Exploration - Photo Essay

My (New) Family Room

Lake Ruth

God Attends Estill

University Drive

Lightning Strikes

    My photo essay is a thematic essay about beauty in my new home. I moved into my first apartment at the beginning of this semester, and I miss home a lot. I’ve been taking pictures whenever I see something beautiful to remind myself there is beauty everywhere. 

    The first picture is a photo of my living room in my apartment. I decorated the walls with lots of photos of myself, my roommate, and my boyfriend. I also used my roommate’s artwork. I hung a Moroccan lamp in the corner, plants in the other corner, and made sure to include a giant book collection. 

    The second photo is of Lake Ruth. I lived in a dorm room in Corbin Hall last year and ate by Lake Ruth every day. My boyfriend and I sat down on a bench overlooking the lake underneath a big tree. Now, I pass Lake Ruth as I walk to my car after class. I’ve started to take pictures of it to mark the changing of the seasons. In the picture, the sun glared into my camera lens and the changing colors of the trees are visible. 

    The third photo is of the steam rising up outside of Browne Hall on campus early in the morning. The sunlight streaming through the leaves and onto the smoke created a cool effect. I took this photo when walking into my Estill workshop. Estill is a practice we use in choir. I went to retreat in Browne last year. To me, this photo represents the difference in my life throughout the span of a year while doing the same activity. 

    The fourth photo was taken out of the windshield of my car while I was parked at the BEU. I was finally having a good day after a long string of bad ones. Looking back at this photo, I don’t remember why I thought the view was particularly stunning. I don’t remember sitting in the car or pulling my phone out. I do remember the feeling I had while taking it, though. That’s why this photo is in my photo essay. 

    The fifth photo is of a lightning strike outside my apartment window. I love sitting outside on my balcony watching the storms pass. One night, we had a big storm with lots of lightning. I grabbed a chai tea latte, a slice of my homemade pumpkin bread, and a big, fluffy blanket and sat outside to watch it. I pulled my phone out and took picture after picture until I was sure I got at least a few good ones. 

    These photos seemingly have nothing in common. A living room, a lake, a stream of sunlight, a road, and a strike of lightning. The context in which I took those photos is what ties them together. I took each picture when I was feeling lonely. When I was missing my mom, dad, brother, and dog. I took each picture to remind myself that there were still things I loved about my life even though I was no longer in St. Charles.