"A Sense of Self"
"Then God said, 'Let us make man in our image, in our likeness, and let them rule over the fish of the sea and the birds of the air, over the livestock, over all the earth, and over all the creatures that move along the ground.' So God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them. God blessed them and said to them, 'Be fruitful and increase in number; fill the earth and subdue it. Rule over the fish of the sea and the birds of the air and over every living creature that moves on the ground.'" (Genesis 1:26-28).
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Each place I’ve visited and lived in has had an effect on my “sense of self” and has shaped me into the passionate traveler I am today. Everywhere I go, especially on vacations or excursions, I bring a camera (most often film). I wanted to convey this love for travel and film photography through a series of three edits.
In Chilly Chicago, I combined my street videography of Chicago with polaroids from our family reunion in the city. Each video clip and photo captures a different element of Chicago’s people, animals, and architecture. Film photography, especially polaroids, is my favorite form of art as it is authentic, imperfect, and documents the beauty of everyday moments. This medium chronicles street photography well, and is fun to experiment with too.
MN from Above pairs frosty drone footage I recorded above my house in Minnesota with polaroids I’ve taken in winter settings throughout the years. These polaroids capture the beauty of simple moments, unique people, and breathtaking nature. Their fading from black and white to color in the video symbolizes the vibrancy of the moment coming to life through photography.
Polaroids in Paradise displays my family’s favorite vacation destination: Turks & Caicos. These polaroids focus on the beauty of paradise, rich with the colors of the bright blue sea and blooming plants. I especially see the stamp of God’s divine craftsmanship on the other-worldly view from my plane window, as shown in the background of the video.
Legos bring nostalgia, the joy of building, and an invitation into imagination—a very good expression of ‘aliveness.’ One of my favorite elements in Buckle Up are the arcade lights, which add a playful tone as they change color and illuminate each shot differently. This stop motion animation is the final element of my “Sense of Aliveness” project (although I have filed it here with the videos of “A Sense of Self”).