JOSHUA TREE

ANNETTE YOUNG

//Annette is a creative photographer based in California, USA. Beside her career as a librarian, film photography now satisfies her creative drive. She particularly enjoys working with lomography and has shared a series of artistic double exposures taken at Joshua Tree.

“I graduated with a BFA in Creative Photography from California State University, Fullerton, in 2004 and a Masters in Information and Library Science with a concentration on archives (specifically on the preservation of family photo albums from the 50’s-70’s) in 2009. I have always loved the unpredictability of using toy cameras, like the Holga and Woca. The colors and feel of the photos from these cameras also flood my entire being with nostalgia and past memories,” Annette says. “After I graduated with my master’s degree, I took a film photography break to focus on my career of becoming a librarian and starting a family. I had been thinking of getting back into it for years, but was feeling a little insecure. I finally decided to start the my @annetteyoungphotography page in 2020, and waited until February 2023 to add my first post. My goal has always just been to just continue to take pictures and fulfill this part of my soul that has to keep making art. I made a zine and sell prints online, which has been fun. I’m already thinking of zine #2. As a bonus, I have met a lot of wonderful photographers world wide that keep me inspired and offer encouragement for me to keep going.”

About her favourite quote below, Annette says, “I truly feel this way every time I make new art. The series I am submitting today is the last series I shot, so very much my current favorite. That is – until I shoot another one tomorrow!”

“Which of my photographs is my favorite? The one I’m going to take tomorrow.”

Imogen Cunningham

What draws you to the arts?

“I have always been drawn to the arts. Even as a child, I just wanted to draw and craft. I also loved music and learned to play several instruments. Naturally, I joined bands, took pictures everywhere we toured, studied art in college, and I continue to make art. I even worked at the Getty art museum for several years (in the Research Institute and in the Conservation Institute). I see these qualities in my kids and really nurture their love of art. Every chance we get, we visit museums, go see live music performances and take time to make art. I can’t say exactly what draws me into the arts, but it’s something inside me that’s always been there. It’s a part of who I am.”

What do you like most about this artistic photo series?

“I’m really pleased with the feel of this series. I absolutely love the desert and wandering around in that beautiful landscape. I also have fond memories of being there with my family, so everything about this series takes me back to a very happy place. During this shooting trip, I experimented a lot with some Lomography films, which I had never used before – I wasn’t sure what to expect, but I was very quite thrilled with the results! Turning my camera upside-down has also been a lot of fun. The shape of the Yucca intertwined makes the desert landscape feel like the bottom of the ocean – a fun surprise that I want to experiment with some more.”

The Joshua Tree series was all shot on a Holga GCFN camera using Kodak Portra, and Lomography films, such as LomoChrome ’92, LomoChrome Turquoise, and LomoChrome Purple Pétillant — all in 120 format film.

This camera has a manual wind button. Many of these photos are double exposures, for which with this camera Annette took two photos on the same frame, without winding the film. Many of the photos are mirrored from the top and bottom and this was achieved by taking a photo, then flipping the camera upside-down and retaking the photo.

All of the film was processed by Fromex Photo in Long Beach, CA. Annette then used a homemade copystand to digitalize the film with her digital Canon EOS Rebel T4i camera and processed them for some light color correction/dust cleaning in Photoshop.

Images may be cropped for layout. Click on the photos to see the full images.