As someone recently diagnosed with depression, my inquiry is "How does depression affect me, and how can I use portrait photography to make mental health issues more visible and tangible to those on the outside looking in?” Through this investigation I explore ways to share my perspective using various lighting techniques that emphasize contrast, color, movement, shadows, and isolated subjects. These photos explore the personal and evolving nature of depression, its shifting impact on everyday life, and visuals inspired by first-hand experience navigating the gravity of depression.

My series explores personal and shared experiences with depression. As my portfolio progresses, each image sinks deeper into feelings of solitude and hopelessness, highlighting how many fight mental illness in isolation. Often dismissed as dramatic or emotional (1), depression can make you feel invisible, irrelevant, or like a burden. Through framing and isolation (1–5), I am able to capture this struggle. Color and refracted light (3, 4, 10, 11) symbolize emotional trouble. Slow SS movement and split lighting (7–8) express exhaustion. As darkness deepens (5–9, 12, 15), silence takes over.