ORTEGA
PHOTOGRAPHY

I have always been into art, but it wasn’t until I was in my senior year of high school that I was introduced into photography as an art form. The class consisted of audio, video, graphic design, and photography. When I first started taking photos I didn't really have any idea why and what I was taking. I found that through the camera I had some sense of control or the illusion of control. With the camera, I was forced to slow down and take in things that I wouldn’t have normally noticed because I was moving too fast. I liked the sturdiness of buildings in the repetition of lines. I loved the serenity of Nature, and the feeling like I could stop time for just a moment. I found it meditative to go and shoot the world from my point of view.
I love to take pictures of architectural landscapes, glass and metal. Sometimes for me nonliving objects or subjects can have more life then people, sometimes the history of a building can be very intriguing.
I just started taking pictures with toy cameras; I enjoy the different “looks” you can get from the different cameras. I found that the happy accidents with toy camera photography can be amazing. Even if you meter correctly and have a good composition you might not know what you will get in the final product.
When I shoot fine art photographs I usually use film or slide film. I like how it slows my shooting down and I’m more careful about what I shoot. I love the darkroom and how it is meditative for me to watch the prints come alive within the chemicals. Photography is not just the final image for me; it is the journey of the shot that I enjoy.