People in the Limelight: Tina Tran

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Young Vancouver Photographer Using Old-school Skills

Constantly surrounded by laptops, smartphones and mp3 players, people seem to forget the alluring simplicity of writing things down or flipping the pages of a book. Local photographer Tina Tran, 19, believes remembering classic techniques is her “secret weapon” as digital photography overtakes film.  “I think people should have to learn how to use an analog camera before they are able to use a digital one,” Tran said, “because I think you should know a camera instead of depending on the technology. I’m also still really old-fashioned that way.”

Tran started taking pictures in photo classes in high school as a hobby. At the time, she had plans to go to college to be pre-dental, a goal influenced by her Asian heritage. After a couple of quarters at North Seattle Community College (NSCC), though, she realized medicine was not a good fit for her.


“I’d spend more time taking pictures, editing them, perfecting them rather than studying for a human anatomy exam or memorizing bones and muscles,” she said.

Tran didn’t bend to cultural and familial pressures, instead choosing to do something she was passionate about. She showed some of her work at the gallery at NSCC, and then Archer Gallery at Clark College and others around Vancouver when she moved home last fall. Her photos are currently on display at Archer Gallery as part of the Art Student Annual, collections of pieces students created for classes.

Tran shoots in both digital and film, but no matter which medium she uses, she tries to use the camera to capture a scene as it is rather than manipulating it with Photoshop.

“Most of the things I do are still life,” she said. “They don’t talk back to you. They don’t ask you what they should do. They just sit there and be pretty as they are.”

Tran likes to document the beauty in mundane, everyday objects, especially bedsheets and raindrops. She also has an affinity for figure work, playing with light as it interacts with the curves and contours of the body.

“It’s just serene intimacy,” she said.

Tran also has a great affinity for color, and she wants to do an exhibit exploring color, specifically citing bubbles and glitter as potential subjects or media.

“I’m really drawn to colors,” Tran said. “If I could, I would do a study on why humans are so drawn to colors, why they have favorite colors, and how [seeing colors] affects their everyday life.”

More than just a photographer, Tran reads Vietnamese poems during international poetry nights. She linked up with a local poet, who, Tran says, believes in opening listeners up to poetry in foreign languages.

“Even when poems are written in different languages,” she said, “you can still hear the tone and how it all flows together like a song. You can still understand that it’s still poetry, and how your poem sounds in a different language, it’s still really beautiful.”

Tran has lots of ideas for the future. She wants to travel, get her Master’s in photography, open and run a gallery, and teach photography. For now, Tran is content to finish school (she’s anxiously waiting to hear back from the University of Washington) and keep taking pictures through her business, Friendship Photography.

“I do have that inkling that wants to do Better Homes and Gardens and stuff,” Tran said, “but I can’t really tell where the future’s gonna take me. I’m only 19. I can’t have my life mapped out yet. I can’t wait to see what’s in store.”

To see some of Tran’s artwork or contact her, check out her website.

Reach Managing Editor Ashleen Aguilar at [email protected].

 

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