“It's about a girl who is on the cusp of becoming someone..
A girl who may not know what she wants right now,
and she may not know who she is right now,
but who deserves the chance to find out.” ― Jodi Picoult
It's surprising to think that the last time I shot Joanne's portraits, it was for her high school graduation. Now I let that sink in a for a few minutes while I tryto come up with something to write. High school. The year was 2012. Sophia was still inside her mommy's tummy. A Sight of Love was still in it's infancy. Obama was still the President of the good ol' USA.
Then Flash forward 5 years later. Sophia is now talking back at us. A Sight of Love is still here. And Trump is the ... for a lack of a better term... the President of the USA. And Joanne is graduating fom college. I guess alot has changed since then. I remember when the first time we photographed her for her portraits back in 2012, she was really timid and cautious. Understandably so, since we are strangers holding huge cameras in front of her face. Although she eased up a bit afterwards, it felt like there was still a shell around her that she couldn't break out of. That, or she pick and chooses who she lets inside that protective shell.
Then we saw her again for Coco and John's wedding. Man, it was like seeing two different people. She was more fun, more outgoing and free-spirited. I literally didn't recognize her since she was the one who came up to me and said hello. And throughout the wedding day, she maintained that friendly, outgoing personality of hers. Big change indeed. And even for this photoshoot I am happy that she carried that unabashed fearlessness about her. And her college graduation portraits speak for themselves. College graduation. Now let that sink in for a bit.
