Main Street, U.S.A.
Main Street is a photographic study of Midwest small towns, examining the current state of main st. in America's heartland.
Main Street, U.S.A. is a study of small towns in America. A glorified allusion of American culture, Main Street represents a nostalgic way of life to our citizens. Politicians in particular use its positive, grassroots connotation for their own gain. As I continue to add to this collection of images, I feel a deeper connection with my Midwestern roots and an ever increasing disconnect with the politicians making the decisions that affect every day citizens. Main Street, U.S.A. is an attempt to expose the reality of Main Street and what it really looks like in our country.
Light Effects: a study of light and lens
Providing visualization of light as both tool and subject, Light Effects reexamines the role of light within the discipline of photography.
Light Effects is an attempt to capture the transient yet mechanical nature of image making within photography. Photography is the process of creating an image with the help of light sensitive surfaces. It is often discussed with the aid of a lens, making the camera the most important aspect of the photographic process. The tool creates the end result. However, the tool is merely a tool. Light Effects places the emphasis instead on light by using light not only as a means of capturing an image, but as the image itself. Light works within the camera. Light creates the image. Light is the image.
Part one of Light Effects examines the direct interaction between light and surface. These photograms emulate light while harnessing the darkroom process. Part two imitates the light action within the camera. Photographing through a prism shatters the image, manipulating light much in the way a camera does. Light Effects reconsiders the role of light within photography, elevating it as the subject and core of the image rather than merely a part of the image making process.
Part one of Light Effects examines the direct interaction between light and surface. These photograms emulate light while harnessing the darkroom process. Part two imitates the light action within the camera. Photographing through a prism shatters the image, manipulating light much in the way a camera does. Light Effects reconsiders the role of light within photography, elevating it as the subject and core of the image rather than merely a part of the image making process.
sources
In sources, a continuing broad body of work, I focus on the aesthetics of light and its characteristics within environments. I am interested in light as a subject not only for its beauty but for its symbolic role in life. Without light, life cannot exist. It is a simple concept yet somehow difficult to perceive. Light is pure, good, nourishing. Light fuels the content of my images while also being the very mechanics of photography, making it possible for me to capture images in the first place. Through this study, I have delved deeper into capturing nature and it's dependence on light. I further investigate the relationship between light and the camera in my series, Light Effects.
Church
Throughout our lives, we grow familiar with what a church should look like. Although I have never been to France, I know what the imposing structure of the Notre Dame Cathedral looks like. With Church, I wanted to document the buildings people gather in to worship. Religion is a very intimate thing, something that is much more than just an institution. By taking panoramic images of the interiors of these spaces, I hope to expose the places so many people gather. This has been a personal project for me as I examine the Christian backbone of my upbringing and my current search for an understanding of faith.
Iowa City/Cedar Rapids wedding and newborn photographer
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