Christina Redmond
Aloha!
My name is Christina Redmond and I am a self-taught amateur photographer with a degree in Marine Biology from the University of Hawai'i at Manoa.
"We all come from the sea, but we are not all of the sea. Those of us who are, we children of the tides, must return to it again and again, until the day we don't come back leaving behind only that which was touched along the way" - Richard "Frosty" Hesson
Featured In:
Hawaii Unchained Instagram Page 2017
Seawords Photography Issue 2016 (3 photos)
Marin County Visitors Bureau Visit Marin Instagram 2016
Glimpse of Hawai'i Instagram Feature 2016
Aloha Outdoors Instagram Feature 2016
Grand Wailea Hotel Resort Maui Instagram Page 2016
Grand Wailea Hotel Resort Maui Instagram Page 2015
Marvelous Hawai'i Instagram Feature 2015
Marin County Visitors Bureau Visit Marin Instagram 2015
Background
I was fortunate enough to be born and raised in the beautiful state of California and I am blessed to call it home. I was raised in Marin County, renowned for it's incredible location: an hour north of San Francisco, an hour south of some of the best wineries in the world (Napa), a hours from Lake Tahoe and iconic national parks like Yosemite, but most importantly a half an hour from the beautiful coastline of California. Growing up here gave me the opportunity to explore some of the most scenic and iconic locations in the world and I will never take that for granted. Looking back on how I got started in photography, I ask myself, how could I not pick up a camera when I was surrounded by all these beautiful places? I am truly grateful for everything in my life, including where I was raised, but more importantly, who I was raised by. I want to dedicate this website to my loving and supportive parents who gave me this wonderful world to explore and the encouragement to do so.
I moved to Oahu, Hawai'i for college seven years ago and have fell in love with this state ever since. I came to Oahu not knowing anything about the area, culture, or school I was attending and I have to say that I was pleasantly surprised and welcomed here. I took four upper level Hawaiian culture/religion classes apace with the rigor of my biology classes during my undergrad. I had no prior knowledge of Hawaiian culture and the language (which some of the classes were taught in), so it was hard to manage but after taking a couple classes my teacher told me to take a couple of her graduate level classes and I couldn't resist. Taking those classes was one of the best decisions I've made while living here because it has given me a way to better understand and connect with the local community and my surroundings, which I feel is important with any new or foreign place. I am often asked if I am from here, which is a compliment, but I explain that I'm from California and am Irish, Italian, German, and Japanese. People are often surprised with my response.
Photography
My interest in photography started in high school when my parents gave me a Sony point and shoot camera for Christmas (which I shortly broke after), but, ironically enough, I fell in love with it ever since. The next camera I tried was my mom's old film camera. To be totally honest, I have only taken one class in photography (a film class) where I spent a majority of the time worry about messing up prints in a dark room. Granted I learned a lot from this introductory class, I've had no other instruction on photography and learned how to take photographs on my own, since then.
Up until 8 months ago, I was taking photographs with my iPhone and GoPro of which a large portion of my website comes from. Last Christmas I got a more professional camera and have been teaching myself how to use it and Adobe Photoshop and Lightroom since then. That being said, almost all of my photographs on my website have not been tampered with or manipulated.
Career
After graduating several months ago, I've spent a majority of my time learning how to make a website/making this website, teaching myself how to code from Youtube videos and online articles (elementary stuff for this website), advancing my knowledge/skills in photography and searching for a job that would best suit me and my goals in the future.
I'd love to pursue a career in combining my passions for marine biology and wildlife research/conservation with my passion for photography and outreach & education. Having done internships with in marine research/conservation and having a successful social platform to share it on, I believe I'm on the right path to follow my dreams.