This past August, I shot photos for Comunidad, a non-profit that brings visibility to Latinos of Vashon Island, WA and further, led by their youth and community.
They were trying out a new Summer internship program for their youth and it was my job to catch moments for their keeping. It lasted about a month and ended with a Summer market of crafts their youth had made, and local Latino merchants.
I was hired as an event photographer, these events were not the ones I was used to. Usually, I’m wading through hot crowds, avoiding flying fists, crowd surfers, and trying to get through a mosh pit without my camera slipping from my hands.
This was a lot more…intimate. I was half expecting the youth to be more rowdy? Rambunctious? I realized I had to recalibrate my senses to something more calm, I’m used to moments exploding at me. Shooting youth that were shy, self-aware, and realized that they weren’t “camera ready” had it’s challenges.
I remember what it’s like to be a teenager, hair in my face, moody, and just wanting to hangout with my friends. I never had a photographer point his camera at me then though. My acne covered face would been behind hidden behind a hoody, afraid of the consequences of a photo being caught forever, not knowing where, or who is going to see it! Sheesh!
I quickly learned that standing far away with a long lens helped them feel, a bit at ease (maybe?). My 85mm f1.8 was my choice lens for this job. It’s sharp lens, nice separation, smooth bokeh made everything look so nice. I also had a 24-105 f4, which was my second go to.
The first part of the program was outside. I realized that clouds would come and go quickly, and the light would change frequently. The dynamic range was challenging at times. Also choosing the correct white balance was also a time consuming task in post-processing. Ultimately I chose high-key photos, and adjusted to a warm white balance to emphasize the Summer feel and make skin-tones pop.
I wasn’t sure how to act on this job, should I interact with the youth and get them to pose, or stay back to catch the organic action? I ended up keeping my distance. I asked them to pose once and it looked just like that…posed. Sometimes I forget I’m in my mid-thirties and I am seen as “old” (boo).
With age comes wisdom, I was on the sidelines and noticed some of the leaders there didn’t really have a sense of artistic design (that sounds so snobby, ick!). I chimed in and offered some advice, they were surprisingly receptive and decided to go with it.
Over the month, I ended up becoming apart of their meeting sessions, listening and chiming in at times. At Comunidad, they really do think of their community, youth, and are willing to take risks if they feel it’s worth it. I felt their values and really saw the results.
I’m surprised (but also not) at how quickly the youth learned. There was a fashion class, the fashion teacher showed them a technique once, helped them a little bit, and they were off, cutting fabric, sewing, and making choices that made sense for their clothes.
In another class offered, DJing, everyone ended up spinning something good and they picked it up so quickly. It went over my head, I’ll tell ya what! Maybe I have forgotten what it’s like to be a teenager!
Nonetheless, I left feeling like I had contributed to a special moment in time.
My final photo job was their Market event, which they called, “Mercado”. The day before I had edited a backdrop video for them featuring some stock footage and still photos, which were animated for the video. There was a HUGE screen which it was featured on!
“WOW! I didn’t know it was going to be used for that” I said.
That video was made in 6 hours, under a lot of pressure, I’m kind of glad I didn’t know what it was going to be used for, I might of freaked out under that pressure. I was proud to see my photography and video/editing skills being used for something bigger than me.
How far I’ve come in the past 4 years.
Because of school, I have already shot for an outdoor market haha, so I had a good idea of how to approach this event shoot. I enjoyed seeing all the people having fun, laughing, and hearing expression of excitement as parents, or loved ones, would see their children on the big screen. Seeing the youth sell products they made in class, or in their spare time, putting their skills to use made me see the impact Comunidad had on their community on Vashon Island. People came up to the stage and thanked them for giving them the chance to start a business, which is now thriving.
How cool is that?! Pretty cool to me.
As with most photography jobs, I left with a smile on my face, feeling grateful for the fact that I would not have gone here without photography. Gotten to know some really resourceful, and kind people.
The Venture Continues!
-James