Societal Issues Concentration

With my concentration being societal issues, I focused my attention over the course of this semester on issues that I find to be prominent in our society. Wether they be big or small, I feel as though it is important to shed a light on all of them. If it affects a single person, it's a problem that must be dealt with. First of all, the first photo deals with a very important issue in our society. That issue being homelessness. It relates to my concentration, societal issues, because it was taken during the night in the winter. This is a very hard time for homeless, especially in Portland, where this photo was taken, because of the extreme cold whether. The silhouette lighting emphasizes on the fact that many of the homeless aren't acknowledged by society. Many of them aren't known. This must change. A handful of the photos in my concentration deal with alcoholism, which often stems from depression and anxiety (photo #2, photo #8). Also included in this concentration, are photos that relate directly to depression and anxiety and how I perceive these emotions to be like. Photo #11 is an example of this. I see depression and a dark tunnel. That's all you can see in the moment, which is why the subject isn't looking forward. However, the photo shows the light at the end of the tunnel. The point of this image is to being awareness to the fact that there is always light at the end of the tunnel. Another example of this is shown in photo #7. My friend Michael is openly gay, and I think this photo really does a good job of capturing his feelings in a single image. His whole life, he's known he was gay. But once he got into high school, he's become much more self conscious than he ever has been in the past. This is because of the standards and judgements that society has set for us today. This also is linked to social media and how it influences our opinions on certain subjects. Nobody should be worried about what others think of them, their personality, or their sexuality. I think this image represents this because Michael has learned to overcome these social standards that are set for us. However, he also has learned that once you overcome these standards, there's always a wall blocking you from overcoming your next problem. Wether it's someone who doesn't agree with your opinions and wants to hold you back, or if it's someone who's jealous of your bravery to be different and stand out; there's always someone who wants to hold you back, which is nicely represented by the fence in the photo. Also, there are the footprints in his path, which in my mind, represent the mark that my incredible friend has left on people. The following photo, photo #8 is closely linked with this topic because the main subject is a member of our generation holding up a sign supporting peace. The last photo, is a building collapsing, however, it can easily be confused with a bomb. Terrorism is also a major issue in our society today. As is food deprivation (photo #5), global warming (photo #3), misuse of technology and how it influences our future generations (photo #6, photo #10),