Dean Isidro

"One day in 1976, my mom came inside after lying in the sun all day, and said “Take a picture of my tan.” She handed me her little square Kodak point-and-shoot, and it was the first time I had ever held a camera. I remember the feel of it—the excitement of peering through the viewfinder, and having a framework to organize what I was seeing in a way that would last.

I concentrated on her bright yellow shorts, and her red blouse, and her golden hair, and her deep tan—I thought she was so pretty. And I wanted the picture to be as beautiful as she looked to me.

Then I pressed the shutter."