Where do I start with John Marshall? He is very funny, he is in ROTC, he is perusing a music education major, he sometimes finds his way into trouble, and he plays the bass clarinet. I had the mission of capturing all of this in one photograph. I really enjoyed this project; it forced me to get to know someone well enough that I felt I could take a picture that well reperesents his personality. To get to know each other better, we had lunch together twice, as well as had a handful of text conversations to learn more about one an other.

After getting to know him, I could somewhat imagine the picture I wanted to take of John. I have him running because he is sometimes running away from trouble, was active for Boy Scouts, and also runs for ROCT. He is carrying his base clarinet because it represents his major, his involvement in symphony band, and his dedication to band in high school. In the background, there is sheet music flying in the air, as if he just realized he has somewhere to be and jumped up in a flurry, because he seems to occasionally push the limit time-wise.

My favorite part of the picture is John’s face, because I didn’t ask him to make any particular face; he just made this one while he was running. It makes me smile; I think his automatic face shows his true personality. He is a very funny character. When John and I first chose each other for the project, he and I only had time for a quick exchange of names and phone numbers, but now that we have finished the project, I know I have a new friend in Arts Scholars.