THE WAY WE SEE IT

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THE WAY WE SEE IT
Camerawork and writing by the Kittridge St.
Elementary Photography Club 2001-2002
Power Point presentation designed by Jennifer
Lobos, and expanded by her teacher
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The images in THE WAY WE SEE IT were made with a
group of talented young students from Kittridge
St. Elementary School in Van Nuys, California.
The Photo Club was created by their teacher,
David Blumenkrantz, and became the focal point of
his work towards a Masters degree in Art at
California State University, Northridge.
The Photography Club, initially designed as a
differentiated curriculum for a cluster of
Gifted Talented students was formed while
these children were in the fourth grade, and we
continued with the project as we moved together
to the fifth grade. The photographs in the
first, exploratory phase of the project were
taken with inexpensive, fixed-focus automatic
cameras. The kids were asked simply to go out and
interpret their private worlds, considering the
elements natural to photography timing,
lighting, composition, and angle. As their
knowledge of the medium grew, the students were
challenged to think about photography in terms of
its relevance to their own lives. Through field
trips, research reports, and other writing
assignments, it was possible to integrate what
was essentially an Art Education curriculum with
Language Arts and Social Studies. As this
presentation demonstrates, subsequent activities
incorporated computer technology, medium format
photography, and the use of artificial lighting.
Ultimately, THE WAY WE SEE IT is a reflection of
the students own interest in presenting images
of their family, friends, and community. I doubt
that a teacher could be any prouder of a group of
students. December, 2002
All photographs in this presentation that are not
credited to students were made by David
Blumenkrantz
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MEET THE PHOTO CLUB
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Grecia Karla
Grecia (photo by
Karla)
Karla
(photo by Grecia)
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Bryan Carlos photo by Jesus

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Nathan Jesus
Photo of Jesus, taken by Nathan
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Photo by Jennifer Lobos
Valeria Jennifer
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Eva Kimmy
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KIMMY LIMON Photography is used by all people.
Before 1900 true artists were the only people to
use cameras. But when the Brownie came along by
the 1900s photography was available to all kinds
of people. Before photography people couldnt
record moments in their life. If somebody got
married or had a baby their family members
couldnt see that. In a way photography was a
sort of communication. For me, and I speak for
thousands of people, the camera was one of the
most important things ever invented.
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Kathy
This is me and my cat, Kathy. Isnt she gorgeous?
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Momma Against Osama
This is my mommy. She is holding a Wanted
Osama Bin Laden sign that I bought for her. I
told her to be mad for the photo. She did a nice
job of that.
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Snap Shot
This is me when I took a picture of myself in the
mirror. I think it looks cool.
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Sleepy Daddy
I dont know who took this photo, but whoever
took it made my dad look like he was sleeping in
the photo. In some other peoples point of view he
looks like hes tired. It looks funny.
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Parents
These are my parents. I told them to be in an
arguing position and they did, so I took a
picture of them.
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Mango
This is me eating a mango. Arent I cute?
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This is a picture of a weird graffiti dude.
Weird Graffiti
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Kimmy Limon
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OUT IN THE FIELD WITH THE PHOTO CLUB
To bring our photography to life, or life to our
photography, it was necessary to leave the
confines of school, and venture out into the
real world. Whether it was hiking in Griffith
Park, a social studies trip to the San Fernando
Mission, or a visit to the local university, The
Photo Club Kids were on the job.
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During a visit to their teachers Saturday
morning photo class at CSUN, Photo Club students
discuss photography history with university
students. . .
Helping to sort and file color slides gives Karla
and Jennifer an opportunity to work with
transparency film . . .
Eva, Grecia and Kimmy give an oral presentation
on Lewis Hine, whose child labor photographs in
the early 20th Century were among the first true
documentary images to bring about social change.
