Alandra Chavarria Final Project

For my final collection, I had several ideas that I wanted to execute but after trying them all out, I had to narrow the photos down so they were cohesive and created some sort of a narrative. I have always been ok with randomness and enjoy collections of photos that I have taken that may not relate to each other, so taking a more objective approach and criticizing my own work was a challenge for me. Originally I wanted to do a combination of portraits, interior shots, and exterior shots. After I took all of the photos I had to realize they did not flow or make specific connections that would draw an audience in. I did somewhat stick to my original idea, but refined it a little more. I took interiors of coffee shops and record stores, and exterior shots with my model. My collection ended up consisting of three color exterior shots, and three black and white interior shots. I felt the combination of black and white and color created a tie between modern photography and black and white film photography. I wanted the shots to look raw, relatable, and timeless. I think I achieved this pretty well. It ended up being a collection that took you through the places the model might have been: on the sidewalk, in a record store, against a brick wall, inside a bar and coffee shop, in an alley way, and back inside another cafe. I related it back to the reading by capturing the places I’ve been, and creating a series of moments. I think my photos were also successful representations of Stephen Shore and William Eggleston’s photographic styles. I kept my photos crisp, the framing simple, straight forward, and consistent, always keeping my vantage points in mind. I printed my photos on 8.5x11 sheets of fiber gloss photo paper, for a clean and authentic look. 

I was happy to hear that the viewers wanted to see more photos, like they needed to know where she was going next. I think that means I was successful at creating a collection that made the viewers curious, which is what I love about photography. This definitely taught me how to tell a story through my photos, which was something I used to do when I took film photography in high school, but ever since I started practicing digital photography I stopped using my photos to tell a story, rather collect fragmented memories. 

If I were to improve my collection, I would take a few more shots and add more to the collection. I think it would be neat to expand the collection and create a series of nearly 50 photos and arrange them side by side on the walls around one room, creating a continuous border out of photographs. 

Although I usually take very cropped in shots that reveal the tiniest details in subjects that you wouldn't normally notice, this assignment allowed me to challenge myself to widen my frame and include more information in a photo. I was in my element when taking photos as these locations because these are locations I enjoy photographing, but as for the framing style I think I developed another skill as a photographer. And the fact that I successfully created a series with somewhat of a narrative is another challenge I overcame.