Work samples

  • November Sunset
    November Sunset
    November Sunset (digital composite photograph, 2020). After spending many hours admiring this view from my apartment window, but also feeling trapped inside during the Covid-19 lockdown, I created this piece to speak about the tension of appreciating the beauty of a place while also feeling afraid to leave. Lit with colored gels, this completed photograph is a composite of two images: the window with the figure sitting on the sill, and view outside, which was photographed on a day with a particularly vivid sunset.
  • March 27
    March 27
    March 27 (digital composite photograph, 2020). This image examines the solemn beauty of endings. Made with dried flowers saved from past experiences and collected from new friends, I wanted to express sadness, acceptance and hope with this piece. Set against a hand-painted backdrop, lit with one strobe and a reflector, and finished with digital compositing and light painting.
  • Jesica in Tulle
    Jesica in Tulle
    Jesica in Tulle (digital photograph). Inspired by the beauty of classical portraiture, this image has a strong feeling of stillness that invites the viewer to spend a moment looking closer at the harmonious color scheme, the candid expression and relaxed pose juxtaposed against a performer's costume, and the painterly light. Set against a hand-painted backdrop and finished digitally.
  • Vigil
    Vigil
    Vigil (digital photograph, 2021). How long should we hang on to hope? As the candle burns lower, do we keep holding on or blow out the flame? Set against a hand-painted backdrop, this image is lit by three sources: first, a blue light bounced through an arrangement of leaves to give a dappled, shadowy appearance to the background; second, the key light to softly illuminate the subject; and finally the candle itself, which gives the figure's hands a red glow.

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About Joanna

Baltimore City
Joanna Tillman is a fine art and editorial portrait photographer. Born in Georgia in  1986, Joanna grew up in a creative family and discovered photography at an early age. Her first photo subjects were her four brothers in the woods around her family home. Studying an all-analog process, Joanna earned a BA in Art: Photography at Carson-Newman University in 2007, where she also gained a deep appreciation for art history. To this day, Joanna is most inspired by nature, and by her regular trips to… more
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Self Portraits

In January of 2020 I found myself in a completely different stage in life than I had been in a year before, which was later only intensified with the Covid 19 pandemic. I developed an interest in examining the thoughts and emotions that can arise when humans experience significant change. Each photograph was approached as a painting, with elements added intentionally, from hand-painted backdrops, arranged scenery, carefully placed lighting and digital finishing techniques.
  • March 27
    March 27
    March 27 (digital composite photograph, 2020). This image examines the solemn beauty of endings. Made with dried flowers saved from past experiences and collected from new friends, I wanted to express sadness, acceptance and hope with this piece. Set against a hand-painted backdrop, lit with one strobe and a reflector, and finished with digital compositing and light painting.
  • What You Make It
    What You Make It
    What You Make It (digital composite photograph, 2020). This image was created to illustrate an intentional attempt to create a calm and creative inner world. Made in a small studio apartment during the Covid-19 lockdown, I taped flowers and foliage to a metal bar and used battery operated lights to create this image, first photographing the whole scene, then each element separately to later composite in details and finish the composition.
  • The Night I Lost Power
    The Night I Lost Power
    The Night I Lost Power (digital composite photograph, 2020). This image does what photography does best - illustrates a moment, but by complex and drawn out methods. One stormy night during a move, I was unpacking and suddenly lost power. Something about the experience stuck with me, so I decided to recreate the scene and photograph it - seen here with piles of half-unpacked books, cardboard boxes, lit candles from my Grandmother's collection, and my ever-present cat, Lucy. Finished with digital compositing techniques and light painting.
  • The Last Cup
    The Last Cup
    The Last Cup (digital photograph, 2020). This image was created to examine the significance of objects in our lives. Objects can be reminders of life events, sometimes otherwise forgotten or rarely thought of. This tea cup is one of those objects, the last unbroken piece from a set bought a decade ago.
  • Vigil
    Vigil
    Vigil (digital photograph, 2021). How long should we hang on to hope? As the candle burns lower, do we keep holding on or blow out the flame? Set against a hand-painted backdrop, this image is lit by three sources: first, a blue light bounced through an arrangement of leaves to give a dappled, shadowy appearance to the background; second, the key light to softly illuminate the subject; and finally the candle itself, which gives the figure's hands a red glow.
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