Gunnar Green

Introduction

As my junior year comes to an end, I feel happy and content with how I grew as a photographer. I never thought i would grow this close to my teacher and classmates, and i enjoyed the majority of projects this year. I am most proud of my self-expression photo, where I took a magazine-cover-inspired, black-and-white selfie. I also loved the staple-city project, even though at times the staples failed to work in my favor. Some of my favorite memories this year are from the labs where we, as a class, would go outside and try to shoot as much as possible. This made for many laughs, good pictures, and good times.

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Part 1: Blind Photography

For the blind photography project, we had to rely on all of our senses, except for sight, to take a composed photograph. We were not allowed to use our eyes. We found an area, let our senses guide us, framed the photo, focused, and took the picture. I had one favorite picture from this project. I used my hearing to tell me I was near a tree. Then, I touched the tree and backed up to my desired distance. I was hoping to capture a shot of overhanging leaves, but in stead got this neat, very well composed photo.

my best blind photography photo

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Part 2: Long Exposure and Light Painting

As all projects start, we began with a lab. I spent several days in the closet adjusting my camera settings, experimenting with different objects, shutter speeds, f-stops, lights, people, angles, etc.. I failed many times. Sometimes, my photos were over-exposed, and other times they appeared blurry. Most of the time, my lab pictures were both over-exposed and blurry. It took me many tries to perfect settings that focused on my subject and also captured the light.

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Goodbye

I was recommended this class by a friend. She told me it would be a lot of hard work, and several months of dedication. I joined this class because i wanted an outlet to express my creativity, and this was the perfect choice for me. There was not one final picture I wasn’t proud of. Everything i took, I tried to put my own spin on it, and even bended the rules of photography sometimes. This helped me come out of my shell in many ways, and made me feel professional with a fancy camera in my hand. After everything’s said and done, I am grateful for this class and everything it taught me.

Gunnar Green

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When I first started this project, I underestimated the amount of time and work it would take. I didn’t think about the background, camera settings, or layout of the city. With this project, I winged it.

My inspiration behind the city was New York. Not particularly New York City, but rather a more secluded, hidden gem of a location where the stars are more visible, parties are contained, and beachy vibes pour into the heart of Slay City.

Peter Root’s staple city, unlike mine, was very packed and busy: having layers on layers of staples. On the other hand, my city is smaller and has a more hometown feeling.

There are many differences in apertures throughout my project. The middle picture, focuses closely on the individual staples. The picture on the left has the outer buildings blurred and focuses on the silhouette of the inner buildings.

The most successful part of my work, is creating a cohesive concept where the city is small but fierce: having clear blue skies, two separate sides, and a desolate center. I could definitely grow on improving camera angles, camera settings, and lighting.

I am proud of the end result, because I made it from nothing! It did not turn out perfect, but that does not take away from the time and effort that was put into the city.

Visit Slay City! On one side, visit apartments, have a peaceful dinner, spa day, or meditation in the many comfy skyscrapers. On the other side, go wild and party the night away in the sound-proof disco skyscrapers! Any time of day, visit the center of slay city, Gaga Shores Beach! Beach activities include: photoshoots in the glittering tides and/or attend fashion runways, drag shows, and concerts on the open-ocean-stage! Slay!

Our ABC photography project required us to take multiple pictures of every letter in the alphabet, using the environment around us. The end goal was to create an ABC collage and a spelled word of our choice. The project spanned a little over a week. I found 20 out of 26 letters fairly easy, but I struggled with the letter G the most. I ended up writing my G on a whiteboard and taking a picture of it.

For the project, I was required to spell a word with my ABC Photography. I spelled the word “PUNK” because that’s how I was feeling after listening to my emo playlist all day. Also, I found it fun to find letters in nature. I found it interesting how every sidewalk, tree, or inanimate object had similarities with letters!

The #BookFace project required our class to strategically line up a body part or portion of the face to a book cover. This created an illusion that intertwines art and reality.

