Sophie Borazanian

Gezina

2012-01-12T16:57:00.001-08:00

Garden Party

2012-01-12T16:48:00.000-08:00

Rosie

2012-01-10T21:07:00.000-08:00

Oyster grill on the Mississippi

2012-01-10T16:10:00.000-08:00

The feeling from my last visit to Cleveland

2011-12-07T09:00:00.000-08:00

Snap shots in passing from 2010

2011-11-26T11:28:00.000-08:00

I found an old memory card that was stock full of pictures from over a year ago. I have really just gotten around to taking a good look at the photos on them and it is like discovering a time capsule of memories. It is fun to look through them for the delight of seeing old friend's faces and nostalgic scenes but also for the sake of examining how I used to shoot.

In the past year I have consciously chosen to change the way I take pictures and be more purposeful every time I click the shutter. The shift came when I bought a new camera and decided that if I was going to spend that much money on a camera that held so much potential I better step up to the plate so to speak. I was tired of seeing interesting people but being too timid to really approach them and only coming away with only the back of someone's head. Either that or a reflection or a crack in the ground or a shadow or something out of focus. I was tired of taking the easy shots that didn't require much energy and wouldn't necessarily stand on their own.

Saying all that there is something to this batch of photos that is really freeing. Photography is made up of snippets of life and it is fun to treat taking pictures as such. A snap shot of something in passing can have as much feeling as a thought out portrait. I suppose this is a long winded way of saying here is to playing while creating.

NOLA Summer 18

2011-11-26T11:07:00.000-08:00

Summer NOLA 17

2011-11-19T13:04:00.000-08:00

Summer NOLA 16

2011-11-15T17:25:00.001-08:00

Summer NOLA 15

2011-11-15T17:23:00.001-08:00

Summer NOLA 14

2011-11-15T17:15:00.000-08:00

Portraits of my New Orleans Grandma

2011-11-13T22:28:00.000-08:00

Summer NoLA 13

2011-11-12T13:04:00.000-08:00

Birthday Celebrations

2011-11-12T12:52:00.000-08:00

Summer NOLA 12

2011-11-11T16:21:00.001-08:00

In repose, Labor Day Florida Retreat

2011-10-25T18:31:00.000-07:00

NOLA Summer 2011 Number 11

2011-10-25T17:39:00.001-07:00

NOLA Summer 2011 Number 10

2011-10-24T17:02:00.000-07:00

Indiana Summer Wedding

2011-10-23T13:30:00.000-07:00

Some pictures from a trip to Indiana for a good friend's wedding. A lot of these are just photographs that I liked and don't actually include the bride or groom or the faces of most of the people I care most for!

Also, a lot of the darker pictures are appearing hyper sharpened and grainy on blogger but are fine when you double click on them. I am not sure if I can do anything about it and it doesn't really matter. Though my pride feels the need for a disclaimer.

A note on creating.

2011-10-23T11:24:00.000-07:00

I have realized how much happiness comes from the inside out and the importance of structuring your life to foster your own self awareness. I think that creating helps you understand who you are and where you stand. I am going to make a point to write more as an exercise of hearing my own voice. I am going to take pictures to remember what I have seen. I am going to draw to understand the intimacies and subtle lines of the life around me. And I will paint simply for the pleasure of focusing on the joy of color.

I think that if I do all of this I will not only have more peace but I will be able to walk away with some sort of recording of what the periods in my life have meant. Perhaps all of these forms of expression could be put together in a way that complements each other and says something substantial.

Florida Sunrise

2011-10-22T14:57:00.000-07:00

NOLA Summer 2011 Number 9

2011-10-19T08:00:00.000-07:00

I have been playing with writing and these words from a journal seemed to match the mood of these pictures.

Shadows run across my mind and
Cats walk a thin line
Strangers are lovers and
Flesh always wins

Oh how these shadows do pass
Dancing, creeping, jiving and hiding
They aren't afraid to holler or make a fuss
They sure know how to have a good time

But damn.
They make me want to sit down and cry.

NOLA Summer 2011 Number 8

2011-10-15T13:07:00.000-07:00

NOLA Summer 2011 Numero 7

2011-10-15T01:42:00.000-07:00

NOLA Summer 2011 Numero 6

2011-10-15T01:21:00.000-07:00

NOLA Summer 2011 Number 5

2011-10-12T11:20:00.000-07:00

NOLA Summer 2011 Number 4

2011-10-12T11:07:00.000-07:00

NOLA Summer 2011 Number 3

2011-10-11T22:34:00.000-07:00

NOLA Summer 2011 Number 2

2011-10-11T22:06:00.000-07:00

NOLA Summer 2011 Number 1

2011-10-11T22:04:00.000-07:00

A start.

