Continuing a masterpiece

My senior thesis cover slide

Lately, I’ve been missing the days when photography and set design were my entire world. Back in college, I poured myself into my senior thesis—curating environments, building illusions, and capturing the process as much as the final shot. Those projects weren’t just assignments; they were worlds I created to live inside of, even if just for a moment.

Now, after years of chasing that same spark in smaller ways, I’ve been craving something big again—something that forces me to push past my comfort zone and reminds me of what it feels like to stand at the edge of my own imagination. Living at my parents’ house, I thought that craving would have to wait. But after they remodeled the garage, I saw the space differently. With beams perfect for hanging fabrics, enough room to layer backgrounds into illusions of depth, and actual electricity to run lights and fans (no more battling with dying batteries), it suddenly became possible.

The garage wasn’t just a garage anymore—it became a stage.

When it came time to choose the first look, I found myself torn between three visions: my Gaia Goddess, my Mother of Pearl sea deity, or a drag-styled column wedding dress. The wedding dress won. There was something about pairing it with red and white fabric suspended from the beams that felt undeniably powerful—romantic yet commanding, elevated but raw. Shooting it with my new Nikon D750 felt like stepping back into a familiar rhythm, even though I only had one portrait lens to work with. I couldn’t capture the entire dress in frame, but somehow, the limitation made me more intentional. The images turned out better than I could have hoped, and more importantly, the process reignited that feeling I’d been missing: the rush of creating immersive spaces that live somewhere between fantasy and reality.

That night, I left the garage covered in fabric threads and camera dust, but with a fire lit under me. This was just the beginning. The goddess looks are next, and for the first time in a long time, I’m not just dreaming about projects—I’m building them.