Forgive My Fins By Tera Lynn Childs

Model: Gunnar Green

For this photo, I set up my phone on a tripod, and sat on the floor in front of a colorful background. I wanted the background to match the colorful, fantasy book cover. I positioned my hair in front and behind the book to match the hair on the cover. The hardest part of this shoot was aligning my face with the face on the book, because my eyes were being covered. I would position the book on my face, and blindly take the picture with a remote and hope for the best.

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Twilight By Stephenie Meyer

Model: Elijah Kilpatrick

For this photo, I grabbed my classmate Elijah and used his arms. His arms were the right color, and his red sweatshirt matched the apple on the book cover. I took this picture in multiple locations, trying to get the lighting right. I settled on a patterned couch. I simply positioned his arms and placed the book on top of them.

As 2023 ended, I realized how much I learned throughout the year. At the beginning of the year, I was terrified for 2023. I was lost, I had no plans, and I didn’t truly know myself. As the weather changed, so did I. Throughout the year, I found confidence, optimism, trust, and spirituality. I am stepping into 2024 feeling fully alive. One thing that helped me grow was photography. Photography required me to dive deep into my feelings and unlock a different side of creativity. I always knew I was creative, but I was unsure how to capture and display my thoughts. Photography gave me an outlet to express myself.

In 2023, we left the year on a self expression/ self portraiture project. The goal was to capture traits about yourself through photography. This was my favorite project. It helped me express myself in ways I never thought I would be able to. The image below is my favorite self-expression image. It captured my feelings approaching mid-terms. I didn’t think I would be able to pull this image off, because I had such a specific idea in my mind. Overall, I am very proud of how it turned out. I have trouble being vulnerable, but this photoshoot helped me come out of my shell. Even my teacher and classmates said they learned a little more about me from this shoot.

For 2024, I set some goals. I want to expand my creativity even more. I hope to learn how to display my ideas and be more confident with them. Photography can be a big helping hand in doing so. This year, I’m hoping photography gives me equal opportunities to express myself as the last. I’m hoping to grow as a photographer, and stay true to myself. I also want to experiment with creating fictional and fantasy-like images with photoshop.

My goals for 2024 include short and long term. With that being said, I plan on writing more music and poems this year. Doing so, I will naturally learn more about myself. Another short-term goal I have is to experiment with clothing. I say this, because I find myself only wearing black. Wearing black makes me feel confident, but there is something satisfying about wearing color. With that being said, this year, my goal is to purchase more colorful, unique clothing that I might not usually purchase. In the next 2 months, I need to get more into movies, as well! I have been on a reality T.V. show high, and I have not come down for 2 years. I plan to watch a new movie every week, as that will be a very new experience for me. I’m sick of missing out on cinema and film!!!

By the end of May of 2024, I hope to have accomplished all of my short-term goals. Not only that, but accomplish some long-term ones too. One of those being to get in shape! During June of 2023, I was unstoppable. I was hydrated, eating healthy, and working out several times a week. I need to create an efficient routine, and maintain my June 2023 mindset. I also need to submit my resume to some work places. This year I plan on making bank. With my past working experiences, I hope to find an OK paying job. Lastly, I hope to find my perfect college. I already have a few in mind, but by the end of 2024, I want to have a concrete plan on what I want to do. Getting accepted into my perfect college is another story, but I hope to start following my dreams soon. I am the biggest procrastinator in the world, so looking for colleges and starting early will not hurt.

As a student, I hope to make good grades and raise my GPA. I also need to take my ACT and stop waiting until the last minute to do everything. This will be crucial to getting accepted into my dream colleges. Overall, my motto for 2024 is “trust the process”. Yes, I plan on accomplishing all of my goals, but I wasted a lot of time in 2023 self sabotaging and doubting myself. In 2023, I maintained an “I’m waiting for something good to happen” mindset. This year, I’m simply going through 2024 with low expectations and a dream. Trusting the process.

