Our Wildwood, Volume 51

STUDENT VOICE Autumn L. ‘27

Behind the Lens Highlighting the Inspirational Women of Wildwood School

EVER SINCE I CAME TO WILDWOOD, I HAVE ALWAYS FELT ENCOURAGED to use my creativity to launch new ideas and projects. Our community has been here to consistently provide me with unwavering support, motivating me to share my ideas. This school year was my first time exploring the fundamentals of photography and graphic design. In my class, we were tasked with putting together a series of photos that highlighted our passions and/or personalities. I immediately wanted to delve into portraiture and I reached out to two familiar faculty members to photograph. Although my first time was a little frightening, the models made it incredibly easy to feel comfortable. After taking these photos, Director of Equity and Inclusion Karen Dye reached out to me and had the brilliant idea to possibly photograph more teachers, specifically spotlighting female faculty of color. I was fascinated by this idea and I began reaching out to faculty to highlight for Women’s History Month. In the end, I photographed Karen, along with teachers Krystan Norris, Grace Hwang, Becca Hedgepath, N¯ıa MacKnight, and Yan Zhao as well as upper school counselor Tracee Logan and director of upper school Dr. Joanie Banks-Hunt. Going into each shoot, I wanted to create a comfortable and enjoyable environment. I found myself creating conversations and asking questions to brighten the mood and loosen up any tension. I knew that photography could be an invasive or awkward process

“” OUR COMMUNITY HAS BEEN HERE TO CONSISTENTLY PROVIDE ME WITH UNWAVERING SUPPORT, MOTIVATING ME TO SHARE MY IDEAS.

at times, so I tried my best to distract the models and make sure they felt comfortable. I tried to capture very candid moments within our conversations, so in some photos you might find the subject midway through a laugh. During the editing process, I met with Danielle Kraten from Wildwood’s marketing and communications team and learned some exciting Photoshop techniques to brighten up the photos. I tried to use warm and

vibrant tones to highlight the lively spirits of each teacher. Overall, I am so grateful for our female faculty of color within our Wildwood community. Unfortunately, I couldn’t photograph the entirety of our fearless female leaders, but I am thankful for their endless hard work and tenacity that makes our school a better place. From this experience, I take away the amazing conversations and moments from each shoot and the privilege of learning from these beautiful trailblazers. In a society where women and specifically women of color are constantly underrepresented and undervalued, I am so thankful for the opportunity to spotlight a few that have made a difference in my life. To all the women of Wildwood, thank you for your tireless work and beautiful spirits. You truly make our community an even better place and inspire us all.

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