photos by zoe carrell

we asked zoe to tell us a bit about herself and her influences.  we are captivated by depictions of youth, both fragile and resilient, as well as airs of immediacy and nostalgia in her work.  here is what she had to say:

​photography is one of my passions because i love the power of visual media and emotion. i shoot a mix of film and digital. for film, i shoot on my canon AE-1 (currently broken) and what is available in my film photography class. for digital, i recently purchased a Sony a7ii.  it is a stunning camera that has really allowed me to step up my low-light photography work. 

i live in marin county, california. it is important to acknowledge the negative and positive influences of my home. i'm grateful to have grown up in this safe and beautiful city, surrounded by a variety of exciting locations. there are also flaws here that have influenced me as an artist and as a person. i'm most influenced by marin's culture of complaining. it has subconsciously encouraged me to see beauty and blessings all around me.  i'd say that most of my photography has a mood of enchantment.  maybe this is more true for me than my viewers, since i'm photographing and sharing what i'm enchanted by.

my photography is driven by emotion. i do not rely on the element of composition to photograph.  sure, i compose my shots, but always try to emphasize an emotion. emotion is the truth of a moment. i primarily photography people. human consciousness, and how people behave, feel and express emotion really fascinates me.

as i move forward, i hope to progress as a lifestyle photographer and to keep working with all different beautiful people. i want to empower everyone, especially to recognize beauty that has been marginalized or repelled for so long. i also want to do some work as a photojournalist. i don't believe in relying on art to change the world. i hope to be an activist for several issues and occasionally use photography as a weapon alongside whatever else I'm doing to facilitate change.

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zoe is a passion enthusiast, who lives by and through hers.  she encourages others to do the same.  you can find her on instagram @zoathexplora.