Zahra Rahmaan

Cat Gaze

Cats are the best animal model ever. Now never in my 17 years of living would I have said that since I’m allergic but, this cat proved me wrong. I had a project for my Photo Imagery class. It was to take a picture of my neighborhood. I mapped out places in my neighborhood that I wanted to embark on. I even sketched out how I want my pictures to look. I’m a cinematic arts major so storyboarding my ideas is the best way to release my ideas before productions. My mom however noticed that I was in my head too much when telling her my ideas. She said that I needed experience actually being out in my neighborhood. Although my mom was happy that I was taking this project seriously, she told me to throw those ideas in the trash, respectively. She invited me on a morning walk with her around the neighborhood and said if I saw something that caught my eye to take a picture of it. She said, “If you see something that makes you stop and look for a minute, your viewer will stop and see too.” I thought to myself, “Well beauty is subjective….but you’re right.” She explained to me that these pictures should flow together and just be natural, not so planned out because that wouldn't be fun, it would look weird. Trying to find something that’s going to make you stop your tracks isn’t as easy as you think, especially when you’re having a conversation with someone. We went around the block and I saw these two cats. One was on a tall stool while the other one was on the ground. Cats, no matter how they look, are going to make me stop my tracks. The one on the ground went away when they saw that I whipped out my camera and yelled “Oooh kitties.” Yet the one on the chair posed, like a model. They were still and their gaze amazed me. It wasn’t planned, it just happened. If I went to their side, their head would also move and follow my camera movements. I still wonder why that cat didn’t move like their friend did. Was I intruding in an important topic? The cat could have just ran away from me and joined its friend, but it decided to pose. Were they acting like me? We’re they amazed by my beauty and stopped in their tracks as well. Their confidence made me reflect upon myself. To not hide away when facing something that seems or looks foreign. To stand tall and fierce in my own way. I wonder if the cats knew I was taking their picture or was blind. After going home and looking through the photos, this one still amazes me. The timing, the patience, and the beauty. I edited the picture to fix the lighting and I noticed the color grading on it. Very warm tones but cooler toned eyes. The exterior of the photo is again warm and inviting yet the eyes tell a different story. If I could speak to a cat I would want to know that story. But since I can't, I'm going to mind my business. This impromptu experience made me learn new things about myself, this project, and how cool cats are. Capturing animals might be my new favorite thing to do. They don’t complain unlike human models and are patient. I crave patience especially when I’m an aspiring photographer still in high school. This challenge helped me categorize my thoughts and express them thoroughly. I don’t know if i’ll be able to see this cat again, but if I do, I would say thank you.