Underneath several BART stations in the east bay there are hidden tunnels which I discovered out of pure luck. Each inch of these vast tunnels are covered in layers upon layers of graffiti art, glow in the dark paintings, ruminesent writings and confessions, and breathtaking murals, all completely hidden from view. After stumbling around in complete darkness for almost a mile because my flashlight died, I emerged in this chamber where light flowed in through a grate and took this picture on my iphone.

It was a cool autumn day as I walked toward the park and saw children playing on the monkey bars and was reminded of the nostalgic past of my carefree childhood. I peered through the monkey bars which invoked memories of when I was fearless and bracing myself to swing through the challenges of life. I used a 52 mm opening and a focal lens point of 2.4 to capture the clear defining front of the monkey bar and the blur of the framing monkey bars. Peering through the triangular window is like a glimpse of one's long forgotten childhood nostalgia. I spontaneously took this photo when I was reminded of my childhood days of hanging and trying to swing on the challenging monkey bars. I strive to add organic and playful features by capturing the photographic perspective and texture from the minutiae details of the aged metal monkey bars. My photograph depicts the artist looking within an everyday object and finding greater value of memories. The monkey bar is not a simple object but a nostalgic reminder of one’s childhood, which gives a creative and playful feeling when looking within the triangular opening. The azure and subtle orange represents the journey to the finish line. Your point of view is narrowed from the azure blue to the subtle orange. The eyes will be drawn to the clear monkey bars in the center of the image, but also see the blurry effect of the frame of the monkey bar.

While immersed in a project related to a specific element, I found myself pondering how light perceives itself in darkness. Seeking answers, I followed the illuminated path, which not only facilitated my exploration but also led me to a dimly lit back alley. There, I stood gazing at the sole light source, a window that radiated brightness in the midst of darkness.

The soft rumble of a waterfall is a chorus to my ears and makes me feel at peace. In this shot, I aimed to capture the essence of that feeling by depicting a secluded waterfall in the Mount Tamalpais area. This was done through taking a long exposure photograph to make the waterfall have a silk-like texture. To emphasize the hidden nature of the waterfall, I brightened the head-shaped rock in front of it and boosted saturation to highlight the greenery and tranquility of the scene. Waterfalls also represent resilience— even after experiencing a pitfall, water always recovers and continues on its journey. My personal experience resembles the resilience of water. This persistence of water reminds me of my own personal struggles and challenges I have encountered during my creative and academic experience. I occasionally have such pitfalls, such as the occasional bad grade or maybe losing my photo files. However, when I slow things down and stay calm, like when a waterfall empties into a plunge pool, I slowly recollect myself and move on. This photo also speaks to me about taking care of yourself — when things get too rough, slow down, take a breather, and once you’re ready, carry on.

My photo of these Pelicans to me, at least, represents life soaring by and nostalgia. The slight motion blur on the pelicans wings symbolizes how I can catch a glimpse of beautiful moments, but am never able to fully realize it until later when I think back on it in my head. Finally, the black and white of this photo shows how simplistic anything can be while still evoking so much emotion, in this case, a sense of nostalgia. I took this photo at the bolinas lagoon in early october, a hotspot for pelicans feeding and migrating. I knew that October was the start of the migration season for pelicans so I decided to try and take pictures of them. Getting up early in the morning, I sat outside in the whipping wind and cold for hours, hoping to get the best shot I could. When I left after 6 hours, I travelled back home to edit the pictures I had taken. When I saw this one, it immediately caught my eye. I loved the composition of the focused beak pointing to the other pelicans flying. So, I decided that this photo should be black and white, representing the simplicity of the photo.

In most photographs, models either gaze sadly and seductively to the side, or stare directly at the camera, smiling broadly. Both look fake. I wanted to create an honest self portrait, without fake smiles or false gestures. Setting out to work on this assignment, I found myself in my backyard, a place that I am at peace and content. I set up my tripod and camera and sat under my favorite Japanese maple tree. I took many photos, but my favorite was one where I stared directly at the camera, wholly and truly myself. I thought the image captured a part of me, but a little plain. I combined it with another shot: myself in profile, turned to look directly at the camera once more. I played around with the opacity, the hue, and saturation of both images. The result was me in my backyard, staring directly at the camera, looking out from myself, also looking straight at the camera. The background was maroon—a mix of red, representing the chaos of the outside world, and purple, giving it a touch of mystery. I was green, a color I associate with nature and peace—fitting since my name is Sirine, meaning peace. As a finishing touch, I added Arabic text to the background, surrounding myself with my North African culture. I liked the frankness of the image—I was staring at the world as myself, not pretending to be anyone else—and the meaning attatched to it.

At a local farmers market, a stand was selling jars of honey. All around that booth had dozens of honey bees trying to get into the jars of honey, which I saw as an opportunity to document.

