My Journey

In the spring of 2023 I took my first photography class at Shepherd University and I immediately realized something that had been with me all along: a love for photography. In this body of work, I now find myself mixing my two greatest passions - cooking and photography - by creating lumen prints imprinted by some of my favorite foods. Lumen prints are made by placing organic material onto light-sensitive paper and then exposing them to sunlight. It’s like building a plate, but in a unique way that can be preserved.

It can also create a putrid odor from mixing the food with the emulsion on the paper. Nevertheless, I find this process exhilarating - it’s like being able to get into the groove of cooking without all the hustle and bustle of the kitchen; no hot stoves, rushed timing, or eager on-lookers waiting for their meal. The anticipation, freedom of expression, and culmination of conditions that bring everything together for that perfect print - that is when it feels like success, like I am a success. Afterward, digital editing evokes greater textures and illuminates the natural colors of the process.