The Sleeper Creeper

"The amount of sleep required by the 

average person is five minutes more." 

-Wilson Mizener

It is no mystery that students don't get enough sleep––especially in college. With the pressures of school, work, and of course a social life (if there is even time for that), many students struggle to find the time to sleep. Numerous surveys and scientific experiments have tried to measure that "perfect" amount of rest; while actual needs vary from person to person, most agree that college students need between 7 and 9 hours of sleep each night. Unfortunately,  for some, sleep beyond just a few hours is only a fleeting luxury. So, students have found ways to get creative with their sleep schedules––catching a few minutes here and a few minutes there––all around campus. 

This being my fourth year at BYU, I have grown accustomed to seeing students sprawled out in weird angles and unusual places on campus. Often I run into the typical "snoozer" dozing in a seat in the library, or "studying" through osmosis on their textbooks. However, there is also the occasional all-out sleeper (my personal favorite), who apparently has no qualms about public napping and is perfectly comfortable laying out on the floor in a corner, under a table, or even in the hallway. These BYU Sleepers (as I like to call them), range from the pathetic to comical, with everything in between. Until about a week ago, I had never thought too much about these Sleepers. They were just another (endearing?) part of BYU life. But then, while brainstorming ideas for a class photo assignment, I stumbled upon an idea––a bold and intimidating idea. What if, I thought, someone were to capture these sleepers on camera? It was certainly an awkward endeavor. Taking pictures of strangers can already be an uncomfortable task. But sneaking secret pictures of strangers sleeping (usually with multiple witnesses looking on in creeped out judgement) seemed quite daunting to me. I love to photograph, but I try to avoid awkward paparazzi situations like this one. However, my project was due in three days and I had no other leads to follow. Thus, the Sleeper Creeper was born. For the next three days I wandered around campus searching for sleepers. Every time I found one, I paused and took out my phone, pretending to be preoccupied, but really scoping out the frame of my imminent composition. Then, once I had figured out how I wanted the picture to look, I slowly and admittedly sketchily, pulled out my camera and raised it deliberately to my eye. Snap. Snap....Snaaaap. One, two, three frames later, I slowly lower my camera, slide it back into my pocket and walk away.

I tried to avoid eye contact with the people around me (the conscious ones, that is), but a few times I caught the questioning looks of my audience. One girl gave me a very accusing glare as she watched me snap pictures of a sleeper next to her. She asked me if I even knew the unsuspecting sleeper, to which I replied sheepishly, "Um...no...its for a school project..." Apparently she didn't hear me or she didn't understand because she repeated the question twice and did not seem pleased with my answer. I promptly walked away once my work was done, feeling awkward and more than a little stalkerish. However, in spite of all the weird, funny, knowing, supportive and even offended looks I received, the result was a large sampling of BYU Sleeper life on campus. So, despite my original fears and inhibitions with this project, I eventually came to embrace the Sleeper Creeper within and have even continued to capture these innocent by-sleepers after my official school project was completed.

So, in the end...was it doable? Yes. 

Was it creepy? Definitely. 

Was it worth it? See for yourself... 

 

 

 

 

 

Musings on a Passion

I have enjoyed photography ever since I went on a trip to France in high school. I think it was the novelty and beauty of this foreign country that compelled me and inspired me to take photographs, not just to document my trip, but to capture it in an artistic light that showed not only where I went, but how I saw it. Since that fateful journey I have returned to Europe three more times. Four trips and thousands of pictures later, I have embraced my love for photography as more than just a fun thing to do on vacation. I love it for the art, the vision, the exploration of myself and the world around me. I have always wished I was "artistic" but never pursued the arts in any focused sort of way. I love creating things, either through drawing, painting, ceramics, or other crafts, but I haven't taken the time to develop any one of these talents beyond my rudimentary natural ability. Photography was different though. Up until a few months ago, I had never had any formal instruction in photography as an art medium. I just picked up my camera and shot. I think the appeal of photography for me is the ability to see and create a composition from the elements in front of me. With drawing or painting, you have to 1) envision a picture from scratch, and 2) have the ability to recreate that image on paper. But with photography, I can see the composition, or at least the makings of one, and all I have to do is adjust my camera, my point of view, and occasionally the environment, and I can capture it with a click. Now, maybe I am oversimplifying the process, but as a general medium I feel I can understand it so much better than other art forms.

That being said, my life this year has been one of transformations and adventures. I came into this new school-year with a fresh start (sort of). New apartment. New roommates. New ward. New club responsibilities. New classes. With all this newness I made a goal to get involved and try new things that I had always been too busy for or, as was so often the case, too scared to attempt. Thus followed my semester in an introduction photography class.

