Semiahmoo - Aubyana

 I deeply enjoyed and was moved by our class trip to Semiahmoo, ancestral lands of the Semiahmoo people whose small nation occupied this land in the 1800’s and who’s presence became scarce in the 1850’s due to both smallpox and decent into Canadian territory. A thread of thought that continued to arise for me as I approached this trip searching for the theme of my freestyle shoot, was the history of photography itself. Photography, which has deep roots in colonialism, surveillance and anthropocentrism, must be decolonized when it comes to my own approach and interaction with the art form. 

On this trip, our class stumbled across a beached Giant Pacific Octopus. These beautiful creatures are the largest of their kind, and also incredibly clever; holding the ability to problem solve, communicate and recognize people and things. I wanted to capture this melancholy scene while also respecting the life of the octopus and not participating in a sort of anthropocentric voyeurism of capturing death without respect and intention.  

With these intentions in mind, I decided to memorialize the scene in a way, paying respect before capturing it. I surrounded the octopus in shells found nearby, clam and oyster shells and a few spiraling turritella shells. I was only accompanied by one fellow student, but this process felt sacred and full of the intentional respect I desired to bring to this project. 

 

 

 

With these intentions in mind, I decided to memorialize the scene in a way, paying respect before capturing it. I surrounded the octopus in shells found nearby, clam and oyster shells and a few spiraling turritella shells. I was only accompanied by one fellow student, but this process felt sacred and full of the intentional respect I desired to bring to this project.  

I have included four images that I felt displayed my intention, the beauty of the Giant Pacific Octopus as well as concepts of photography that can bring an image to life. I experimented with exposure, position and light editing through Lightroom as I have done with a few projects in the past. Overall, I enjoy the outcome of these images and don’t think I would have approached it much differently if presented with the opportunity again.





 

  

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