By Olivia Richie
Mason Hannon is a senior at Ponte Vedra High School (PVHS) that wants to pursue an active career in the arts after high school. He has a scholarship for Savannah College of Art and Design and hopes to continue his passion not only in art, but photography specifically. “Photography is a way to capture something I don’t want to forget, each picture I take has its own story,” said Mason. Mason enjoys shooting film apposed to using a digital camera. This is because how the photo may develop can change, which gives an element to surprise when shooting film. Mason prefers shooting film for the vintage aesthetic that film gives to photos. “I prefer having my photos look more rustic, an shooting film allows for that to be portrayed best, rather than the clear cut picture you many get from a modern camera that requires more specific angles and lighting. My style of photography I think is more authentic” said Mason. There is a lot that goes into getting the perfect picture, but for Mason it’s less about how the photo may come out and more about the memory behind the picture.
Mason began to take up his interest in photography in middle school, from taking pictures of friends and family to now incorporating anything and everything. Whatever piques his interest is worth taking a picture of. Currently he enjoys taking pictures of nature. “I can remember my first real interest in photography came from photos I saw in National Geographic magazines,” explained Mason. His dream career is to work with National Geographic as a photographer, this way he can do what he loves while traveling the world. In order, to achieve this he plans to take up an internship over the summer, as well as take courses at Savannah College of Art and Design to learn as much as he can about art and photography. Mason’s favorite photographer is Vivian Maier, an American street photographer whose work dates all the way back to the 1950’s however, these pictures weren’t seen by the public until 2007 when John Maloof bought her film at an auction. Like Mason, she mostly took pictures of things that interested her or caught her attention. Most of the pictures she took were around New York City and Chicago between 1950 to 1990. She died in 2009 never knowing the impact her work had on the world years later. “For me it’s not necessarily about the pictures she’d taken it was the story of how all her work wasn’t recognized or even seen till long after she had passed. She never took pictures for anyone but herself which is what interested me most about her work,” Mason mentioned.
As well as being a self-taught photographer, he also enjoys drawing and sculpture. Mason is currently enrolled in the Advanced Placement Sculpture course at PVHS winning a gold key in the Northeast Florida Scholastics Art Awards in early 2022. The project he won the golden key for was on a sculpture piece he made relating to body positivity. Mason has also been drawing since he was little, he mostly does freestyle sketches. However, drawing is more of a hobby rather than an interest of his. Mason continues to expand his horizons in the arts everyday in hopes to continue his knowledge in every aspect of art. Although photography, sculpture, and drawing are different forms of art, they all share a common ground when sharing ideas and emotion.
Mason has plenty to look forward to in the future as he continues to pursue what he loves. He mentioned he continues to learn every day, not only about photography but what art means to him. “What makes this whole experience so exciting, is I know I have so much more to learn as someone who is self- taught. It will be interesting to dive into new preceptive,” said Mason. He willing to learn more, and he’s also willing to work hard doing so. Mason is on track to being the photographer he has always wanted to be.