2011-10-11T21:08:00.000-07:00

I decided to get away from the Internet for the summer and just shoot while being in a new environment as a way of exploration. I occasionally looked over my photos for maintenance sake but purposefully didn't try to size things up or make anything bigger out of them. I half thought that they might take on some meaning with time and perhaps they will as I continue to shoot here. For now I think I will post a photo or two every day just to get them off my hard drive and to force myself to actually look at what I am producing.

I have realized that it is great to have the initial curiosity that causes someone to take a picture but I would like to take another step and challenge myself to produce something more complete. When I look at the work of great writers or film producers I can't help but to think about how well they had to understand themselves and their craft to create something with so much intentional depth. I want to ask myself to attempt that just to make myself a better person. Right now all I have is odds and ends. A bunch of unfinished thoughts really.

But creating is about the process. So lucky me I am just at the beginning with much more to learn and discover.

Scenes from around town

2011-05-24T22:47:00.000-07:00

In the Redwoods, Santa Cruz

2011-05-18T17:51:00.000-07:00

Sun drenched naps, Santa Cruz

2011-05-18T17:47:00.001-07:00

New Orleans Party

2011-05-17T06:56:00.000-07:00

Texas

2011-05-16T17:43:00.000-07:00

Salton Sea

2011-05-16T17:02:00.000-07:00

At first glance as I stumbled out of the car I saw a scene filled with design and color. I breathed the landscape in imagining the lives of the silhouettes that dotted the blue and beige horizon. Long story short my assumptions were wrong, the women alone under the tree who I had imagined to be a quaint local grandma was homeless. It put me in my place about taking pictures of people I don't know and made me ask myself why I have this urge to photograph others. Is it out of caring about their lives or it just a shallow curiosity that will quickly fade?

Phoenix

2011-05-16T16:36:00.000-07:00

L.A. for a day

2011-05-16T16:05:00.000-07:00

L.A. sent me into a frenzy of wanting to capture my surroundings. The city left me feeling overwhelmed, lost and excited all at once. A sort of sense of wonder and horror combined. I ended up only coming away with snippets that don't add up to what that city really is but an attempt none the less.

Candy Colored Shadows, Santa Cruz

2011-05-16T15:19:00.000-07:00

San Francisco

2011-04-10T12:29:00.000-07:00

Looking Back

2011-04-10T11:55:00.000-07:00

Murmurs of days past

2011-04-02T17:46:00.000-07:00

Along the Way 7 Austin

2011-04-01T13:11:00.000-07:00

Along the way 6 New Orleans

2011-03-25T18:49:00.000-07:00

Pacific Grand

2011-03-24T22:54:00.000-07:00

Downtown

2011-03-24T22:40:00.000-07:00

Adrift

2011-03-23T20:38:00.000-07:00

San Francisco Neon

2011-03-23T18:48:00.000-07:00

Style

2011-03-22T21:36:00.001-07:00

California

2011-03-22T21:00:00.000-07:00

Along the way 5 New Orleans

2011-03-22T18:26:00.000-07:00

New Orleans 2nd Line!

2011-03-19T16:32:00.000-07:00

Along the way 4 Texas

2011-03-19T16:07:00.001-07:00

Along the way 3 New Mexico

2011-03-19T15:53:00.001-07:00

Along the way 2 New Mexico

2011-03-19T15:38:00.001-07:00

Along the way 1 New Orleans

2011-03-16T01:27:00.000-07:00

Goodbye for now

2011-03-16T01:14:00.000-07:00

I have left home for an open ended road trip. The pictures I produced have not resulted in anything complete or whole. But this was the first image I saw as I left.

Cleveland 2

2011-03-08T18:49:00.000-08:00

Cleveland

2011-02-09T23:15:00.000-08:00

Washington DC

2011-02-09T22:44:00.000-08:00

NYC Adventure Part 1

2011-01-31T15:11:00.000-08:00

I am traveling with a dear friend from London around the country. Our first stop was New York and after living in Cleveland with my parents during the dead of winter it blew my mind. I didn't do a very good job of editing but there was so much to see while there!

Website!

2011-01-17T20:12:00.003-08:00

Just put up a website! Check it out:
HERE!

Dark at 5

2010-12-11T13:41:00.000-08:00

Jazz

2010-12-11T12:00:00.000-08:00

Someday I will fall in love with a man who wears red corduroy suits and drives a matching Cadillac.

Heart Wires

2010-12-07T22:06:00.001-08:00

Zena

2010-11-30T13:58:00.001-08:00

NYC

2010-11-29T23:39:00.001-08:00

I bought my camera while visiting NYC and even though my old camera had been broken for only a little over a month I felt awkward with it. On top of that the price tag that came with it made me resentful and after purchasing I immediately wanted to return the thing.

