FOREVER HOMES
BEHIND THE LENS
My work consists of a series of photographs taken at the El Cajon Animal Shelter. My initial goal is to raise awareness to the public about the importance of animal adoption. At the same time I wanted to capture the reality of what some of these animals have gone through before arriving at the shelter and the reality of the shelter itself. Some of the animals show physical signs of possible abuse while others show psychological signs of past struggles. When I work with animals I am reminded that these are living things that feel just as we do. A reoccurring theme is shots that emphasize on the dogs’ feet. While shooting I frequently wonder where these feet have traveled before coming to the shelter.
I prefer to work with black and white film because it’s something tangible and therefore has a real presents both physically and conceptually. Film also provides more of a challenge when you introduce flash and a subject that does not sit stationary. I work with a Yashica TRL camera because I like the clarity of the medium format and I also like the square format for compositional reasons. I use a flash most of the time depending on the lighting situation. I begin a piece of work by walking through the shelter and seeing how certain dogs react to me. Some dogs happily wag their tail while others, like Sonny, cower because they are unsure of me. If the dog is uncomfortable then I set the camera down and just sit with them for awhile until they feel more secure. When my work is going well I find it hard to leave for the day.
My current work grew out of previous work that dealt with animal shelters and the Wildlife Rehabilitation Center. One of the challenges with this work is earning the trust of the animals and making a connection with them. It takes time to capture the true personality of the dogs when they are in the shelter setting. When People view my work, I would like them to feel moved by the images.
Photograph by Andrew Huse
CONTACT ME
JennaLee.Celeste_gmail.com
JENNA CELESTE
PHOTOGRAPHY
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