Lauren Williams. "Sassy"

Lauren Williams. "Sassy with Shadows"

Lauren Williams. "Hard Lighting of a Feline"

My cat lives in my basement because she's afraid of Zoey, so the only time I get to really see her is if I go down stairs. I decided to take her out of her comfort zone and place her in the dining room and do some portraits of her. I'm pretty happy with how some of the results came out. At first it was a little tricky because I couldn't get the right exposure and the images kept coming out blurry and she would move her head. These were my top 3 choices out of all the photos I shot of her, and one of these will also be included in my portfolio and my final project for my digital photography class.

Lauren Williams. "Future"

Lauren Williams. "Timeless"

Lauren Williams. "Like Father Like Son"

Lauren Williams. "TDubbs"

Lauren Williams. "Crossed Eyes"

For this weeks assignment, we were asked to shoot some portraits and these were my best ones. The first photo is of my younger brother, Brandon. The reason it's called "Future" is because he will be joining the navy after he graduates high school and he's still exploring the different fields of law enforcement so I felt that it was an appropriate name. I personally love the photos of my father and myself because it really accentuates our personality and how we're so alike. We have both been through some rough times and it shows how we were able to move on and still keep smiles on our faces.

Faculty Art Show

For starters I am not a fan of art museums or any museums of any kind unless they are truly interesting or weird, for example Madame Tussauds happens to be one of my favorite museums. Why? Um hello...your favorite celebrities that you have been dying to meet since you were little are all in one big building...but in wax form. When I was a senior in high school, we took a field trip to MoMa(Museum of Modern Art) and that was the worst thing I ever had to experience. I am not a fan of modern art at all because most of the time I find myself saying the same things in my head, "what is it?" and "I don't get it". Long story short, I should have stayed home that day because I was so bored the entire trip, nothing really spoke to me or caught my eye and every since that experience of going to MoMa I never wanted to return to any kind of art gallery, but I will say that I am very happy I took the time out of my day to attend the faculty art show held on campus today.  I was very intrigued at how talented each artist and photographer was and it almost made me a little envious. I won't talk about which piece was my favorite and which was my least favorite but instead I'll briefly explain how and why certain pieces caught my attention. For starters "Blue Lagoon" by Victoria Pendzick was unique not only because the whole photo was blue( favorite color) but because at first I saw these abstract figures that I thought was water or maybe grass, as I stepped back my eyes focused in on what the whole photo was; the torso of a mans body laying down which was pretty cool. The next piece that caught my eye was "Rainbow Highway" and "Jellyfish" by Allen Keener. I loved the vibrant colors that were brought out along with how both images seemed abstract, when you look at the images first and then the title you're unaware of what the image is which was very unique. I feel like I can relate to Joan Larson Wozniak and her piece, "Into the Garden" because I personally love portraits of people in these almost fantasy like environments and also the photograph was in black and white which makes it even more dramatic. I was really pulled into John Cyr's photographs especially "Developer Tray from the Photo History Collection of Smithsonian's National Museum of American History" along with "Barbara Mensch's Developer Tray" because both were vibrantly colored and you can almost tell how each photographer worked either neat or messy just by looking at their developing trays and how the black background in all of them really made them stand out made the whole collection pretty dope. Finally the last piece that was really eye catching was "Red Converse High Tops" by Harold Naideau. I actually got to speak with him about how he created his photographs and the process he explained was pretty fascinating. Basically he placed his subjects on a scanner and scanned them in where they were printed on wood. The fact that he used some type of object that's not supposed to be used as a camera to create his photographs was insane. Overall this was a cool thing to experience and I definitely would like to attend another photography based art show.

Lauren Williams. "Miley"

7 years old, Chocolate Lab and one of my three dogs is Miley who we also call "Corpse" or "The 9k Dog". We got her a few years ago at some pet shop and she was about 3 months old and was the runt of the litter so nobody really wanted her. At the time she was welcomed into our home with one other senior dog who is no longer with us. About 2 years later we all moved to Bayport and she was a very hyper and active puppy who (like Cooper) loved to chew. It wasn't until she chewed the fabric off a tennis ball and swallowed it where it later ended up getting stuck along the lining of her small intestine. We rushed her to about 2 or 3 different animal hospitals until they were able to surgically remove the fabric. After her recovery, her vet bills were up to $9,000. Miley was sick on Martin Luther King Jr. Day and we were all home from school, if we weren't home that day, she would've died. To this day we are so thankful she was given a second chance at life and she's happy at home living with her brother and sister. I particularly like this picture because I feel like it perfectly describes her personality. She's kind of stupid, but wise at the same time and is a master of getting herself into trouble even as she gets older.

Lauren Williams. "Cooper"

This is one of my youngest dogs, his name is Cooper and he is a 6 month old Golden Retriever. We drove about 3 hours out of state to a breeder just to get him because my brother has always wanted his own dog. He loves the water and loves swimming, we can't wait to see how he reacts to snow this winter. Don't be fooled by his adorable puppy dog eyes because in reality he is a walking tornado. He managed to destroy the couch, a few flower pots, some socks and pillows and even left quite an abundance of holes in the backyard. It's also fun at night when he cries and whines while he's in his crate because he chews the molding if we let him have the run of the house at night:) Besides all the damage he's one big mush who believes he's the size of my Yorkie and will try to climb into your lap when he's done playing. We can't wait to see what else this dog is capable of and what will be destroyed in the future. 

Lauren Williams. "Zoey" 

This is one of my 3 dogs, Zoey Lynn. She's a 4 year old Teacup Yorkie. Don't be fooled by her size because she packs one hell of a personality into her little body. If you pick up her favorite rubber tire you won't be able to catch a break because she will play with you until you have had enough and there's no stopping her. The moment you decide to stop, she'll yell at you with her obnoxious, high pitched bark, and when that doesn't work?...She'll pick up the tire and drop it either on your lap or right next to your hand until you throw it again. The only way I can get a good shot of her is if I hold her tire above my camera, otherwise she moves way too fast. She knows she's a princess so when we take trips to the dog park, she wants nothing to do with any of the other dogs because she thinks she's better than all of them**insert information desk clerk emoticon**