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VALERIA CACERES My favorite part of
photography is that it kinda opens you into a new
world. Now that I came a long way through
photography I see photography very different. I
used to see it as something to remember. But now
I see it as something for proof. For example
photography could show people that nature is
being destroyed so it could be proof.
Photo by Karla
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This is a picture of Stephanie. I took this
picture at my apartment. In this picture
Stephanie is jumping! It also has perfect timing!
JUMP STEPHANIE!
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RUN, MARIE! RUN! GET AWAY FROM THAT UGLY BOY!
This is a picture of Little Marie. You could see
in this picture that she is running.
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Get ready to dance, girls!
This is a picture of Grecia and Jennifer getting
ready for a Mexican dance named El Bracero
Fracasado. And behind them is a beautiful mural
or painting.
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This is a picture of Ingrid and Yessenia. I like
this picture because it has a lot of shadow.
SHADOW!
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SUCK THAT LOLLYPOP!
This is a picture of my best friend Stephanie.
You could see that in this picture her face is
half light and half shadow. That is my favorite
part of this picture.
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GO GILBERT ! DO THAT KICK FLIP!
This is a picture of Gilbert skateboarding. I
took this picture at my apartment. This is a
perfect capture of timing.
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This is a picture of my mom and my baby sister,
Jocelyn. You could see that my baby sister is
wearing a sweater with a duck on it.
MY MOM, AND CUTIE BABY SISTER JOCELYN
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This is a picture of my dad with his favorite
plants. Here you could see him holding a
beautiful white flower.
MY DAD LOVES FLOWERS
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San Fernando Mission

by Valeria Caceres
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Five each of Kimmy and Karla wouldnt be bad . . .
BUT Every teacher wishes they could have ten
Valerias
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JESUS LOSOYA The choices that photographers use
are the lighting, timing, composition, proximity,
and angle. The word photography means writing
with light. Photographers use composition in
their photographs by trying to arrange all the
elements in their sight into a composition that
they like, just as you do when you are drawing or
painting. If the world had no cameras the world
will change big time. If the world did not have
cameras people that were adopted would not be
able to see their real parents. People would not
be able to see the bad things that happened. The
world should have been changed. The camera was a
great invention.
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This is my brother. He is very funny. He is
climbing the stairs all the way to the top.
Climbing Stairs
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Turtle Boy
This is my brother. He is on the bottom of
a five year old pool.
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This is my niece. That pole is kind of like a
swinging pole. Everybody swings on it.
Swinging
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Getting Beaten Up
This is a picture taken by Carlos. This is a
picture of Miguel getting beaten up. Carlos is
getting Miguel on the ground so Nathan can beat
him up.
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This is the G-Ster. He is eating at his favorite
time in school. Everybody makes fun of him, but I
dont know why many people hurt his feelings.
When somebody hits Giovanni, his brother hits the
one that hits Giovanni.
HUNGRY
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Vanowen Ave.

by Jesus Losoya
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HAND-TINTED PHOTOGRAPHS ACTIVITY ONE
To explore the differences between black and
white and color photos, the students were asked
to color these images, which had been taken by
their teacher. Using Adobe PhotoDeluxe on iMacs,
here are the results . . .
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JENNIFER LOBOS People use photography for
memories. For example, if your grandmother died,
and you dont know how she looked, your parents
might have a photograph of her, and by just
having that photograph, you have a memory of what
she looked like. I think photography is a way to
express your feelings. In my family, photography
is used to take pictures of ourselves. The world
was very different before photography. For
example, if a family wanted a family portrait
they had to hire a painter . . . And had to pay
them a lot of money. Now that photo class is
almost over I look at photography differently. I
used to think that photographers didnt have to
go through a long process to make their
photographs good. Now, I know that they had to go
through a long process.
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I took this photograph at my house. The person in
this photograph is my sister, Nerly. The bunny in
the photograph is my pet, Cosita. I wanted the
photograph to have love and passion. Also, I
wanted it to look like they understood each
other.
