{"id":1009,"date":"2026-04-14T02:54:33","date_gmt":"2026-04-14T02:54:33","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/photographeigh.com\/?page_id=1009"},"modified":"2026-05-01T17:42:55","modified_gmt":"2026-05-01T17:42:55","slug":"rooted","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"http:\/\/photographeigh.com\/index.php\/rooted\/","title":{"rendered":"Rooted"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Rooted<\/em> is a portrait series exploring women\u2019s strength through softness, presence, and connection to the natural world. Inspired by the intimacy and emotional depth found in #girlgaze<\/em>, this project centers\n on the female gaze while expanding into personal narratives shaped by each subject\u2019s lived experience.<\/p>\n

Through a series of outdoor portraits created with natural light and minimal styling, each woman is photographed in a space that reflects her connection to nature, whether through water, light, wind, or earth. These environments become\n extensions of their stories, revealing strength not as something loud or forceful, but as something grounded, evolving, and deeply personal.<\/p>\n

The project began with self-portraits taken in the snow, questioning the language often used to describe both nature and women- quiet, soft, pale, beautiful, and how those same qualities are often diminished when applied to us. Rooted<\/em> challenges\n this perception, reframing stillness, vulnerability, and emotion as forms of power.<\/p>\n

Each participant contributes her own perspective on strength, creating a layered narrative that exists between image and voice. Together, these portraits form a collective exploration of resilience, identity, and the many ways women\n remain rooted within themselves, within nature, and within each other.<\/p>\n

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Hold These Stories in Your Hands<\/h2>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n
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The final form of this project is a book, one that holds the stories, experiences, and quiet strength of each woman who chose to be a part of it. My hope is that anyone who reads it feels a sense of connection, not only to these women,\n but to their own resilience, strength, and sense of self.<\/p>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n

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Get your copy<\/span><\/a>\n <\/span>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n
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In the Details<\/h2>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n
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Rooted is shaped, not only by images, but by the details that exist around them, the objects, conversations, and moments that give the work its depth. These elements form a quiet structure beneath the surface, connecting each portrait\n through shared experience, even when those experiences are different<\/p>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n

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The Self Portraits<\/h4>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n
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The project began with a series of self portraits taken in the snow, created from a desire to explore something I felt personally connected to. I wanted to work from a place of honesty, examining how softness and stillness\n are often perceived, and how those same qualities exist within my own experience.<\/p>\n

“People describe snow as quiet, pale, soft, and beautiful. They use the same words for women but when those words are applied to us, they are rarely meant as complements.”<\/p>\n

As the project grew, that connection expanded beyond myself. What began as something pesonal became a way of understanding others, finding shared feelings across different lives, stories, and perspectives.<\/p>\n

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The Table<\/h4>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n
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A custom wooden table was created as a physical extension of the project. An ivy-inspired design, formed by my hands, grows up the leg and across the surface, with leaves scattered across the tabletop as if naturally fallen. The piece reflects themes of growth, grounding, and connection to nature, and is used within select portraits as a space for the body to rest within this constructed environment. This ivy motif continues into the design of the book, creating a visual thread that connects object, image, and final form.<\/span><\/p>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n

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The voices<\/h4>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n
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Each woman brought her own understanding of strength, shaped by experiences entirely her own. Yet within those differences, there are moments of familiarity, threads of emotion, growth, and resilience that connected us. <\/p>\n

These reflections are woven into the work not to define the images, but to deepen them. Together, they form a collective narrative, one built through listening, trust, and connection.<\/p>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n

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