So Close Yet So Far

So we are officially past half-way through the diploma program here at PV, and everything seems to be flying by. It's a little scary to think that in less than 5 months we will have graduated and be out in the real world. Sometimes it's a kind of hard to believe that by then we will all be professional photographers, since I know that we all at times feel like we're no good at this at all. But then I take a look at some of my photos from the beginning off the year, and I know I've improved like crazy.

This is one of the photos that was in my portfolio for my interview and was also the one of the first pictures I took that made me fall in love with shallow depth of field. Here are a couple of my other favourite shots with shallow depth of field.

When I graduate I'm still not entirely sure what I want to do, but I'm leaning towards fine art and decorative art, and I also really like macro and I'm starting to get into self portraits. 

Sometimes it's stressful not having an exact plan, but I think it's okay to figure it out while you're doing it. It's also really great to have such a good support team. My family is super helpful and makes this whole process much easier. From my parents who let me live at home rent free and pay for school, to my sister who will always let me take pictures of her. I am so grateful that I'm this lucky and I have so much respect for the other students who don't have situations as ideal as my own.

Another huge part in keeping me sane is the group of students here. We really are like one big family. I don't know what I would do without such an amazing group of people to go through this with.

We all are there for each other, whether we need someone to help pick which of our prints is better, calm us down when we're about to have a breakdown because nothing is working, or to give us that confidence boost of knowing that someone else actually likes that picture. 

It's really great to know that all these other people are going through the same thing as you, because sometimes other people just don't get it. You'll tell them that you're going to photography school and they think that it's a bad idea, and you're not going to make any money, and your homework can't be that hard, it's just clicking a button. But it is so much more than that, and we do it because we love it. That said, we do appreciate the breaks (even if we get assignments during them).

My favourite part of any vacation; tanning and drinking
(taken on colour slide film, which I am in love with).

A dead bug that my fantastic mom arranged to look alive
so I could take a photo of it. 

Night-time shot lit by the full moon.

The beach where I relaxed
over the holidays

During my break, I went with my family to Jamaica, and it was so amazing. It was unbelievable how much just being in a place I hadn't been before make my homework so much fun. I was taking all the pictures for assignments because I wanted to, not because I needed too. This made me realize that I definitely want to travel after I graduate, because I love being in new places and I think that photography is the perfect way to capture the beauty of undiscovered places and remember the things we did there.

This year I have already learned so much, and I can't believe how much I have progressed even in 5 months, even though some days I think I'm terrible and it's the end of the world and act like the teenage drama queen that I am. 

Even though school is a lot of hard work and effort, I know it will all be worth it. The program here isn't just teaching me photography, it's teaching me important life skills like hard work and dedication, organizational and planning skills, team-work, and lots more. I know I still have tons more to learn, but I'm having a great time doing it so far.

Chantyl Desrochers

PV Diploma Student

2012-13