LOVE AND PASSION
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Serious
Thinker
I took this photograph outside on the playground.
The person in the photograph is Valeria, my
friend. I wanted the photograph to seem that
Valeria was thinking. I also wanted the
photograph to have shadow.
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Friends Forever
I took this photograph at school. These are my
two best friends, Karla and Grecia. I wanted the
photograph to look like they understand each
other and are always going to be friends, no
matter what. I also wanted the photograph to have
shadow.
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I took this photograph outside on the playground.
I wanted this photograph to look like, though
everyone is around you is making noise you are
having a moment of peace and quiet.
Peace And Quiet
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HAND-TINTED PHOTOGRAPHS ACTIVITY TWO
Once the students were familiar with the
technique of hand-tinting, they were asked to
choose one of their own favorite images to color.
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CARLOS RUIZ My favorite thing about photography
is when you zoom the lens and it looks closer.
Most of my photos describe everyday life.
Photography is a way to remember your past, and a
lot of people use it. Without photography the
world would be way different, we wouldnt have
ways to remember our past. The world was much
different before there was photography. Great
leaders have been photographed, but if there
wasnt any cameras we wouldnt know such great
people.
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Mom in the Mirror
by Carlos Ruiz
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This is my friend Hector
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This is my best friend Nathan. It looks like hes
in jail.
CAGED!
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MOUNTAIN VIEW IN GRIFFITH PARK
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Weird Eyes
Nathan is is putting his eyes weird. He is really
funny. Jesus could do the same thing as him.
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This is graffiti from the abandoned zoo in
Griffith Park.
RED AND WHITE GRAFFITI
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THE DAILY GRIND
Its not all fun and games for the
young photographers. Above, Valeria, Kimmy,
Bryan and Nathan read a picture book, while Karla
and Grecia do the math. . .
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GRECIA VASQUEZ I would say that the most
important thing about this photography project is
that we get to explore the world more. For
example if we were supposed to photograph our
community we get to know people more or find out
things we didnt know about. Sometimes you could
find more respect for your community. Or the
other members could know more about your family
with just a photograph. Or you can get to know
one special person more like your partner or
friend. That is what I think photography means in
this project.
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This photograph was taken by me. I call it Statue
In The Light because it looks like it is up on
stage and the light is just shining on him. I
took it at the Mission of San Fernando.
STATUE IN THE LIGHT
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The person in the photograph is my big brother
Richard. I took this picture at the store Home
Depot. Hes surrounded by plants they sell at
the store.
RICHARD PLANT
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Big Eyeballs
This is my puppy Koki. I took this picture so
that he would seem like he is wondering in space.
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MOM DAD HEADS
These two people are my mom and dad.
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Tongue Eye
My dog in this picture is licking his lips, while
my brother is holding him.
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This is my great family.
Family
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SILLY STRING
During a birthday party for Eva, Mr.
Blumenkrantz was given the silly string treatment
. . . Photos by Grecia
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BRYAN MERINO I think photography is writing with
light. And freezing a moment once in a lifetime.
Before when the world didnt have photography,
there wasnt video games, TV, computers or any
books that had real pictures. Photography helped
a lot because when there was child labor and the
kids had to work, then Lewis Hine took photos of
the kids and then he took the pictures to the
government and the kids stopped working.
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THE FAMILY PHOTOS OF BRYAN MERINO
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My little brother here was trying to take out a
glass jar because he always likes to break things.
Playing
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Buggers
This is my little brother with buggers coming out
of his nose.
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Photography Club
This is the Photography Club on Bee Rock in
Griffith Park.
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Water Fountain
I took this photo because its nice how the
fountain looks.
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The Artists as Models Halloween 2002
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EVA SANCHEZ When I used to look at a picture, I
just looked at the people in the picture. Now I
look at the photos and see if the person who took
it really got all things clearly. The
photographs that I have taken are about my
friends in school, and about my family. I like
taking pictures of my family because they always
help me with my homework and other things. I
would also like to photograph my whole family so
I could keep the picture forever.
