On Mute: Fifteen Years In, and a Student Again
I'm a student again! For the first time in about seven years, I'm taking a class: Concept to Creation with Alex Eischeid through Click Photo School. After fifteen years of photographing other people, it has been a stretch in the best way to turn the camera on an idea instead of a client.
This self-portrait is my first piece. It's part of a series called "Is This Thing On?" about saying something that matters to you and watching everyone change the subject.
I call this one "On Mute."
The inspiration
The series was inspired by the song "99 Luftballons." The song was written after the band's guitarist watched balloons drift toward the Berlin Wall and wondered what the soldiers on the other side would make of them. In the song, the balloons set off a catastrophe because everyone overreacts. In my series, the balloons are the warning, and sometimes it feels like nobody is reacting at all.
I've been paying close attention to what's happening in our country, and I keep talking about it. But some days it feels like talking into a dead mic. This series is my way of saying it anyway.
In this frame, I've gone quiet, but I'm still holding on. The ribbon is wrapped tight in my fist. I've stopped saying it out loud, but I haven't let go of it.
How it was made
This week's lesson was color theory and the 60:30:10 rule, so the whole image is built around one color. The navy wall is the 60, the blue sweater is the 30, and the red balloon is the 10, the only warm, loud thing in the frame.
I shot it in my bedroom against a navy wall, with one light and one red balloon. In editing, I softened the balloon so it read matte instead of shiny, thinned the ribbon so it felt more fragile, and pushed the shadows cool while keeping my skin warm, so the red would be the only thing that feels alive.
I spend my days making other people look well rested. For this one, I left my tired eyes and wrinkles right where they are. They're doing most of the storytelling.
What's next
More images in the series are coming. I have my first critique this week, so wish me luck! It feels good to be pushed creatively again. Thank you, Alex!