Self expression is how people show their true identity. Every human on the planet is unique. I believe it is important to show your uniqueness and display the gift of being yourself proudly. Humans, as a species, are so full of individuality. If we were to stop expressing ourselves, we would all mold into each other. Everybody would be indistinguishable, boring, mindless bodies walking around Earth. I personally self-express by doing what makes me happy. Whether it be my hair, nails, clothes, makeup, or jewelry, I will always do what feels true to me, and I never listen to what people have to say about me. I will take inspiration from others, but I never copy anyone or try to be someone I’m not. I pride myself on standing out, and I make it a priority in my day-to-day life. I also express myself on stage with Theatre. For me, it is a good way to express my creativity and passion for entertaining.

My self-expression in song form

We R Who We R by Kesha

We R Who We R is one of my favorite Kesha songs. The song embodies self expression and embracing yourself exactly how you are. Kesha told interviewers, “I wanted to inspire people … to be themselves. It’s a celebration of any sort of quirks or eccentricities.” When I hear this song, I think about queer youth. Self expression is very important to many young, queer people, because starting from a young age, it is implied by society that they should be kept in boxes and conform to silly standards. This song makes me want to be myself unapologetically. When I heard this song live, I danced like I have never danced before and felt immensely free and liberated. The part of this song most important to me is, “I’m so sick of bein’ so serious, It’s makin’ my brain delirious” This lyric reminds me to not take life too seriously. Everything is temporary, and I live to make myself happy.

“There is a vitality, a life force, an energy, a quickening that is translated through you into action, and because there is only one of you in all time, this expression is unique. And if you block it, it will never exist through any other medium and will be lost.”
Martha Graham

In this project, the assignment was to capture many elements of photography and rules of composition. These things include rule of thirds, balancing elements, leading lines, etc.

Elements of Photography

Rules of Composition

-JPEG-

JPEG, Joint Photographic Experts Group, files are the default files. They are saved at lower, compressed qualities.

-HEIF-

HEIF, High Efficiency Image Format, files take up less space than JPEGs and have high-quality file storage.

-TIFF-

TIFF, Tagged Image File Format, files are used by photographers, because they can be converted. They are usually high quality with no compression.

-RAW-

RAW file images are unique because they are not easily displayable. They are the highest quality file and are not adjusted at all.

-DNG-

DNG files are the standard RAW files. They can only be created by specific software.

-PNG-

PNG files are useful for transparent image backgrounds. They don’t require tons of space and can be downloaded easily.

-GIF-

GIF files are animated files and have very small file sizes.

-BMP-

BMP files require a lot of storage and are kept at high qualities, good for printing.

-PSD-

PSD files are meant to be manipulated and reassessed.

Hi! I’m Gunnar, a 16-year-old with high aspirations. Despite the fact that I only wear black, it is not my favorite color. A good, rich maroon or grey makes me feel warm and comfortable. Another thing about me is I’ll never say no to chicken pesto tortellini. I will eat it any day of the week, especially if it is made by my mom. My mom is without a doubt my best friend. She always encourages me to pursue my dreams. Speaking of which, when I grow up, I want to be an entertainer! I love being on stage! I don’t care if I’m a singer or an actor (I’m not striving for Broadway. I dislike musical theatre). If I’m not a successful entertainer by 35, well, I’ll be a drag queen. Drag is basically karaoke, but you’re not usually live singing, and there is 5 pounds of makeup and costume involved. Usually my go-to karaoke song would be Die Young by Kesha, but lately I’ve been more into Misery Business by Paramore. When I’m listening to Paramore, my all-time favorite band, I feel powerful. If I actually had a superpower, I’d be able to read minds. Self explanatory. When I’m not listening to music or stressing about school, I’m fantasizing about my dream Saturday: home alone, empty couch, unlimited supply of Sonic, and nobody bothering me while I re-watch Jersey Shore for the 7th time. Unfortunately, that’s never the case. Instead, I go pick up something small from Sonic, go to my room, hide with my dog, and re-watch Jersey Shore with plentiful interruptions. Despite having a reptile zoo in my room, I’d love to own a capybara or a prairie dog. I don’t know how much my snake would enjoy that, though. If I could ignore my responsibilities for a month, I’d be plopped right into Brazil! It’s so beautiful. If I could ignore my responsibilities forever, I would travel back in time to 2010. In 2010, the music was fantastic, the fashion was questionably good, and the WWE was very entertaining.