This project gave me a new experience that I never felt before in my life. I had to take two pictures of fifteen complete strangers, one photo with their normal facial expression and one with them smiling. As much as this assignment was uncomfortable, it was also very special. It was amazing seeing how visions and thoughts on a certain person could change drastically if they simply smile. The task also taught me about implicit bias, which are stereotypes and thoughts people naturally have to view on things. During my experience, I was sometimes hesitant to ask certain people if they wanted a picture, but I gathered all my courage and went onward to them. Some people said that they didn’t want one, and that was okay. Some instances were also pretty hilarious, where one person advised to take a picture of their friend, and that friend recommended another  until the last one agreed for a photo. Everything was A LOT easier then what I had imagined in the very beginning. If I was hired as a photographer and wanted to avoid implicit bias, I would ask my client to simply smile. Smile and do a pose that your heart desires most, because that’s the fun of photography. For the first time, this project not only told me about how to make good pictures, but also more about the world we live in and what actually lives deep within us.         -Marie Valouiski

Slides for the rest of the photos here.