Kinsey

Hi, my name is Kinsey and I am an 18 year old girl that loves to take pictures and do almost anything that uses creativity.  I found out I had high functioning autism when I was 16 but it has not slowed me down at all.  It took me a while to accept it, but I realized it does not define who I am.  So far, I have been able to do anything I put my mind to, even if it takes me a little longer than other people to achieve my goals.  Life is not a race and nobody is perfect.  I graduated from an awesome private school this year.  The reason I say it was awesome was because it was a very small school with very small class sizes.  The teachers are specialized in helping people with special needs and any other needs such as one-on-one learning, social skills, or pretty much anything else.  The teachers were very well trained and knew how to work with young children up to graduating teens.  I had the same teacher for the 2 years I went to school there.  She was very kind and helped me learn a lot both socially and academically.  I liked that she was so patient with me and how well she was able to teach me in the way that helped me most.  I learn better hands on rather than reading it from a book and my teacher was able to help me meet my needs without making me feel singled out.  Since I have been used to small class sizes, the idea of going to college really overwhelmed me.  I have found a college that has small class sizes and that is willing to help accommodate my needs.  Not only do the class sizes fit what I need, but I am also able to major in what I love, photography.  I have loved taking pictures for a long time and I have gotten pretty good at it.  I have taken photos for the school yearbook as well as for personal use.  Last year, I was in a photography club at my school.  Not only do I love photography but I also love painting and writing.  I enjoy writing more than painting.  My favorite thing to do in writing is to look up pictures and write short stories from them.  The reason I need this scholarship is to help me pay for college so I can follow my dreams of being a professional photographer.  When I went to visit The Art Institute, I felt welcomed and felt like I would like the teachers and staff that worked there.  Some of the students work on campus in the building and they were very nice and I look forward to seeing who is in my classes.  Hopefully I will fit in well with everyone else.  Something tells me I will.  I know several people that have their own photography businesses and I hope one day I will be able to have my own as well. I have practiced more on flowers and different items more than on people or animals.  I have tried to take pictures of my dog, but he is camera shy and won’t look at the camera.  I have gotten a few good pictures of him without him realizing it.  Haha.  I will be working on my 2 year associates degree in photography in college and I am very excited to see how well I do after I graduate.  When I have looked online for pictures prompts to write stories from I have gotten very inspired by some of the beautiful pictures I have seen.  To me, black and white pictures are just as beautiful and sometimes more beautiful than pictures in full color.  This has only made me want to express my love for photos more than ever.