This project was made possible thanks to dozens of people willing to express themselves and be vulnerable in front of my camera and me. To those people, I say thank you.
When I started this project in 2018, it began as a happy accident. I was taking photos of my girlfriend and asked her to make a few faces for me, one of which was her yelling at the camera; another happened to catch her genuinely laughing. I loved how they showed her personality so well and began asking people who I took portraits of to make a few faces for me, hoping to catch their true smile or laugh.
I love these images and how much personality is in each one. Often, I struggled to get the proper lighting, sizing, and overall tone consistent, which took more effort as a result to capture the same consistent look and feeling. I spent a long time trying to figure out where and how to capture what I wanted. After experimenting with several options, I settled the setup I used for the project: a big, bright window, two black v-flat boards, and an apple box. I spent the next few months capturing as many personalities and people as I could with a fresh excitement for the style and look.
I hope you enjoy the project, which allowed so many people to be themselves, let go of insecurities, be a little goofy, and show their personality.
This is…
The CHARACTER of YOU.
