"It is only with the heart that one can see rightly, what is essential is invisible to the eye".
- Antoine de Saint-Exupery.
In the fraction of an instant an image is captured through the lens of a camera. Eyes wide, smiles big, trying not blink in our favorite picture pose, we hope in one moment our best selves are exposed. But a quick glance at the results often assures us that person on the paper is nothing like we feel who we truly are. The camera itself, does not possess the ability to reveal the spirit of a subject, but a good photographer does.
The hall mark of a good portrait is not only an image that is well crafted, but one that tells a story. But whose story does the image really tell? We understand that photography portrays an individual's point of view and that's what makes the art so incredible and marvelous because others see and percive so differently than we do. It amazes me how a group of photographers can shoot the same scene and yet the results are so varied. I hoped that in doing this project I could step outside of my world and portray individuals as they see themselves.
This project has been an effort to compare and contrast the idea of a simple snap shot and an image that in essence materializes a part of an individual’s soul, qualities that hearts may see but eyes do not. The following series is some of the work I've done for this project. The subjects are children of a dear friend who husband was recently diagnosed with cancer. I asked the kids to sit for me and give me their best "school picture pose" and then I shot an entirely different session with each of them.
In the fraction of an instant an image is captured through the lens of a camera. Eyes wide, smiles big, trying not blink in our favorite picture pose, we hope in one moment our best selves are exposed. But a quick glance at the results often assures us that person on the paper is nothing like we feel who we truly are. The camera itself, does not possess the ability to reveal the spirit of a subject, but a good photographer does.
The hall mark of a good portrait is not only an image that is well crafted, but one that tells a story. But whose story does the image really tell? We understand that photography portrays an individual's point of view and that's what makes the art so incredible and marvelous because others see and percive so differently than we do. It amazes me how a group of photographers can shoot the same scene and yet the results are so varied. I hoped that in doing this project I could step outside of my world and portray individuals as they see themselves.
This project has been an effort to compare and contrast the idea of a simple snap shot and an image that in essence materializes a part of an individual’s soul, qualities that hearts may see but eyes do not. The following series is some of the work I've done for this project. The subjects are children of a dear friend who husband was recently diagnosed with cancer. I asked the kids to sit for me and give me their best "school picture pose" and then I shot an entirely different session with each of them.
I thank Ashlee, 19, for her kindred artistic non-conformist self, Stephen, 16, who put aside his shyness and shared his gift of music, Matt, 14, for being brilliant and dramatic on and off camera, and for my autumn fairy, Kirstie, 12, who dreamed with me. I thank them for letting me be a part of their world. If only for a moment.
