From the Archives: Art School days

Ballerina in Training

I am pretty sure the year was 1996. I was a student at the Art Institute of Pittsburgh when I was assigned a task by my Photojournalism professor Barry Lavery to do a photo essay. It had to be specific and it had to have a unique story that showed the beginning or an end. I had always been interested in dance (photographically speaking), but I didn't know anyone in  Pittsburgh. Someone in the admissions dept. had a relative who had a teenager who was a really good ballet dancer. That was when I met 15 year old Brooke Moore. I spent a total of 3 days with Brooke and her family and friends, photographing and talking about her last few months in Pittsburgh. I found out she wasn't just good at Ballet, She was awesome and had been accepted to the San Francisco Ballet Theatre School. Below is an image from a portrait session we had at the studio in Pittsburgh where she trained. This is one of the photos I took early on where I discovered a passion and affinity for what is referred to in the newspaper business primarily as the Environmental Portrait.

Brooke Moore ©1996 toddstringerphoto