Family of Time by Tamara M. Taylor

This is my first major assignment that was critiqued this semester. I chose to do a time then/time now kind of shoot with my family and friends. They are apart of their past, but the future will also bring them lots of great joy. I am pleased with my photographs and will take the comments and compliments from critique into account for my next shoot like this. ~TMA

Momma Then

J's Dream Job

Vanny's Dream Career

S&J Today

Silly Dad

Happy Together

She's Shannon

Happily Engaged

Almost Caricature by Miriam Diddy

These portraits were my first attempt at shooting low-key photography. I used only one hot light against a black backdrop in order to dramatically expose and accentuate the features of each model's face and in some photos body. I felt the process of shooting this series turned out to be rather playful with the younger models which included my sisters and two close friends. Shooting my elders, both parents and grandparents, proved challenging because the majority of them considered a portrait as something that has to be rather formal. Interestingly enough in the first and last photos displayed above, both models asked to pose with the shown props. During the shoot, I avoided asking the models to pose a certain way or act in a given manner so I wouldn't impose of their true character.

In shooting these series of portraits, I had a goal of capturing the individual personalities of each model. This concept of character, which unifies the series, was inspired by my own unique sense of face-to-face interaction with other people in my life. I feel the images represent each person in a different light according to their own personality which in some cases is seldom shared with strangers. I was able to photograph each model in an "Almost Caricature" way since I had grown up with and knew each person fairly well.

Fleeting moments in life

      This project was quite important to me. I captured the emotions of my family members as well as my daughters friends. Being so busy with school and work I hardly get to see any of them and any moments I do get with them always feel so fleeting. These portraits were taken in the same fleeting manner. Every one was filled with excitement and were all running around and any moment I had to photograph them was over in an instance.

Hurrell Project

  This project was a representation of George Hurrell, who was an amazing photographer. The top one in black and white is a representation of one his photographs, which is located at the bottom.  The middle one is a modern take on it. The model is my beautifully talented sister. This work was my first portraiture work and I really loved it, it was a great experience.

"Through The Looking Glass", by Annie Reynolds

    The purpose of this project was to create a distorted yet pleasing view of the human form. This idea came to me when I was making faces at one of my friends through a huge jar that had previously been used as a fish tank. I quickly realized that the way the jar distorted my features would make for an interesting photograph, and I proceeded to experiment with this jar and many other glass pieces. The first three photographs are of a dear friend who was willing to model for me, and the last four are self-portraits. The part of the face that is distorted by glass is meant to represent the raw, almost dark side of the individual, with the glass serving as a window to the frequently hidden part of the human nature. After discovering the meaning behind each photograph, "Through The Looking Glass" seemed like an appropriate name for the series.

Water Portraiture by Orianna Pavlik

This collection of photographs illustrates the healing nature of water, however mundane the setting. The succession of photographs narrates the subject entering the bath in vanity, and in conclusion, awakening in a pure state of consciousness.  For example, in the first photograph the subject bathes herself unaware of the water and only herself. However, in the second photograph she opens her eyes in contemplation of her surroundings. She reclines into the bath, submerging herself and her white dress in water. After emerging from the water, she opens her eyes, acknowledging herself and this moment. In the final photograph she rests in meditation of her new awareness.

Richie Jiacoletti -Karsh/ Dia De Los Muertos

The first two photos are my rendition of Karsh's photos of Humphrey Bogart. The first of the pair is my exact (or as close to it that i could get) portrayal of the Humphrey photo. The second is my modern interpretation where I had him looking at his cell phone rather than having a real conversation as it portrays in the first photo. I then have a few photographs from my Dia De Los Muertos series where I showed the Dia De Los Muertos themes with the skull face paint and roses and I added a fashion photography twist to it.