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Eva Sanchez
My sister Denise, WORKING at Starbucks
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This is a picture of my mom. She was planting. I
told her I was going to take a picture of her,
but running. So I ran and screamed Look in the
camera! And thats how I got this picture.
Fastness
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This is a picture of my dad working. He is fixing
a VCR. He is very good at fixing. I took this
picture when he wasnt looking. Thats why you
could see his expression.
Thinking Hard
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Graffiti Letters
This wall has big letters. Its made out of spray
paint. Its graffiti. I took this picture when we
were inside an old zoo at Griffith Park. People
destroy the walls by painting on them.
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This photo of me was taken by my mom. I am
entering an old cabin. It was filled with
graffiti inside. You can see some around me.
Graffiti Cabin
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My sister took this picture of my friend Jennifer
and I. Here we are at the MOCA Museum. This is a
tall building in back of us.
Tall Building
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HAND-TINTED PHOTOGRAPHS ACTIVITY THREE
Hi, Im Valeria, our class President. This has
been Our Crazy Faces show. OH, WAIT A
SECOND, THERES ONE MORE. MEET OUR TEACHER, MR.
BLUMENKRANTZ
Tired of the same old class photos? Photo Club
members Kimmy, Eva, Jennifer and Valeria were, so
we turned them loose with Adobe PhotoDeluxe, and
heres what happened . . .
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KARLA VEGA The main purpose of photographs is
the moment, and to show their personality. Also,
the most important thing I learned is how to use
the camera, and the basic things like timing,
lighting and composition.
Something I would like to change is for the gangs
to stop, because they kill people and destroy the
beautiful earth. I think photographs could change
peoples minds because they could see it.
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This is my mom and dad, named Nancy and Jesus.
They love each other very much.
Mom And Dad
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Super Koki
This is my friends dog named Koki. I like
playing with him a lot..
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Father Serra
This is Father Serra in the San Fernando Mission.
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San Fernando Church
This is the Missions side from the outside, and
there you could see the church.
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Love
This is my Grandma Irma, and my aunt Cristina.
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This is a photo of graffiti on a poster. It
shows a lot of geometric shapes.
GRAFFITI SIGN
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OPEN HOUSE, 2002
During the Open House in our classroom, Photo
Club member Karla Vega took photos of all the
visiting parents.
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NATHAN ALEXANDER When photography first came to
be it was a new world. When I first started
photography I thought it was about pressing a
button . . . But now I know that you can kind of
adjust how the picture looks. Id like to cover
nature, because Id like to show how factories
and pollution are killing nature. Nature is part
of the earth, and throwing trash on the ground or
carving your name in a tree isnt helping.
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Graffiti
This is a picture of graffiti. I like this
picture because it has lots of shadow.
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Griffith Park Graffiti
This is a picture of graffiti at Griffith Park. I
think this graffiti has good lighting.
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Hiking
This is a picture of Mr. B. looking out over the
ledge of the cliff of Bee Rock.
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This is a picture of Miguel throwing a ball in
the air.
The Power Is Within You
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Sit Back
This is my brother watching Scooby Doo.
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SPORTS BREAK!
Proving theres more to life than books, or even
cameras, the Photo Club kids look forward to lots
of healthy, active competition. Left Nathan
takes one on the head from Giovanni during the
post-fight interview. Below Pablo gets out of a
pickle against Jesus.
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MULTI-MEDIA ACTIVITY COLLAGES
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TREASURES Family Photographs of the Kittridge St.
