Spotlight on Huntington Photographer Alyssa Cortes
If energy and passion count for anything, Huntington High School senior Alyssa Cortes is destined for plenty of success in life. She's a happy teenager who has found a special niche for herself in the world of photography.
"Ms. Cortes' portfolio of work has a unique quality to it. Colorful, innovative, creative, her photos are all of these – and so much more. While teenagers can be a hard group to impress, but Ms. Cortes earns high praise from her classmates. "
"Alyssa Cortes has been my student for the past three years. She is eager and enthusiastic. Alyssa is by far one of the very most creative and talented students I have. Alyssa has true passion and is one of my best!". . . . . Photography teacher Pam Piffard on Alyssa Cortes
"This year Alyssa is in my photo intern. Her responsibilities include assisting with the class, individual help for students and producing a body of personal work. Alyssa is working on developing her own personal style. She has been particularly successful in working on long-term projects (ex. 'The Seven Deadly Sins'). She puts so much thought and planning into what does! She has such a strong sense of imagery and the images she chose to use for her portfolio are beautiful! It is nice to see how proud Alyssa is when she accomplishes a great image.
"On a final note, Alyssa is a tremendously kind individual. She is a good friend, good student, good artist and good person."
Questions and Answers with Alyssa Cortes
Q: How old are you and what grade are you in?
Cortes: "I am 17 years old and in 12th grade."
Q: How did you first get interested in photography?
Cortes: "I first became interested in photography during my sophomore year. I had been taking the fashion design course as a freshman and during it realized that I enjoyed the human element of photography much more than just drawing. So as a 10th grader I signed up for intro to photo with Ms. Piffard."
Q: Where do you get your ideas?
Cortes: "To be honest, everywhere. I have found that I get most of them from random things I see every day, and also people. I find that you can learn so much about a person just by looking in their eyes. But, magazine spreads and America's next top model help give me concepts, too. "
Q: Is there any specific type of photography you like best?
Cortes: "I myself enjoy fashion photography, like I said I love people, and the element that they bring to a picture. Also, the fact that I may have a slight shopping issue, so shooting people and clothes together is like a match made in heaven."
Q: How has the Huntington photography program helped you with your love of photography?
Cortes: "There are not enough words to describe how much Huntington's photography program has helped me with my love of photography. When I first joined the course I had no clue what I was doing or what I liked about photography. But, through the help of Ms.Piffard and the many techniques I was taught, I soon learned how to use a camera and discovered who I was as an artist and what I wanted to develop into. Huntington's photography program is truly a testament to the importance of art in school and without it I would not have found my passion and career path."
Q: Do you plan to continue with photography or go to school for it?
Cortes: "Ideally, I would like to go to F.I.T in New York City. They have a wonderful photography program and it's in my favorite place to be. After college I would like to end up working for either a fashion magazine or as a photographer for artist's album covers. But, for right now I'm just a 17 year old who enjoys playing photo shoot."