Typography

this was a fun... I am currently studying graphic design and this was a project I did for my typography class. constructing a self portrait out of magazine text was not an easy task, but I am extremely pleased with the results.

Pin Light

getting back into the darkroom was so great. it is something about the smell of the fixer and the solitary confinement of the dark space that is both nostalgic and serene. the recent group show that I was fortunate enough to be apart of was the perfect opportunity for me to explore something new. I just love the rundown grittiness the pinhole gives to the image. one day I hope to be fortunate enough to own a Zero Image pinhole camera.
these four images are the ones that were hung for the show. I received a lot of really great feedback from the attendees, who knew there were so many pinhole enthusiasts out there...I am looking forward to more exploring with various types of homemade pinhole cameras.


these two were shot using the oatmeal can

these two were shot using the metal lunch box

Pin Light

wow, it has been a while since I have posted anything. life has been crazy and somewhat uninspiring. all things considered we are trying to restore somewhat of a level of normalcy. my studio/workshop is cleaned out and I have begun to work down there again, however, it is even more creepy than it was when we first moved in. slowly but surely I know that it will be just as inviting as we made it before the horrific flood waters destroyed it. everything happens for a reason and I am thankful that we are still able to live in our house and we are all okay. getting back into shooting has been difficult but I have to start somewhere. I found a pinhole camera that I constructed out of an oatmeal can for a class project. I was also recently given a metal lunch box  so made it into a second camera. pinholes are all about trial and error and here are a few test images from the first trial. I am using resin coated black and white photo paper as the negative and will be printing final images on fiber based paper.

exposing

when I was in school I had intended on shooting a series of self portraits for one of my class projects, but as it turned out my head was not in the right place at that time to be able to look within myself to see myself. this series has been in the back of my mind for a long time and I feel as though now I am in the right place in my life to carry it out. I am at the start and I can not tell from this moment where it will end up, all I know is that I must do it.

new beginnings

A Collection of Photographs by Carissa Riccardi

I created this blog sometime back in September '09 as a way to document my journey through building a body of work. As time passed and I hadn't written a single word, daily I would think about what my opening post would say. Weeks turned into months and the series was completed, the show was hung and the reception was had yet still not a word was written. It was in the back of my mind the whole time, just jump. So here is. It is the end to my most recent collection but just the beginning to the next, and from here I have only the open road to follow.

Just some notes: this collection was shot using a vintage Brownie Hawkeye camera. I found this camera in our garage when we were cleaning out old family heirlooms. It belonged to Joel's great Aunt Mollie, who herself loved photography. When Joel's mom saw how excited I was about the great find she handed ownership of the camera over to me.

With a fixed aperture and shutter speed there needed to be some experimenting with my new toy. So I hit the web in searched anything I find out about this camera. I found a number of blogs about others experiments and found a technique that I feel in love with. I discovered that with a little lens manipulation this camera could be turned into a tool that I could used to produce dreamy, surreal images.

With my paint brush and my pallet I searched for a story. I agonized all summer long about it until one night I had a dream that I could recall in great detail. When I awoke I wrote down everything I could about what I had just witnessed. My vision unfolded into a series of photographs that I displayed for public view on the 2nd of January 2010.

I had my insecurities, being that this was the first time anyone had seen the work completed and it being my first solo exhibit, but the copious amounts of positive feedback I received has only encouraged me to continue on. Realizing that everyone's vision is unique and that mine is not exempt I go forth with confidence and motivation to keep creating.

With endings and new beginnings there is always a struggle, and with struggle comes new found knowledge.