections of photographs express a certain feeling. But everyone can get their sense from photos; that’s the beauty of photography.
Solution:
The outcome of this set of photos was a highlight of my photography work. This project allowed me to understand the area of photography I enjoy. I like taking pictures that give the audience something to question and create their narrative. The solution to this project overall came out how I wanted it to. The final project was a set of photos that express different parts of our world that aren’t viewed daily, with some images more pleasant looking than others. This was the goal: to have a set of photos that go together and make you question them.
Takeaways:
I learned throughout this project that I enjoy this area of photography the best; it inspires me. I like taking photos of nature, the good and bad, capturing things that make people question the image and give them a feeling I find interesting. What I like about photography is that a photo can mean a million different things to different people.
Emma Kogel 