Karl B. 1990-1996 chromogenic print 30" x 40"  

Bridget B. 1993. chromogenic print 30" x 40"

"Yesterday was my Junior Prom which I did not attend. Ever since I was in the 9th grade, I’ve been thinking about the Junior Prom. What if I don’t get asked? And in the end I didn’t get asked. So I decided I was going to go anyway. Lots of people go without dates. I made myself believe I didn’t want a date. I had my dress, I had everything all ready to go and the second I woke up, I started crying. I cried all day. I was too humiliated to go by myself. My mom said I can take the dress back. Most of my friends went. I’m waiting for them to call and tell me how it was. The thing is I did have someone I could have asked but my parents wouldn’t let me because he’s black. My parents say I don’t need that kind of date. He’s just a friend but I talk to him every night. He’s the only black kid in his school and he hangs around all white people, so he’s just like me except for his color. I get so frustrated. I wish I could explain to my parents that despite what they believe— I believe something different. And I couldn’t tell him that my parents are prejudiced. He would have felt like crap. Because it isn’t his fault. So I just told him that I didn’t feel like going."

http://www.reframingphotography.com/content/adrienne-salinger

Here are two photographs from large format photographer Adrienne Salinger. These images are from a series of teenagers in their rooms published in a book in 1995 called My Room: Teenagers in their Bedrooms. Included is the information about the photographs, as well as one of the stories. As we were given the project to research large format photographer, it helped me with the series of photographs I had just shown in critique last week. I was inspired by how these photos are shot, they are almost raw but have enough of a pose to them that they can be well composed. She is a big inspiration with her style of photography, because it's something I used to shy away from but I'm now getting used to thinking like that.