IPHONE LIGHTING

I spent four years studying cinematography in college and had the chance to work with professional cinema cameras. Yet, despite owning my own digital camera for snapping stills, I continually find myself taking more pictures with my phone.

There's no denying the convenience- I always have my phone on me. It's lightweight and fits in my pocket, allowing photos to be taken indiscreetly. And for what it's worth, my phone isn't that bad. I've taken some pictures I'm really proud of and have captured moments where I might not have thought to bring my camera.

However, one of my goals is to be better about carrying my camera with me, so that I can lessen my dependence on my phone (and make all the money spent on actual cameras worth it). I hope this is a goal that doesn't fall by the wayside.

FLOWERS, 2014 (iPhone 4) - a contrasty-er throwback to Dutch 17th c. still life paintings 

ALMONDS, 2014 (iPhone 4) - light through glass and window blind shadows never get old, I love these tropes

LINCOLN PARK CONSERVATORY, 2015 (iPhone 4) - like the contrast in this one and the slight warmth of the light, wish there was a bit more detail in the shadows 

Close up version of the previous shot... 

SHARING

I saw something online the other day contrasting our collective mentality between film and digital photography. Something along the lines of: film - shoot 24 images, digital - shoot 1000, film - develop 24 images, digital - download 1000, film - print 24 images, digital - print 0, film - look at 24 images, digital - never look at photos again. While this might not be entirely true for all of us, I certainly can be an offender of taking hundreds of photos (while shooting digitally), download them to my computer, and look at them only whenever I need to clean out my hard drive.

Recently (in an attempt to make some space on my computer and create a few free gigabytes), I uncovered folder after folder of digital photos (and a few film scans) I've taken throughout the years. There's been a lot to sort through- especially in the years after I got a smartphone with a halfway decent camera- but it's been interesting to see how my photographic eye has changed (and hasn't) and recall where I was physically and mentally while creating these images. 

Not all of the images I found were anything special- most are silly snapshots of my sister or family and purely documentation shots from camp or trips- but some are images I really love that I just never got around to posting or sharing anywhere. I'm not much when it comes to maintaining a consistent online presence, but I figured this unofficial blog would be a good place to share some old work and let some of the images that have been sitting idle on my computer have a place to live and be displayed.