Travels A collection of memories from trips abroad.

My Photo scholarship 2010 entry

Worldwide | Friday, October 15, 2010 | flickr photos

To most, Venice is a world of mystery. Almost instinctively, images of winding canals, narrow alley ways, and gondolas rush through people’s minds. To be honest, I didn’t quite know what to expect of this city upon arrival, but after spending time in this old, soulful, mysterious place and having the pleasure of getting to know her people, the only thing that I am sure of is that I need to be back there.

My fiancé and I arrived by airplane from Palermo, Sicily at around 8:30 in the morning. We grabbed our bags in an all too familiar pattern after three weeks of travel throughout Europe, and traveled by bus towards Venice’s main island. Seemingly as usual for our vacation, check-in at our hotel wasn’t for another six hours, so the day was ours, and more importantly, Venice was ours. Without directions, baggage, or commitments we set off to explore and photograph perhaps one of the most fascinatingly beautiful places on Earth.

My ultimate goal for this project was to combine elements of fine art and travel photography with strong, candid portraits to show the true multi-faceted beauty that lies just beneath this city’s gracefully crumbling exterior. While taking these photos, I tried to capture the spirit and nature of the Veneziani (or people of Venice), and allow the viewer to interact with them in their every day lives. Each photograph represents a different aspect of Venice, it’s culture, and it's people, though they all follow consistent themes: steadiness, wisdom, sincerity, and weathered beauty. These photographs convey this sublime place and its people perfectly to me.

I’m confident that if I am chosen as the winner that I will be able to capture profound moments from Bhutan, and that with Jason’s insight, I’ll be able to excel as a photographer, as well.