J HENRY FAIR

My personal project was to focus on how trash created by humans pollute our daily life. How we see it every day on the side of the road or in the grass and dirt of our earth, and we usually just chose to ignore it and accept it as how some people treat our home. And due to COVID-19 taking over all of our lives and forcing us to chance how we live and go about our day, my project had to change as well. Instead of being able to drive wherever I so wished, I was constrained to my family home. Although, I was still able to complete my topic with ease due to all the garbage that was just left within 300 feet of where I lived.

An environmental photographer by the name of J Henry Fair was a large influence and inspiration for my project. Fair is not only a photographer, but an environmental activist and co-founder of the Wolf Conservation Center in South Salem, New York. His Industrial Scars project was what inspired me the most with his large-scale aerial photos. Photos ranged from oil drilling and coal ash waste to the large agricultural plants and abandoned mining operations from a bird’s eye perspective. His photos brought attention to topics such as global warming, environmental pollution, and habitat destruction.

Fair’s work brought the attention to such important topics of people around the world, and obviously, my project won’t do the same. However, if I can have at least a handful of people rethink about what they do with their garbage or to change on bad habit to a more earth friendly and green response, then that’s all I can ask for. For example, if someone see my photos and see how much plastic bottles are just lying around in the dirt and buys a reusable water bottle instead of buying yet another case of plastic bottles from a large company then that’s a step in the right direction. Yes, it’s a small step, but small steps are necessary to build into a large turn around in how we treat our planet.