Life as a Teenager

University College Falmouth, Cartel Photos & Young People Cornwall

LIFELIFE as a TEEnagEr

as a

Cartel Local Project Twelve

Young People Cornwall is a registered charity (no: 801688) with a long track record of success in supporting young people aged 11 to 25. Our vision is to improve the quality of life for young people living in Cornwall. We achieve this by working with young peo-ple through specialist projects and programmes addressing issues that marginalise or place young people at risk. We use a range of approaches within our projects including signposting and guidance, outdoor activities, music, arts, environmental and commu-nity work in order to facilitate the personal & social development of young people. We work with around 2500 young people every year giving them opportunities to partici-pate in activities that they would not normally be able to access and enabling them to make positive changes to their lives and to the communities in which they live.

This project has enabled a group of young people we work with to explore the medium of photography and to articulate their own experiences of life as a teenager growing up in Cornwall in 2012. The images they have produced are both thought provoking and moving and are a testament to the inherent creativity that all young people have within them. We are especially thankful to Cartel Photos and University College Falmouth for giving these young people such an opportunity and a platform to share their work with others.

If you would like to find out more about the work of Young People Cornwall please visit our website www.ypc.org.uk or telephone our office (01872) 222447.

YOUng PeOPle COrnWall

Cartel Photos and University College Falmouth (UCF) have joined up with the Young People Cornwall charity and initiated a twelve-week photography project called ‘Cartel local Project Twelve’.

The intention of the workshop was to use photography as a tool to inspire young peo-ple currently in education. This programme was designed between Cartel Photos and UCF that involved members of Young People Cornwall and students from the Ba(HOnS) Press & editorial Photography course.

The journey began last year in December through a weekly twelve-week workshop. The majority of the local pupils had had little or no experience with a camera before and were taught basic documentary skills that would prepare them for their project ‘life as a Teenager’.

The journey has been both inspirational and fulfilling, seeing a flowing expansion of self-confidence and belief in their photographic ‘seeing’, and own personalities. Their natural chemistry with the camera has been infectious and rewarding. It seems that there is a sincere sense of enjoyment of the new rapport they have discovered with the arts, and more importantly, they have developed a new life long skill.

CarTel lOCal PrOjeCT TWelve

FLOrEnCE

I have decided to base my photography project on the loneliness and solitude that ex-ists within the life as a teenager. I felt that this would be an interesting topic to focus on as it is not a stereotypical aspect of a teenager’s life yet I feel, particularly living in Cornwall, it is a part of life that is prominent in teenagers growing up. During the week I live away from home as it is too far for me to travel to and from college every day. This has meant that I have no one to tale photographs of so I decided to turn the cam-era onto myself by taking advantage of the self-timer on the camera. I found that this produced self-portraits from a different angle, as I had to balance the camera on books or trees. Overall I have found this project an invaluable experience that has opened my eyes to photography and has honestly changed the way I look at, and perceive life.

aIrFIelD SelF-POrTraITThis is the abandoned airfield near our house. One of my earliest memories is of flying a kite here on a wet and windy day. I think it encapsulates the isolation many face when living in Cornwall.

leTTerS HOMeas I live away from home during the week, I have made it a tradition to write a secret letter to my my mum and dad and then hide it for them to find. I aim to make m y letters home quirky yet comforting and each weekI write an inspirational quote. In this letter my quote was, “ We see things not as they are, but as we are.” H. M. Tomlinson

SITTIng On a leDgeat weekends I go home to my mum and dad in rural Cornwall. I’m the youngest in my family and have one older brother who lives in london. at the moment our house is being renovated and although it is not the most convenient place to live, it is here that I feel most at home. I spend a lot of my time on this ledge that overlooks the village green, playing my guitar and thinking.

COOKIe CUTTer lIgHTThis was the first photograph I took in my new accommodation. I hadn’t unpacked, my parents had left everything was bare. When I looked up at the ceiling I saw this light that, to me, looked like a cookie cutter and it made me smil.

PUTTIng On MaSCaraevery day I go through the same ritual of putting make up on. I think its sad how many teenag-ers use it as a mask.

eXaM HallThe exam hall at college is where many teenagers feel most isolated, as once you are in you are left compeltely on your own. I find the silence particularly distrubing due to the fact that there are so many hundreds of people yet no noises.

HOrSeSSince I was young girl I’ve loved horses. Up the lane from my home there is a field with about 50 wild horses in it. I love their warm breath and the smell of fresh hay when they breathe.

MOrnIng BUSI travel to college from home on Monday mornings and I am always the first on onboard down-stairs.

sTaCY

In this project I have decided to photograph landscapes from around my hometown in Bodmin, Cornwall. Unlike other Cartel local members, I do not speak to my family so I felt too nervous to ask strangers for their photograph. The photographs demon-strate how I am feeling. I often feel very alone and by having people in my images it would portray the wrong message to you, my viewers. a lot of the time I feel very depressed and down so getting out of my house to shoot this project was a way for me to express my feelings and at the same time was making me feel much better.

THe CaMel TraIl, BODMInThere is never loads of people around here. Bodmin is small and quiet and I like that. It is a nice and spacious place to be, somewhere that I can be alone. I feel safe there and cannot get pestered.

