This series is of photographs enlarged from 4x5" grayscale negatives. All of the selected pictures to the right were taken in San Diego in 2010 and 2011.

     Having grown up feeling alienated in a conservative, middle class suburb of San Diego, I had to leave and then return years later to recognize myself in the city I must call home. Suddenly, I saw San Diego as if for the first time. I began digesting this change of view by taking 35mm color pictures of people on the street, which gave me the physical distance I needed psychologically.

     Later I moved on to the detailed 4x5" negative, taking pictures closer up. I was interested in the spectrum of people in San Diego county, and how together they make up the area I am from. These are the photographs that make up this series. The selection of subjects is the result of me trying to process my identity and recognize humanity where I hadn't noticed it before.

    While all of the pictures to the right were taken in San Diego, this series is extensive and will follow me wherever I go, ever-expanding. It is my own private therapy if nothing else. I take these pictures to better see those around me and to better understand myself.