Looking Back: My Best Images From Fall 2016

Holy moly has the semester gone by fast! Twenty concerts, hundreds of Diamondback assignments, and countless hours looking through the viewfinder of my camera. It's been super busy, and has also been extremely helpful in developing my photography and pushing me forward. Here is a look at the top 12 images I have taken throughout the semester! 

I'll start off this list with this photo from my most recent trip to New York. After getting lunch with a friend from Colorado, he asked if I wanted to see one of the best views in the city. You don't have to twist my arm much, especially as we roll into the golden hour, to get me to a good vantage point. I love this photo for a lot of reasons. The contrast between the very natural trees, and the very unnatural buildings is a good starting point, but then, you notice that the structure of the trees starts to mimic the structure of the buildings. You have nice balance between the red/green in the foreground and the blue/yellow colors in the background. You can also, when blown up, look all the way down 5th Ave., which is special in its own right.

I chose this image because while being a good image, it also sparked my interest in the Senior Dog Sanctuary of Maryland, which is what my final project focuses on. This image has very strong leading lines, all pointing in towards the dog in the center. These lines are eccentuated by following the path of these three girls' eyes, with a final focus point of the eyes of the dog, who is staring straight into the lens. 

Taken in the alley behind D.C.'s 9:30 Club, I was walking around the city when I spotted this man texting next to his bike. I ended up taking about 3 or 4 strafing runs down this alley before building up the courage to take his picture. I like the diagonal lower third being grey against the larger red brick. I enjoy the repetition in the bricks, which are complimented by the rectangular shapes in the two door frames visible. I also like the body language this guy is expressing, and I still haven't figured out how he feels, but I connect with it. 

I don't think I've ever taken a more technically sound image. Everything that needs to be in focus is in focus. Everything is symmetrical throughout the frame, and the only thing that sets it off balance is the "Exit ->" sign at the top. I'm so glad to have come away from the election with this picture, because I was having such a hard time getting proper access into voting areas to get photos.

This was my second time shooting Porter Robinson and Madeon's joint-Shelter tour at Echostage in a week, and after befriending Ryan Sciaino (a.k.a Ghostdad) the visual wiz behind the scenes, I was able to shoot the whole show from the soundboard. It lead to some great shots, but slow memory cards kept me from the ones I really wanted. Luckily, I hit the jackpot with this shot. So many people on either side (in front of the performers)were putting their arms up, getting in the way of the visuals, but this person just happened to be right in the center. It gave me a nice point of entry through her, and then the lights played along nicely. I also caught a wonderful moment of Porter (right) with his arm in the air.

One of the earlier photos from the semester, I took this picture of the McKeldin Mall 9/11 memorial as an afterthought, you know? Something the Diamondback might have wanted to use here or there. It ended up being one of my strongest campus photos, and really represents the campus throughout this semester. Tons of constructions, and tons of discussion about the American system (represented by the flags.) The composition of this photo was hard to get right, as I wanted everything to be level, and everything to be visible, but I couldn't exactly get the excavator to fit. However everything has its space, split evenly across the horizon between flag/foreground and the library.

This picture of Renita Smith is one of the best expressions of emotion I've ever caught. She was being honored by College Park Mayor Patrick Wojahn for saving 20 kids from a burning school bus. She was so overwhelmed receiving this honor, and was then caught off guard by students from the bus and their parent's. City Council meetings are really boring to shoot, but sometimes going to the meetings are totally worth it.

We had just gotten back from the Montreal Museum of Fine Arts and my friends Jill, Josh and I were speechless. The work of Robert Mapplethorpe had engulfed our vision for the past few hours, and it had all affected us deeply. We are all photographers in one sense or another, and when we got back Josh and I immediately picked up our cameras to just somehow connect to the art we had just viewed. Jill, however, sat on the windowsill for a bit, pensive and quiet. She had this wild curly hair, and I wanted to capture that silhouette against the Montreal skyline. I like this picture for the irregular framing that is present through the curtains. I wish the water bottle behind her wasn't there, but it was such a good moment (and captured on film, no less!) I had to take it.