BUIlDIng COnTraCTOrSOn route on one my long walks.

THe CaMel TraIl, BODMInI love water sports; I wish it was wider because it would be perfect for kayaking. Surfing, kayak-ing, I just love being in the water.

THe SQUIrrel, BODMInHe looks really relaxed like he is sunbathing.

COllege, BODMInYou don’t see very many aeroplanes down here in Cornwall at least not that many together.

THe CaMel TraIl, BODMInI took this because it was really sweet, really cute. I love horses, they are amazing, and they are so powerful. I get on well with horses and dogs. I used to work in a kennels, a lady brought in her Dalmination before she went on holiday. It was quite an aggressive one but he was com-pletely fine with me. He didn’t let any of the other kennel handlers go near him and the owner didn’t believe us so I had to show her.

aBanDOneD raIlWaY, BODMInI like how it bends round into nowhere. It looks so exciting, like an adventure.

SeaSCaPe, CHarleSTOWnI seem to spend a lot of my time in Charlestown and The Camel Trail but I liked how the light was in this image, it seemed like it was breaking through.

Taylor

I have decided to base my photography project on a passion of mine, which are the Cadets. To be a cadet means that you are in training to be an officer in the military. Cadets often reach out to the community through activities and events and in my images I want to show that not all teenagers are out doing bad things. There are some teenagers that are out to goof things with our time such as furthering out skills and getting more qualifications to help us with our future. I also want to show the future faces of the armed forces, such as me.

lITTer SWeePlitter sweep around Curtis block, newquay. l/CPl lang.

raF ST. MaWganComing in for the final parade.

POrTraITraF ST. Mawgan

naFI TIMenafi Time is your personal time to spend with your piers after you have been training.

POrTraITST. jenkin

MarKSManSHIPPractising Marksmanship Principals with our new air rifle given to us by the armed Forces.

OUTSIDe PraCTICeSgT. reynolds

TargeT PraCTICeTwo of the Cadets

MYLEs

For my ‘life as a Teenager’ project I have decided to photograph my life around my hometown of newquay and the time that spend with my family. In this project I have shown observed portraits as well as some documentary ladnscape images. The imag-es portray my weekly lifestyle and they are taken within my spare time. When shoot-ing this project it gave me time to reflect on my life and I believe that this is shown and displayed within my work. Over these past twelve weeks this project has made me take pride in the place that I live and it shows in my identity. I enjoy sports, col-lege, socialising and going out with my firends and family and this all takes place within newquay. I believe that newquay is what makes me the young man that I am today.

MY BrOTHeralex, my brother by the boating lake, newquay.

MY MUMMum chilling having a coffee at exmouth Beach, Devon.

MY DOgSFristal Beach. My dogs love it here and go absolutely mental.

MY SISTerBefore going on to the beach in exmouth, Devon, Shannon, my sister holds my mum’s handbag.

Mea portrait from Primary School and a self-portrait of me now age 16 in College.

BrOTHer aT THe BeaCHMy brother looking out at Tolcarn Beach, newquay.

MY STeP DaDStep Dad, Dareen, looking out over the sea of exmouth, Devon.

BOWlIng greenMy local bowling club. I wish past this everyday on my way to colleague.

gEOrgE

I wanted to use the camera to document my friends when we meet up. My friends are a big part of my life so much that I wanted to focus my project on them. We tend to hang around after school and on the weekends. I like it because we can do what we want and just ‘muck’ around where ever. I had never thought that what I did with my friends would be of interest to other people. It was quite strange at first turning the camera to my friends when we went out, but over time they got used to me and as in this picture. I have really enjoyed photography my life as a teenager as it is quite differnet, I would imagine, to other people in the country. I have managed to also learn how to make my images better and gain a good understanding of what makes a good a photo. This has allowed me view my friends and what we get up to in a different light.

MOPeDSFriends on their mopeds as we hang out on an industrial estate.

MInI MOTOrCrOSSMe and my friends hang out with our bikes a lot and I wanted to show the action.

KaTIE

Being with my friends is a big part of my life. In my spare time I am always with them, hanging out, going out drinking, house parties etc. There isn’t much to do in Cornwall for young people, so I wanted to show what me and my friends get up to. This project for me was interesting. at first I found it hard to take it seriously as they all didn’t understand what I was doing and to be honest nor did I. But after some time I managed to really enjoy it once I learnt more about photography in the workshops. I have produced two photographs that I feel represent me and my friends when we are out. It shows in a way what we get up to.

DOg WalKIngWalking our friends dogs.

HOUSe ParTYCapturing a moment at a house party with some friends.

CHarIna

I have a keen interest in surfing and the beach and decided to photograph landscapes around my favourite places. To me, these are the places that I go to when I go out with friends and family. They mean a lot me. as we had to photography our day-to-day lifes, I wanted to show the places in Cornwall that for me as a teenager, were most important.

BeaCH One of my favourtie beaches in Cornwall, a place I can always go to to relax.

BeaCH TWOanother favourite beach in Cornwall which I like to visit with friends and family.

LIFE as a TEEnagEr CarTEL LOCaL PrOJECT TWELVE