During the identity unit, I will be making a set of photos called “Nostalgia: What were you like when you were in high school? Exploring multiple cultures” The societal issue I aim to explore is the youth and past of the teachers in different cultures, especially helping them relive and revive their memories in high school by dressing them and telling them to act like they did in high school. I want my audience to feel warm when looking at those photos, as if they were watching someone revisit their favourite childhood park and feel happy for the people in the photos too. I also want them to be intrigued when looking at the high school culture of different people. I hope to obtain inspiration from photos that seem to recreate the childhood for certain adults, such as those published by the Guardian, and inspiration from objects that were trending in the 1990s, to better create the correct atmosphere to trigger the nostalgia. I aim to use a black background, intended “bad” light as most photos from the 1990s of shining and bright light that blurs the photo out a bit.
The author I hope to take inspiration from is called Dawoud Bey. Dawoud Bey uses his photos to capture the individuality and identity of the people he takes photos of, particularly within marginalized communities. His photographs challenge stereotypes, which relates to my intent as I wish to capture multi-cultural teenagehood. For example, in his series, “Class Pictures,” he takes photos of teenagers from multiple cultures, wearing or holding something that represents their academic or personal interests. The focus on the eyes really emphasize the distinct traits of each person, and encourages the audience to note special features of each person. All of the photographs use techniques such as highlighting the person while blurring the background. This is because the author intends to focus on the character and traits of the character, but still wants to include a background that presents their academic status. However, the background is blurred so the audience can better focus on the subject. I chose him as inspiration because his photos distinctively represents the culture, the traits, and the teenagehood of his subjects. I hope to capture a similar effect. I will also try out different backgrounds that are blurred in my shoot, as it not only presents the academic side I aim to present in terms of nostalgia, but also helps supplement the clothing or props that put teachers back to their teenagehood.
Subject staring straight into the camera. Features clear and focused.
Staring straight into the camera, similar to the previous ones but presenting another culture. The earings, the background, the makeup, the jewelry, etc.
Similar to the previous 2. Wearing cheerleader uniform – academic/personal interests are presented.
In this specific photo, it is a very detailed example I want to reference. It shows the student in his seat, with a detailed but blurred background proving that he is in a school (the map behind him), the camera is clearly focused on his gaze, and his clothes are representative of his own identity. The focus on his gaze draws a tense but intriguing mood, as it makes him look very serious but still allows readers to examine him and notice things about his identity, both cultural and personal.