Image 1: “Hiding From It All” (Image 1)
This photo shows a student covering their face with their hands, which suggests feelings of stress, shyness, or not wanting to be seen. It connects to my intent because it shows a real and emotional moment that many teens experience in daily life.

Image 2: “Zoned Out” (Image 6)
In this image, the student has their head down on the table, looking exhausted. This represents the tired and overwhelmed feeling that can come from school or daily routines. It fits my intent by capturing a quiet but honest moment of teen life.

Image 3: “Stairs and Silence” (Image 16)
This photo shows a student sitting alone on the stairs, looking away. The pose and expression feel thoughtful and distant. It relates to my intent because it shows a more reflective and quiet side of teenage emotions that’s often not talked about.

How these images answer my intent:
My project is about showing real and unfiltered parts of teenage life. These photos capture different emotions like tiredness, stress, and quiet thinking. I didn’t want my photos to be posed, I wanted them to show what teens actually go through in everyday moments.

What I experimented with:
I experimented with capturing natural body language instead of asking people to pose. I also paid attention to soft lighting and composition to make the emotions stand out more. These techniques helped me show my theme more clearly and build on what I did before.

Jayden Portrait

1. Name the artist
Ryan McGinley

2. Describe the intent/message
Ryan McGinley tries to capture real and personal moments of youth, often in natural or relaxed settings. His photos show freedom, emotion, and not being perfect. I think his work shows how young people feel in an honest way, not posed.

3. Analyse their style
He always uses natural lighting, soft tones, and candid poses. The people in his photo often look away or act natural like they don’t notice the camera. The background is simple sometimes, so the focus stays on the person and emotion.

4. Justify your choice
I picked him because his style matches what I want to do in my project. I also want to capture teen life in a real way, not posed. His techniques, like soft lighting and emotion-focused shots, help inspire how I will shoot my photos.

5. Images

The title of this project is Candid Moment of Teen Life.
The societal issue I want to explore with my photographs is how teens feel in daily life but don’t always show it.
I want my audience to feel like they see the real side of us, not just the outside happy stuff.
I will get inspiration and ideas by looking at photos that show real emotions or natural moments.

This collection highlights the emotional range of teenagers in every day, from quiet reflection to stress, boredom, and subtle joy. It represents my focus on showing real student life and identity through natural gestures and facial expressions, connecting to the societal idea that teen life isn’t always about being cheerful or perfect.

I want to explore how teenagers feel in daily school life, like how sometimes we’re tired, stressed, or just zoning out. Not every moment is happy or exciting, and I think that’s fine to show and express. I feel like people expect teens to always be active or cheerful, but actually, we have a lot going on inside that doesn’t always show on the outside. My photos try to capture that real, quiet side of teenage life.

https://www.canva.com/design/DAGiCLkZ39A/FR785ftmT2SnuDM6sakqEQ/edit

A portrait isn’t just a photo of someone, it’s more about capturing their feeling, identity, and presence. It’s not just about how a person looks, but also about the story behind them. Some portrait focus on a person’s face, while other ones use body language, shadows or even objects to express meaning. A portrait is suppose to show a connection between the subject and the viewer. It can be by eye contact, but also gestures, background, or even lighting can be powerful. For example, Steve McCurry’s Afghan Girl is one of the most famous portrait because the girl’s green eyes really make you feel something. Another example is Yousuf Karsh’s Winston Churchill photo, where he looks strong and serious just because of the way light and shadow is used.
Selfies can be portrait, but they are not always deep or well thought out. A real portrait should have more planing behind it, like what kind of lighting or composition is used. Some selfies may be strong because they show emotion, but most of them is just about looking good in a picture instead of really telling a story. A powerful portrait makes the viewer feel something and reveals a person’s character. A good portrait usually have strong connection, revealing character. And emotional impact as well. A portrait can be abstract but if it loses too much connection with the person, then it’s not really a portrait anymore. If a image is blurred or ripped but still shows something about the subject, it can be a portrait. But if its just completely unrecognizable, it becomes more of an artistic experiment rather than a portrait.

Steve McCurry’s Afghan Girl

Yousuf Karsh’s Winston Churchill photo