At first I was intimidated by the all the artsy photo gurus (also known as my classmates) the first couple of weeks. However, I soon realized that I was equal to, if not better than, most of the people in the class and began to gain more confidence in my ability and potential as a photographer. I realized that you don't have to have the title of art student to be a student of art. Maybe my last art class was in 8th grade. So what? Either way we were all in the same intro level photography course. Learning how to use a new camera (I borrowed a Nikon D90 from a friend) and a new editing program (Adobe Lightroom 3) was challenging at first, but soon felt like the most natural thing in the world. The camera became an extension of my body as I continued to experiment and shoot with it. And Lightroom tweaked my photos to final product perfection. Photography class quickly became my favorite hours of the week. I began to daydream about what my life would have been like as an art major, wandering around the maze of the HFAC (art building) camera in hand, skinny jeans and designer faux glasses donned. Art nerd bliss. But alas, I had discovered this passion too late, and was doomed to complete my college career not as a photographer but as a European studies major. Good thing I love Europe as much as I love photography. But I digress...

I think the highlight of my semester though was when my teacher told me after one my assignments that I had proven myself to be a photographer. I wasn't just a student. I wasn't just a wannabe. I was a photographer. I had a "voice" in my shots. I had a vision. And I had the talent. I had never wanted to say it out loud before, because I felt like I did not have enough experience or fancy equipment to make such an audacious claim. Especially being in a place like Provo, UT where everyone and their dog claims to be a photographer, I did not want to label myself as another wannabe girl taking engagements of her friends in Provo Canyon. So, when my teacher told me that I not only could be, but in fact was, a photographer, I felt an inexpressible validation of my work and my passion. It is a gift in life to find something you love. It is an even greater gift to have a talent for that thing. I am not saying that I am a great photographer. Or that photography will ever be more than a hobby for me. But I am saying that I have found something that I love, and can do well.

And if that doesn't count for something, I'm not sure what does.

B&W Portrait Expressions: Scars

A collection of my portrait work. These are part of the selection I chose from for my final project in photography this semester.  I decided to do black and white portraiture on the theme of scars (physical and emotional), but I have included a couple of the color versions that I liked before the BW conversion. I have also included my final picks that I used in my class presentation. I decided to do high key photos for the physical scars and low key photos for the emotional scars to emphasize the difference in tone and nature. I used a Nikon D90 (thank you to Jason for lending it to me!) on all except the picture of Christine, which I had to take using my Sony Powershot. Luckily, I don't think there is much visible difference in quality. 

In my final presentation I did include a short write-up of each person's story behind their scars. However, to maintain privacy due to the personal nature of the project, I have not included those stories here. To give you an idea of the vision behind the images though, the physical scars ranged from minor sports accidents to near-death experiences and the emotional scars ranged from insecurities to divorce and depression.

All of the high key photos were lit using natural daylight through the window except for Christine, who I shot at midnight the night before my project was due because I was dissatisfied with another picture I had planned on using. I shot her in the kitchen against the white fridge and used my desk lamp to create the sharp contrasts. The others were shot around 3 or 4 pm when the light was perfect in my kitchen.

The low key photos were more involved in terms of setting up and lighting. Most were shot against a dark background (I hung a blue or brown blanket for the backdrop) and lit with either my desk lamp or laptop light. The desk lamp tended to be too bright, so I muted it with a scarf draped over the top; and when that didn't work, I used my laptop's screen light, which provided surprisingly good light.

My self-portraits were difficult because I did them in the middle of the night (I was bored and couldn't stop thinking about my project) so I didn't have anyone to help me. So I set up my tri-pod, draped a dark blanket behind me over the bed and went through a process of trial and error to find the right lighting, focus and pose. I used my teddy bear (Mr. Ruggles) to try and focus by holding him in the general space that I would be sitting in in front of the camera and focus the lens with my other hand. Then I had to gauge roughly where I had held him and tried to sit in the same spot so my face would be in focus. Trying to find the right combination of focus, light and pose/expression was not easy. However, I did manage to produce two pictures that I am proud of. Although the photo I submitted in my final portfolio is slightly out of focus, I think it adds to the tone/message of the picture, so I am pleased with the result. Although it is a very dark photo (thematically), I am really proud that I could create an image of myself that is almost unrecognizable––even to my own mother! I had to stretch myself to get this product and I think the hard work paid off (on this particular shot, as well as the project as a whole).

I hope you enjoy.

A Sample of My Work

 

My FINAL Picks in the final order:

Scars take many forms. 

Some are physical. Some are emotional. 

All leave their mark, whether they are visible or not.

 
{Lutz}

{Christine}

 
 {Jeff}

 

{Lauren}

{Ian} 

{Dayna}

{Syrena}


{Shayla}

{Self-Portrait}

{Brenda}

Let me know if you ever want a portrait done. I'm a little bit obsessed right now. 

And let me know what you think!

xoxo

Britt

Face to Face

These photos were part of my class portrait assignment. We were asked to take portraits of a stranger, a friend, and a self-portrait of ourselves being something/someone we're not. Although I am happy with how these frames turned out, my goal next time is to work harder to push the envelope and find more compelling compositions. This will require finding/capturing the unexpected and taking more risks––something that isn't my strong point.

Next assignment? Black and White portraits.

Enjoy.