Advanced and AP Photography students showcased their Sustained Investigation projects during the gallery on Feb. 6.
Students were allowed to pick their topic of choice, focusing on their interests and getting to explore them further. The Tribe Tribune chose to interview 5 photographers to get a further look into their pieces.
Caleb Rocha
Senior Caleb Rocha took a day trip to Los Angeles to document the recent fires in the city for his portfolio. Rochas’s inspiration came from photo instructor Gabby Kudron. In her class, he has learned that photography is one of the most important assets to document history. When Rocha came across a burned flag on a house, he took extra care in making it a great photo. “I took probably around 20 or 30 photos of just the flag trying to get the best angle,” Rocha said. (Photo courtesy of Caleb Rocha)
Angelique De La Cruz
Senior Angelique De La Cruz photographed local Long Beach band Broken Record. The band consists of Lily Graff, Hailey Hall, and Mia Healey (FUHS alum). De La Cruz has been a long time supporter of the band and took these photos for Instagram posts for band promo or a potential album cover. The band gave De La Cruz a Pinterest board of inspiration, wanting to keep the themes cute and girly. Each member of the band has a specific symbol: Star (Healey), Sun (Hall), and Moon (Graff), adding to the brand of the group. De La Cruz described the importance of lighting in a photo and how it enhances the subject. She also stated that her favorite genre is street photography, getting to photograph people doing their thing. (Photo courtesy of Angelique De La Cruz)
Olivia Brazo
Senior Olivia Brazo’s Sustained Investigation project features her friends Lauren Petteneck, Rebecca Balarie, and Brooke Brado running around freely at Craig Regional Park. She wanted the photos to represent girlhood and femininity. Brazo utilized the sunset in the background to create a warm and welcoming tone in her pictures. Using Adobe Lightroom, she enhanced the yellows and greens, and lowered the exposure. Brazo used Greta Gerwig’s film Little Women (2019) as inspiration for her photos. (Photo courtesy of Olivia Brazo)
Jasmine Gomez Suastegui
Senior Jasmine Gomez Suastegui edited older photos she took of the sky into the eyes of the skeleton prop. Suaste used iPixel and Adobe Lightroom to brighten the reds in the photo. The butterfly photo was taken in Los Angeles by Suastegi, with a stock photo of a butterfly edited onto it. Suastegui used Adobe Lightroom to create the distorted green and blue sky. Suastegui took the eye image from a magazine, then overlaid it on a photo she took of a forest. Using Adobe Lightroom, she edited the humans walking along the lash line of the eye. Suastegui took the eye image from a magazine, then overlaid it on a photo she took of a forest. Using Adobe Lightroom, she edited the humans walking along the lash line of the eye. (Photos courtesy of Jasmine Gomez Suastegui)
Lola Gutierrez
Junior Lola Gutierrez’ Sustained Investigation features her little sister Harper as the subject. Gutierrez said she wanted to capture emotion through different types of weather and colors. She used different spots around her house for her setting. The weather in each photo conveys a range of emotions: the darker colors give a sad presence in the photograph while bright sunny days give a happy and joyful feeling. Lola used Pixlr to enhance the colors in the photos to further convey their emotion. (Photo courtesy of Lola Gutierrez)
Leah Garcia
Senior Leah Garcia wanted to show the movement and reflection of water through her photography. Garcia used a spray bottle and some plastic to get the effect of the first two photos, while the third photo was created by pouring water onto a leaf. Garcia focused more on natural light instead of a more staged illumination. Garcia also used the help of photoshop to enhance the light of her photos. (Photo courtesy of Leah Garcia)
