As some of y'all might have read in previous posts of mine, I teach a small after-school program at a local Houston school called Yellowstone Academy. Yellowstone is an incredible place, and it's mission is close to my heart (please visit their website to learn more about the school and children they serve). I've been involved with them for about 7 years now, and have been teaching this after-school program since the spring of 2008. Once a week (this year it has been Tuesdays) I meet with a small group of students in the afternoon, and we learn about photography, and pursue different projects.

Every year is so much fun, and brings its own awesome experiences and challenges. This year, however, has been especially wonderful for me. I started with 7 students, but 3 were accepted into some sort of dance club, so they decided to participate in that instead. That left me with 4 very dedicated photography students.

Having the small class size has been a blessing in many ways, and has given me the chance to grow closer to my students than any year before. This year I feel like I've connected with my students in new ways, and I've been SO impressed and proud of their work. Next year I hope to have a couple more students, just so more people can experience photography; but for now I'm really thankful for this small and close nit group I have.

We spent the entire first semester learning how to use a fully manual 35mm SLR camera (the good ol' workhorse Pentax K-1000...wonderful student camera if you're thinking about learning photography, and would like to shoot film). Then, towards the end of 2010, I gave them their first project, the Self Portrait Project.

While they don't always follow the project theme/guidelines, the important thing is that they keep taking photos. The most important thing to me is that these kids learn that photography is a language, and that they can communicate through their photos. I want them to understand that photography is an opportunity for them to have a voice, because, believe me, these kids have something to say!

My four students this year are Alton, Talora, Lyric and Juston. They are in the fifth grade. Each of them has developed a different approach to their work. Alton dove right in, and wanted to know everything. He can easily shoot 3-5 rolls of film in a week, and has become the photo whiz. He photographs everything from his PSP to his baby niece. He is probably the smallest kid in his grade, but you wouldn't know it by the way he acts. He's tough and ready to take on anything. Talora takes her time and really seems to visualize and develop her work. Her photos are not mere snapshots, but reveal something about how she interprets or relates to her subjects. She is slower moving than Alton, but her photos seem very carefully crafted. I've been inspired by her creativity this year, and her ability to quietly observe what is around her. Lyric has struggled a little bit to get started. She had some trouble learning to load and unload her film. Therefore, she's only started to have a couple successful rolls of film. However, I know she is persevering, and will create some great work. She accidentally created a multiple exposure photograph (pictured below), which turned out really neat. I explained to her that sometimes accidents can create really cool photos! However, now I think I will discuss with them how they can intentionally do that to create some exciting photos : ). Juston has a lot of energy, and I really appreciate his honesty. I have to stay on him to get his rolls turned in, but he has been working diligently. He attempted a night series that didn't quite turn out (but I was excited that he was trying something different...we haven't yet talked about long exposures at night). He seems to most enjoy taking portraits of friends and family, and I've been really impressed how comfortable and honest his subjects appear in his photos.

I wanted to go ahead and post about these guys and girls because on Tuesday I hung their first show in the school hallways, and I was so proud of them! All of the teachers, parents and other students were marveling at their work and creativity (as they should have been...they've created some really great work!). I've had them each choose one photograph from the show, and they will be writing a little something about it.

Below are the photographs that are included in the first show, hanging proudly in the halls of Yellowstone Academy! The students and I chose together which photos would be displayed (but as they are the artists, and I am only the teacher, they always have the final say). I'm so impressed with all of the photos they chose to display. They've done an incredible job already, and I can't wait to see what else they create this semester. I'm planning on having two more shows for them before the summer.

I've never done this before, but I would REALLY love to have y'all's comments on their photos (and I know my students would too). So please either post a comment below, or send me an email at chrisbailey@cbaileyphotography.com. Any posts or emails that I receive I will pass onto the students, and I know they would love the encouragement!

Hope y'all enjoy Yellowstone Academy's Photo Club's first show!

Photo by Talora

Photo by Talora (look at this one carefully...)

Photo by Juston

Photo by Talora

One of the teachers mentioned that the car really looks like it is moving, almost coming off the page.

Photo by Alton

Photo by Talora

Talora created this photo by throwing rocks into the pool of water that was on the playground. The rings of water that formed were much more interesting than if she had just photgraphed the surface of the water by itself. I thought this was an important lesson to learn...that we have the ability to impact the photos we are taking. We don't have to be mere observers. Sometimes it can be appropriate to introduce our creative hand in the work, and effect the photo in a very literal way.

Photo by Alton

Alton took this photo of himself on one of his first rolls of film. I was so impressed by his ability to pre-visualize everything about this photo, and then to actually make it work. I had him walk me through everything he did, and it really showed me how much he had been paying attention in class! To get this photo, he placed the camera on a table in the cafeteria, and knew to focus at the spot that he would be standing. He set the exposure after focusing, and then had a friend come over to press the shutter release button. This is one of my favorite photographs taken this semester.

Photo by Alton

Photo by Juston

Photo by Talora

Talora has a nack for observing her subjects, and then waiting until just the right time to press the shutter. She captures many of her subjects as they actually appear, naturally as if there were no camera in the room. This photo is of her sister, Tiatta (who was in my class last year).

Photo by Lyric

Lyric's hero is her mom. This is from Lyric's first successful roll of film, and is the only portrait she has been able to get of her mom (her mom doesn't like to be photographed). I think Lyric's goal for the year is to get a good portrait of her mother.

Photo by Lyric

This was Lyric's accidental exposure.

Photos by Talora

I asked Talora if she'd like to display two of her sky photos side by side like this, and when we put them together we noticed that when arranged a certain way, they matched up beautifully. I wanted to show the class how we can choose to display our images, and how these choices can be as much a part of the art as taking the photos themselves. By placing these photographs together, we are able to experience these images in a new way, different from how we'd experience them apart. Also, the photo takes on additional meaning, and can be interpreted differently.

Look how the clouds and branch line up perfectly, as well as the different clouds across both photos. They transition perfectly between the two photos, and become one.