At the beginning of the COVID-19 lockdown in Tokyo, Japan, photographer and educator Cari Payer stood on a deserted street photographing a fashion shoot. Her teenage daughter modeled. And the ensemble? Cari made it herself out of black garbage bags. “We couldn't take her out of the outfit until we'd gotten the shot because there was no getting her back in it,” she recalls.

The resulting photo was one of four that Cari conceptualized for a photo-essay entitled “COVID-19 Spring Collection 2020.” Her daughter not only acted as the model, but helped Cari develop her creative idea and bring it to life.“Honestly, she'd been out of school for a while. We were stuck at home together. The photo shoot was a great way to do something fun and get out of the house. So we decided to do a spoof of a spring fashion line.”

One photo that quickly became a hit on social media shows Cari's daughter in the middle of a grocery store wearing an evening gown fashioned from toilet paper. “The toilet paper dress is our formal wear because we figured it's expensive and material and high quality. To take the photo, we got permission from the manager of a local grocery store. We went in early in the morning to set it up, and all of the shoppers were giving her funny looks. But it turned out great, and it was really fun.”

Born and raised in rural Alaska, Cari's upbringing laid the foundation for the types of stories she gravitates towards. “I find that when I travel and talk to people and interact, I try to notice the people who aren't as obvious and aren't standing in the middle of everything.”

Married to an engineer who has been stationed all over the world, Cari and her family move frequently, But their sojourn in Tokyo lasted an unprecedented three years, during which Cari established her passion for education and creating community through photography. ”It's important to foster a sense of community so that everybody has an opportunity to share their stories, views, and creativity. That's why I got into workshops.”

Before the pandemic hit, Cari taught in-person six-week workshops throughout Tokyo, as well as in Mongolia and Bali. The classes included Basic Photography, Photographing Nature and Advanced Photography. “I'm genuinely happiest when I see people that I work with start to thrive. I love it when I get messages from people who didn't know how to work a camera six weeks ago, and they just took this beautiful portrait of their kid.”

But when the lockdown set in, Cari was forced to pivot how she taught her workshops. “All of the sudden, I'm locked in my house with the three other family members and two dogs. I think, what am I going to do?”

Cari didn't feel comfortable creating pre-recorded online classes and communicating through texting. "Everything always gets discombobulated in text messages. I like interacting in person,” she says. So Cari began hosting live online workshops to keep that human connection and experience the part of teaching she loves the most.

She set up a studio setting in her living room and enlisted her children to help prepare for the classes. “We had to do classes in the evening, so I used studio lighting to pretend like it was natural light to teach the students different ideas. I would drag my kids outside during the day to take example pictures using reflectors and shoot videos to bring them into class for discussion.”

While teaching technical aspects of photography is an integral part of Cari's classes, even more important to her is helping her students explore new ideas and ways of looking through the lens. “Just because we go to a tourist destination doesn't mean that destination is what we need to photograph. There's nothing wrong with taking a postcard shot, but get a little deeper and learn about the culture and interact with people. It's not Disney World.”

Another important aspect of her workshops is understanding the responsibilities behind taking a photograph. “Many years ago, I was travelling with a group of photographers driving down a rural road. There was an Indigenous family sitting outside having dinner, and the tour guide slams on the brakes so everybody can pile out to take photos. I couldn't believe that they thought this was remotely okay.”

While Cari agrees there are scenarios where one doesn't necessarily have to ask permission before taking a photo, she believes photographers have an ethical and moral imperative to consider their actions and be respectful. “Ask yourself, would I be okay with somebody taking a picture of me in this way?”

At the end of 2020, Cari and her family relocated to the United States. With the experience from her online workshops, she's currently figuring out how to continue teaching and demystifying the art of photography to a wider audience.

To discover more of Cari's work and workshops, visit her website and follow her on Instagram @caripayer.

Featured