Self-Portrait

Photography shows the way of looking at things from a particular angle and view. It allows freedom of expression. To me photography is an outlet that allows me to explore not only the world around me, but also myself as a person who captures the everyday moments. Looking through hundreds of photos, I can see what I look at, what interests me, what captures my attention the most. According to Susan Sontag in her book on photography, she writes, “Photographs really are experience captured, and the camera is the ideal arm of consciousness in its acquisitive mood.” Similarly to Sontag, I capture the experiences around me, not only of people, but also of nature, of things that get overlooked and are sometimes taken for granted. Photographer does not only document events or people, he captures the world around him, that era that he is currently part of.  

My inspiration lies in nature and things that surround me on the daily basis. One of the influencers is Sage Barnes, because he is famous for portraits collage and for his experimental nature of combining different materials. He inspired my work in a sense to look for everywhere for an inspiration.  

My self-portrait includes a collection of photos that best reflect my vision, my experience, and the world around me.  Although I take a lot of portraits of people around me, this series does not focus on that part of my photography. Since portraits hold a lot of personality into them, add another layer of information, and are personal, I had to exclude them due to the purpose of my self-portrait. I want to give these photos to everyone in class, sharing and spreading a piece of my identity, a piece of my vision with everyone around me. All photographs have a personal background and meaning behind them, a place and emotions connected to them. One of the photographs shows a sunrise; to others it’s just another beautiful photo of the sun, but to me it’s a moment of calmness, a moment of full relaxation, a moment of self-love. This photo was taken during my trip to Maine with few of my friends. This adventure allowed me to explore who I am and what matters to me. I was able to live in the moment, so I avoided from taking too many photos, and photograph the things that have to stay not only in memory, but have a longer life. I explored the power of nature; I learned to appreciate little things. All of this exists within just one photograph. They all mean something to me, but to others they might mean something else, revealing a part of their identity as well.

I was part of an exhibition, where I was able to display my photographs, and I allowed people to take one that they connected the most with, the one that meant something to them. I was curious to see what people will choose, what will they gravitate toward the most. I was surprised to find out that most of the people had different preferences; some went for colors they enjoyed, some for the composition, some for the object/theme shown. This project does not focus only on my identity, but also serves as an exploration to understand and explore identities of others, discovering their interests and passions. That’s why my self-portrait includes a small video of people with my photographs, showing them and what they gravitate towards to bring in another layer of identity and self-portrait. 

Look out for inspiration anywhere and inspire others with what you do.