When I heard of this competition, I was thinking of a place to take it, and my apartment building elevator was the first thing that came to mind. How could something as simple as an elevator make a thoughtful photo? I recalled memories of rainbows painting the walls. My friend was coming over that day so we could take some pictures. I invited my other friend as well, who was in a business coat that looked like an old lady had previously owned it. I decided then that she would be my model for this photo. She's a silly girl who can't take anything seriously, so to get her to be still for a moment was a challenge. I was able to capture her now calm outside, but her mind was probably still buzzing with jokes.

My photo is from the a hike in Bhutan. The cold day with the light snow made the hike even harder but when i finally saw the Tigers Den.

In the heartwarming photograph, a high school band takes a stroll down Main Street, their vibrant energy and passion for music palpable. Bathed in the golden glow of the noon light, the band members, dressed in crisp uniforms, stand tall with instruments in hand. Their faces reflect a blend of determination and excitement, ready to unleash their musical prowess. The brass instruments gleam in the light playing for all to hear and enjoy.

This pocket watch was a gift from my mom. While pocket watches are typically an antiquity associated with something like the 16th-century, I still find them really beautiful. The multiple watches and ghost-like effect were created using a slow shutter speed and a singular watch. The watches are positioned in various locations, yet each watch is connected to the unopened watch through the chain. To me, this reminds of the timelessness of this gift throughout time and how I will continue to cherish it.

On my way to school i saw a beautiful fountain shining in the sunny morning light. i had my camera and i only had one decisive moment to take this shot. this is the first ever photo i have taken that i am proud to call my own. it is called the fountain of youth because it represents the juxaspostion Represented by the dark and the light just like the pain and beauty in the world.

I wanted to create this nice purple lit photo that included the movement of water off of him so after trial and error I landed on using a color changing bulb. I also found that my subject rubbing his eyes in accident made the photo come out really well and added a nice feature to the photo more than what I can think the water could have accomplished. I then put my camera with a tripod standing up in the bathroom sink and faced it toward the shower and took the photo.

You cannot see yourself except for a reflection. To see another's reflection, is to see how they see themselves.

While walking in an outdoor mall, the noise of a piano grabbed my attention. The sound of the instrument was loud and empowering. The pianist moved his hands over the keys gracefully and confidently. Despite the grandiose music, a small audience was around the pianist. I thought he appeared lonely against the powerful sound of the music that surrounded him. I positioned my camera towards the pianist’s backside to capture the strong light that struck him and the piano. I wanted to capture the silhouette of the pianist and the piano while also ensuring that both were contrasted against the background through a strong highlight. The background that lies behind the pianist is desolate of a substantial listening crowd. I wanted to capture a lonely tone as the photo was being edited. The blues in the shadows and a slight orange color in the highlights were amplified to create a distinction between the darks and lights of the image. As the light hit the ground, I wanted to distinguish between the shadows casted by the pianist and the piano with the strong highlights made on the ground to dramatize his playing. The bright light that shines above the pianist is noticeable yet also discreet as its streak of light moves towards the pianist drawing him attention. A light that recognizes the playing of the pianist and provides him a deserved spotlight. The pianist’s back is hunched as he produces a powerful sound that masks him against the mundane, insubstantial audience.

This piece is about changing yourself in order to appear younger and therefore more beautiful. I did the model's makeup very dramatically in order to display the lengths someone would go to change their appearance, even if it meant losing themself. I had the model lay in a pool of water in order to show how desperate they are for the beauty that this fountain could supposedly give them, and how, even though they have already changed themself to meet their image of beauty, they still feel as if they are not enough. They are looking away from the pool as to not see their own reflection, because they know that no matter what they see, it will not be good enough.

When I was looking through my pictures, this photo it instantly stood out to me. I took this photo for an assignment about family and culture in black and white. I always felt like black and white had to have a melancholy feel to it until I took this picture. There was a big sense of emotion and chaos created by the movement and expression and the cat running away.

From the time I was little I loved drawing and taking photos on my mother’s phone. Once I got into high school, I had explored both sides of these different art styles, but it was not until I got into a graphic design class freshman year that I started to merge the two arts together. I began experimenting with self portraiture and drawing over my pictures in photoshop. This made me slowly develop my own personal style that I continue to pursue and change. I enjoy the process of changing the images with my drawings and seeing how the mood of the piece changes depending on the images around them. All of this led to this piece that I made during a time when death was really on my mind. This piece in some ways is my acceptance of death and how it can change my views on the world. In this image I confront death and my own relationship with it.

Shot on DJI Air 2s. I shot these photographs in East Palo Alto right next to Dumbarton Bridge. I believe that these photos show the hidden beauty of the world if one is willing to see it from a different perspective.

I wanted to capture a surreal atmosphere through experimenting with light and focus. The framing of the photograph was set up through an open doorframe to capture a candid and calm behind-the-scenes shot. Using a slow shutter speed and dim lighting, I achieved a ghosting effect through having the subjects move out of frame as the camera was taking the photo, making them partially transparent. I made this choice to give the photograph more of an ethereal atmosphere.