Elementary School Photography Club
FOR ALL OF PHOTOGRAPHYS VARIED USES, ITS MOST
UNIVERSAL AND DEMOCRATIC FUNCTION IS ARGUABLY
THAT OF CREATING IMAGES OF LOVED ONES. TREASURES
WAS MADE POSSIBLE BY THE PARENTS OF THE PHOTO
CLUB STUDENTS, WHO GENEROUSLY SHARED PRECIOUS
PHOTOGRAPHS FROM THEIR FAMILY ALBUMS. ONE
ADDITIONAL BENEFIT OF THIS THE COLLABORATION
BETWEEN STUDENT, PARENT AND TEACHER, BASED ON A
COMMON RESPECT AND APPRECIATION OF THE FAMILY
Photograph by Carlos Ruiz
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EVA SANCHEZ MOTHER AUNT Luz Sanchez, on the
right, was photographed with her sister Lupe in
their backyard in El Salvador, in 1976. This
photo is very special to me because its a memory
of my sister and I. Since we were young, we were
always together and now, we are still together
helping each other. Its a reflection of what my
sisters and I have. Thats why this photo is very
special to me. Photographer unknown
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CARLOS RUIZ GRANDMOTHER This hand-tinted
portrait was made in El Salvador, in 1960.
Carlos explains why this photograph is so
precious to his mother Its the only photo she
has of her mother. She only knows how her mom
looks by this photo because my grandma died when
my mom was only one year old. Unknown phot
ographer
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KARLA VEGAS GREAT-GRANDPARENTS Karlas Grandma
Irma loves this photo of her mother and father,
taken at their wedding in Mexico, 1946. Its
special, because thats the only photograph I
have of my parents married. And, because it is
56 years old. Also in this photo it shows that my
parents love each other very much. San
Toyo the Photographer
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JENNIFER LOBOS GRANDMOTHER was photographed in
April 25, 1977 in a place called Photo Boiton in
Guatemala. Jennifers mother Reyna This
photograph is special to me because I dont have
my mother here, and I only have this photograph
to remember her. Photographer unknown
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GRECIA VASQUEZS MOTHERS FAMILY was
photographed at their home in El Salvador,
1968. Grecia explains that this photograph is so
special to her mother Maria, Because it is the
only picture she has with her family, and she is
young at our home. Photographer unknown
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KIMMY LIMONS MOM (PATRICIA) sat for this
portrait at the D.I.F. Nursing School in Mexico,
1979. It is special because it was taken
when I was fifteen and when I graduated from
nurse school. Unknown photographer
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STEPHANIE SANCHEZS GRANDMOTHER El Salvador, Year
Unknown Stephanie writes This picture
is special because it is the only picture my dad
has of his mom. My dads mom died when my dad
was nine. Photographer unknown
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Photo by Nora Anaya
JAZMINE ANAYA AND HER MOTHER NORA Nora was
photographed as a young girl in El Salvador in
1963. Jazmines photo was taken in 1994 in Los
Angeles. Nora explains why the picture is so
important Its the only picture that I have
when I was a kid and (it) also shows the
resemblance of me and my daughter at that
age. Photographer unknown
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JESUS LOSOYAS SISTER BRENDA (AND THEIR
COUSIN), photographed in Durango, Mexico, 1984.
Jesus chose this image, and wrote This
photo is special to remember when my oldest
sister was one year old. Photo by Mrs.
Losoya (Jesus mother)
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VALERIA CACERES FATHER Herbert C. Caceres,
photographed on July 23, 1980, In San Salvador,
El Salvador. Valerias grandmother Nina
explained the photographs significance Its
special to me because its my son, and I have a
memory of him when he was young.