But as I stumbled along shooting I was blown away by the technical quality of the images and the capability of the camera held. It seemed that I could shoot in any environment and have a chance of capturing what I was actually seeing. Anyways these are some of my first shots.

People in Cleveland 2

2010-11-27T10:38:00.000-08:00

The End of Summer

2010-11-18T23:52:00.000-08:00

Girls just want to have fun

2010-11-18T22:40:00.000-08:00

duh.

New Orleans

2010-11-18T22:37:00.000-08:00

I barely took any pictures while visiting this spring but did come across these.

Red Boot

2010-11-15T22:42:00.000-08:00

Waiting

2010-11-15T22:07:00.000-08:00

Electric bottle rockets

2010-11-15T21:36:00.000-08:00

Goodbye Athens part3

2010-11-15T21:30:00.000-08:00

Goodbye Athens part2

2010-11-15T21:13:00.000-08:00

Good bye Athens part1

2010-11-15T20:37:00.000-08:00

When the weather was warm

2010-11-15T19:49:00.000-08:00

From long ago

2010-11-15T19:37:00.000-08:00

Katie

2010-11-15T18:08:00.000-08:00

Motorcycles! Highway Men.

2010-11-09T21:22:00.000-08:00

I have been working on a project on Cincinnati Highway Men! I think I would like to do a portrait series on these guys.

It was a lot of fun hanging out with them. Riding on the back of a Harely is really one of the more satisfying things. Wonderful feelings of anarchy and freedom!

More to come for sure.

My People!

2010-11-07T18:49:00.000-08:00

I went to an Armenian Festival and it was eerie how much I fit in. It was all gold, black, high heels and big hair. I am pretty sure the mafia was there too! They didn't really like their picture taken but I couldn't help myself. Shooting this reminded me how much I love taking a stranger's picture. It is all impulse and living in the moment. Great fun!

The first few are pretty similar but I just couldn't decide. Which one sticks out to you?

Me Someday:

Beautiful Clare

2010-11-06T10:58:00.001-07:00

I can't decide between the first two! What do you think?

Halloween in Cincinnati

2010-11-04T19:20:00.000-07:00

Oy! I just realized my computer screen hasn't been calibrated. If these photos look wack please let me know!

Collaboration With Mom

2010-11-04T14:09:00.001-07:00

Hipsters in Reflective Sun

2010-11-04T14:05:00.000-07:00

More Being Social

2010-11-04T14:00:00.000-07:00

Party Party

2010-11-04T13:45:00.000-07:00

People in Cleveland

2010-11-04T13:24:00.000-07:00

brain storm

2010-11-03T11:34:00.000-07:00

In an effort to get through editing photos faster I am going to start using this blog as a place to brainstorm. Basically it is going to be messy but it will be helpful way to exercise ideas. Kind of like a sketch book for photography!

I am editing for a website so any input letting me know which pictures stand out to you would be great!

I love them

2010-09-17T07:28:00.000-07:00

Sharon Jones and Dap Kings

Hot Damn

2010-08-16T01:30:00.000-07:00

For the first time in a long time I am excited about starting a new project. I am going to do a photo essay on SOUL MUSIC.
When I say soul I mean that sound that bites you in the ass and makes you howl. Yet holds you tight and calms your worries away like only your Momma could.... you know?
I want to capture that feeling visually and besides I think it will be good for my mental health!

Style

2010-08-15T23:22:00.000-07:00

After shooting with one lonely duct taped lens for the past year my new camera is blowing my mind. Now that I can control the outcome of each picture I am remembering what it is to have style. It is so much fun to play with compositions and to create a feeling not only out of the choice of moment but also out of visual ascetic.

Dap Kings!

2010-08-14T22:57:00.000-07:00

I bought a brand new camera that makes everything look really good. I took it outside the store and it immediately froze up and stopped working. The store gave me another new one but I instantly felt all sorts of regret and wanted to return it.
But I decided to hold onto it when I found out I would get to break it in taking pictures of the fabulous Sharon Jones and the Dap Kings. I think it is a good sign... all sorts of good looking photos to come!

spark

2010-08-14T22:42:00.000-07:00

Photography represents your experiences. It is when the person behind the camera understands those experiences that the results become interesting.

america

2010-07-20T11:34:00.001-07:00

7/20/10_1

2010-07-20T11:14:00.000-07:00

7/20/10_2

2010-07-20T11:13:00.000-07:00

7/20/10_3

2010-07-20T11:09:00.000-07:00