In a Halton photo studio, two friends are working to capture the people who are the essence of the region.
The images will be part of Carol Pombo and Renata Pollock's Portraits of Halton photo book, which aims to show how people with different backgrounds and stories have been nurturing the common core values that sustain the local community.
The pair met only last December at a Brazilian fair, both being from Brazil originally, and quickly bonded over their shared interest in photography and story telling.
“I saw her work, and I just thought it was amazing,” Pombo says. “We got coffee, started thinking together, and we came to this idea together.”
So far, just a handful of subjects have had their photo taken for the book, but those who have are in good company. Burlington Mayor Marianne Meed Ward and Indigenous activist WhiteEagle have both had their likeness captured for the project.
Honoured to participate in a photo shoot and interview for the Portraits of Halton book — a collaboration between photographer Renata Pollock (pictured) and writer Carol Polombo, to promote diversity and connection.
— Marianne Meed Ward (@MariannMeedWard) October 3, 2023
The book will feature stories and pictures of people in… pic.twitter.com/DtSHmid4hs
Pollock, the photographer, works with the subjects to find a way to capture what makes them unique. She feels having the same background for each person would not be visually interesting or fair to the individuality of those involved.
“For example, I didn’t want to do WhiteEagle’s session in the studio,” Pollock says. “We did her session outdoors; I thought it had more to do with her personality and background.”
Pollock also ensures the photos selected for the final book are approved by the subjects, saying nobody wants a photo published of themselves that they don’t like.
Pombo is the writer of the duo, and is putting together short summaries about the subjects to go along with the photos.
She always makes sure their stories relate back to Halton.
“There are so many different stories,” Pombo says. “There are people who have been here for decades, and people who only came to Halton five or 10 years ago. But what they all have in common is this entrepreneur spirit; the spirit of starting something or being motivated to change things.”
The two are balancing the demands of their regular jobs with getting the book ready, and continue to reach out to people who they want to feature, but are also open to volunteers. They are looking for people along the lines of teachers and firefighters who have been in Halton for a long time.
“I believe that every one of us has an interesting story to tell,” Pombo says.
Pollock and Pombo are also looking for sponsors. Publishing a book is not a cheap undertaking, and they understand that in order to have a physical item, corporate assistance may be needed.
They hope that as many as 35 people will be featured in the book, and are expecting to have it ready to read in about one year.
For further details or to get in touch, visit https://www.renatapollock.com/portraits-of-halton.
