After taking photography classes as a junior, senior Matt Kastler realized that he found a life-long passion. When senior year rolled around, Kastler chose to explore photojournalism for his senior project.


“Basically I’m creating a photo-essay focusing around certain themes in this area, for example, youth and the old versus the new concerning how [Bethesda] is developing,” said Kastler.

Dan Kempner, Kastler’s mentor and photography teacher, introduced Kastler to the works of professional photographers such as Robert Frank and Walker Evans, which inspired Kastler’s senior project. He has traveled throughout Bethesda, taking photographs that contrast the rapid development of the city with less urbanized areas.

“Many famous photojournalists document the cities in which they lived, their environments, so I decided to model my project off of this concept,” said Kastler.

The subjects of Kastler’s photos vary from people to landscapes and architecture.

“Most of the people being photographed are oblivious to this fact. This was of course, done intentionally to kind of show them in their natural environment,” said Kastler. “Basically I’m trying to show and portray the people and how they are naturally.”

For the remainder of the second semester, Kastler hopes to continue photographing the community, experiment with digital photography and write commentary on his photos.

“I really enjoyed photography, and [have] thought about pursuing it later on. I chose photojournalism because it can combine photography with other interests like writing and traveling,” said Kastler.