Photograph by Studio Garcia
INGRID SALAZARS FATHER Julio Salazar,
photographed in 1974, in El Salvador. Ingrid
Its special to me because if my dad dies Ill
have something to remember him. Photograph by
Flores, Foto Estudio
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MIKE BARD, NATHANS DADS STEP-FATHER was
photographed at a boot camp in Alabama,
1942. Damien Alexander This is special
to me because it shows my step-dad training in
boot camp for World War II. photograph by Leo
(friend)
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MANOUK MANOUKIANS MOTHER LINA was photographed
as a child in Syria, 1969. It is special,
Manouk writes, because my mother can remember
that her father always took her for a
photo. Photographer Zohrab
NADER SHERIF MEKHAILS MOTHER SAMIRA was
photographed in Baghdad, Iraq, 1965. (The
photograph) brings good memories back, Nader
writes, and you could see how she looked when
she was young. Photographer unknown
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JANETH ROJASGRANDMOTHER Maria posed for this
portrait in Cuernavaca, Mexico, in
1955. Janeth explains that this is a
special photograph because Now my Grandmother
(is old) and has a disease. Photograph by
great-grandmother
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DAVID BLUMENKRANTZS MOTHER posed for this
photograph in Chicago, Illinois, around
1940. I love this picture because it
shows my mom as a happy little girl. Her
mischievous expression and her costume (The Good
Fairy?) provide visual clues about her
personality. The car in the background is also
interesting, because as we look at it now, it
seems to be a very old car. Back then, it was
probably a new model.
Photographer unknown
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COLLABORATIONS HOME VISITS The following
photographs a series of environmental
portraits-- were taken in the homes of the
Photography Club members. Each home was visited
at least once. During the first series of visits,
all the photographs were taken by the instructor.
For the second round of visits, most of the
photos were taken by the students, with the
technical assistance of the instructor, who set
up the portable studio lighting and offered
general directions. The students learned to
handle the much heavier, manual-focus Pentax 645
camera, use a hand-held spot meter, choose their
settings and direct their models.
My sincere thanks to all of these families, whose
warm hospitality and enthusiasm for the project
reflected their desire to give their children a
unique educational opportunity. Id like to
think it was a learning experience for all of us.



-David Blumenkrantz
Kimmy Limon, and her mother Patricia
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GRECIA
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Grecias mother, preparing pupusas in the
kitchen. Photo by Grecia
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Mom Dad, with their tools Photo by
Grecia
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Richard
photo by Grecia
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Grecia and Mommy
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JESUS
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Twin sisters Carina and Carla photo by Jesus
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Mother baby-sitting

photo by Jesus
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Jesus with his mother and brother
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Watching TV with family
Jesus with his older brothers
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KARLA
Karla (in her Communion Dress), with her
mother and grandmother
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Aunt Cristina
photo by Karla
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Mom, Grandma, and Aunt Cristina
photo by Karla
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Karla with her grandparents
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Playing around in her Communion dress
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With little brother David
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Pet Duck
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EVA
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Mom and Dad, with Jerry the cat
photo by Eva
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My family eating dinner
photo by Eva
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Cousin Amanda with Jerry photo by
Eva
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Evas mother, sister and grandmother
Eva with her mother
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CARLOS
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Sister Karla, Mom Dad
photo by Carlos
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Dad with bible photo
by Carlos
Mom with photo of her mother photo by Carlos
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JENNIFER
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The Lobos Family
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Mom, Nerly Dad
photo by Jennifer
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Dad repairing an old television photo by
Jennifer
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Mom, in the kitchen
photo by Jennifer
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Nerly with her teddy bear collection Photo by
Jennifer
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KIMMY
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Kimmy with her stuffed animals
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Mommy and Karen
photo by Kimmy
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Sisters against Osama
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NATHAN
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Nathan Mom
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Mom Dad
photo by Nathan
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Little brother Wolfgang in his room
photo by
Nathan
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Nathan and his brothers
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Nathan Dad
Nathan Dad
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Nathan with parents
Dad with guitar photo by Nathan
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VALERIA
The Caceres family in Griffith Park
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Valeria with little sister Beverly
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Valeria with Mom, and baby sister
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Valeria playing with her sister
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Eva
Karla
Grecia
Bryan
Carlos
Kimmy
Valeria
Jennifer
Jesus
Nathan
And thats the way we see it! Thanks for watching
our show.