Portfolio Introduction:

The photographs in my portfolio were all taken at my family home in Bristol. I wanted to covey an authentic representation of my home which, through my eyes, would capture the quirky, energetic vibrancy of my family and house. However, I also wanted to capture the quieter moments within family life. I aimed to create an honest, balanced representation of my home, with a mix of exciting, vibrant images and darker, more evocative images. I sketched my ideas and began the process of creating these photographs.

The first couple of images in my portfolio are of my mum’s tutu’s. I took close up shots of the fabric. The fabric fills the entire frame, making the subject of the photograph more ambiguous and intriguing. Also, the close up images allows the audience a very intimate, unusual view of the clothing, which to my mind makes the photograph more interesting and engaging.

I wanted to portray my mum as the energetic, bubbly women she is. I adjusted the shutter speed on my camera to capture movement in my photographs. I think that, the photograph of my mum dancing highlights her energy. This is because I captured the blur of the sequins of her dress as she danced, showing movement and making the photograph feel less still and isolated from “real life”.

The picture of the chair legs and floorboards was a representation of those spaces in my home that are very strangely magical and familiar but unnoticeable and insignificant to those who have not lived at my house. However, I think that most people have places like these in their homes, perhaps this image will remind someone of their own magical space.

I took photographs of our family photo draw and a little box of photographs of my dad. I felt really nostalgic when looking at the photographs, so I decided to shoot the photographs to highlight the feeling of “time gone by” and belonging. I like the way that objects such as photographs can capture moments in time and keep memories alive. Most of these photographs were from quite a long time ago, which made me wonder how material things can represent people’s presence and emotions in the more recent past. For example, I was inspired to photograph the cigarettes, messily flicked onto the table. I believe this photo is particularly interesting because it has my mum’s bright pink lipstick on the butt. I love the way that people’s influence over their material environment can leave clues that represent their true self and character.

In the last picture, I stood in my back garden at night and took a picture of the bright windows of my house. The contrast between the light in my house and the darkness outside represents how uplifted and safe my home makes me feel, especially with the addition of my dad, holding our little dog in the window.

I believe that I have taken photographs that are true to my personal sense of place. Authenticity is difficult to achieve. However, I believe that creating images that capture the emotional significance and ‘energy’ of a place is a sincere interpretation of real life. I really enjoyed creating this portfolio and I hope that my photographs are interesting and visually engaging for those who view them.