I believe that looking at things from a different perspective can beautify the ordinary. I believe that everyone is on Earth for a reason. Whether it is to change the world or sit on the sidelines, there’s a reason. I have seen this through both my photography and my personal experience. Working with special needs people and noticing my style of photography have led me to this conclusion.
All my life I’ve worked with special needs people. Lots of people would just ignore them, thinking they are a waste of time, space, and money. I, however, know they aren’t. If you look at them like you look at everyone else, you will see a different person than if you look at them as an individual. My older sister, Molly, was born with autism. It’s something I’ve lived with my whole life. When I tell people, I usually get a reaction of “oh, I’m sorry,” or something of that sort. Well, truth be told, I’m not sorry. I love her no matter what.

Since she has autism, she thinks differently than most people. Therefore, her actions may seem strange to other people. One story sticks out in my mind. I was about ten and Molly was about thirteen. We were at a restaurant called Bug-A-Boo Creek. The theme of the restaurant was wildlife. They had a talking moose, a dancing fish, and a big talking evergreen when you first walk in. In between two tables, where we were sitting the day of this story, there was a barrel with a raccoon that pops out every five or so minutes. After watching the raccoon come
and go a few times, Molly decided the raccoon was thirsty. She waited patiently for the raccoon to come again and she took her full glass of water and poured it on the raccoon – well, she tried to pour in on the raccoon. She missed and poured it on the man in the next booth. He, along with my family and the witnesses of the hysterical incident, were all laughing. Usually, if a thirteen-year-old throws water on an adult, especially a stranger, that adult would be furious. However, if you look at the situation from Molly’s perspective, it can be looked at as a caring gesture that turned into a hilarious disaster.

Through my photography, I literally beautify the ordinary by looking at things with a different perspective. Most people would just walk by a chain-link fence, not bothering to take a picture of it. However, I took my camera to the top and took a picture looking down, and it came out looking like the fence was endlessly fading down. Most people would also walk past a small puddle. I, on the other hand, saw the reflection of the sky in the puddle and thought it would make a great picture. So I took one. When you look at those pictures, you may not see a fence or a puddle. Instead, you are more aware of the texture and form of the fence and puddle. Though the fence and the puddle alone are ordinary, the perspective from witch I take these pictures makes them beautiful.

Believing that looking at things with a different perspective has made my life more meaningful because I have learned that society’s perspective may not always be correct. Sometimes, you have to stand on your head to see the true beauty in something. I believe that everything and everyone is beautiful in their own way.