{"id":3430,"date":"2022-05-02T16:18:13","date_gmt":"2022-05-02T23:18:13","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/chiccompass.com\/?p=3430"},"modified":"2026-08-30T21:57:03","modified_gmt":"2026-08-31T04:57:03","slug":"new-ways-of-seeing","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/chiccompass.com\/wordpress\/new-ways-of-seeing\/","title":{"rendered":"New Ways of Seeing"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"Chic<\/span><\/div>
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This article was printed in<\/em>
\nChic Compass Magazine - Issue 11<\/em><\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>

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\"Studio<\/span><\/div><\/div>

Studio 702 Dancer Reese Tolentino<\/p>\n<\/div>

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New Ways of Seeing with Artist-Photographer Elisa Terry<\/h1>\n

BY KENDALL HARDIN \/\/ ARTWORK & PHOTOGRAPHY BY ELISA TERRY<\/p>\n<\/div>

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In today\u2019s Instagram-saturated world, where everyone is a self-proclaimed photographer armed with a smartphone, the work of a true photographic artist jumps out from all the rest.<\/p>\n

While brilliant photography can be reduced to four simple concepts - light, composition, technique, and subject - it is hardly a simple art. Moreover, making a livelihood as a professional photographer requires not only a gifted eye combined with passion and perseverance but also a head for business and a heart that recognizes life\u2019s unique moments.<\/p>\n

I was first drawn to Elisa Terry by her photographs of Ballet120 dancers. While dance suggests movement, her shot of a sensual supple body juxtaposed within a weathered door frame caught my eye. It is a frozen \u201clandscape\u201d of the dancer\u2019s body and yet so revealing about the artform. She challenges the canon by making us \u201csee\u201d the dance performer differently.<\/p>\n<\/div>

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\"Dancer-Aerialist<\/span><\/div><\/div>

Dancer-Aerialist Samantha Bergman in Blue Label Dancewear<\/p>\n<\/div>

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I was intrigued to discover how Elisa propelled her reputation and business as a young photographer in Las Vegas. Her tale is half inspired artist and half intuitive entrepreneur.<\/p>\n

Armed with two degrees in industrial design from Auburn University, she ventured to Las Vegas to work as an exhibit and environmental designer at Derse, where she met the man she would marry. Later, when her son Elias was born, she focused on raising her child at home. She wanted to re-engage professionally when he entered school, but re-entry was challenging.<\/p>\n

\u201cI couldn\u2019t return to the exhibit design field, which is very specialized here in Las Vegas. With my husband Logan as an executive of one of the major companies, I couldn\u2019t very well work for the competition. And I don\u2019t think I could handle my husband as my boss,\u201d she jokes. \u201cSo I launched my business from home.\u201d<\/p>\n

Elisa returned to her roots as an artist and photographer to pursue her love of the arts. Her signature style combines the use of vibrant color and bold contrast in unique settings to bring her subjects to life.<\/p>\n<\/div>

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\"Hip<\/span><\/div><\/div>

Hip Hop Dancer CJ Edwards<\/p>\n<\/div>

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She started by photographing friends\u2019 weddings, graduations, engagements, and even family\/pet portraits and branched out to work with scores of artists, athletes, community events, and fashion retailers to complement her own creations in painting, illustration, and photography.<\/p>\n

\u201cI love working collaboratively with all kinds of artists and athletes in action,\u201d Elisa professes. During the pandemic, she photographed a variety of artists so they could enhance their websites. \u201cI wanted to show them as real people who are talented, trained professionals driven in their professions. I wanted them to have a voice in the darkness.\u201d<\/p>\n

Her current collaborations extend to commercial fashion photography for Child on the Go clothing lines for the Lander Company in Portland and Blue Label Dancewear designed by Las Vegas dancer Summer Smith.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m not exactly an artist\u2019s rep, but I play an important role in reflecting a performer on and off stage,\u201d Elisa notes. \u201cMy 10-year-old son has become obsessed with street dancing and pleaded for a private lesson with local phenomenon Bailey Mu\u00f1oz, winner of So You Think You Can Dance in 2019. This request led to an unbelievable photographic session with the two of them I\u2019ve been able to capture here in Las Vegas!\u201d<\/p>\n

Occasionally, Elisa donates pro bono talent to local causes. She photographed the Covid Memorial and covers the Walk for Apraxia at the Springs Preserve each year to provide support for this neurological motor disorder affecting children\u2019s ability to coordinate speech and movement.<\/p>\n

\u201cI like to integrate design and photography,\u201d she explains. \u201cAnd I have my camera and sketchbook with me wherever I go.\u201d Elisa also creates large painting commissions and sells her photographs of landscapes and cityscapes online. \u201cMy money all goes to more lenses, brushes, and paint,\u201d she shrugs with a grin.<\/p>\n<\/div>

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\"Bailey<\/span><\/div><\/div>

Bailey \u201cBailrok\u201d Mu\u00f1oz, winner of 2019 So You Think You Can Dance<\/em><\/p>\n<\/div>

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One of her newer pursuits is hand-painting custom footwear and bags, especially for street artists, Cirque performers, and groups performing in dance competitions. Her creations are 100% scuff-proof, rendered in oil-based acrylics, and sealed with a clear matt fixative.<\/p>\n<\/div>

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\"Galaxy-Themed<\/span><\/div><\/div>

Galaxy-Themed Tap Shoes<\/p>\n<\/div>

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Perhaps Elisa\u2019s most endearing venture so far is her Mini-Me Project<\/em> for kids. \u201cAll children are artists until they\u2019re told they\u2019re not!\u201d she paraphrases John Lennon.<\/p>\n

\u201cBasically, I work with individual children to find out what interests them,\u201d she explains. \u201cThen I start an illustration and send it back with suggestions of creative ways to enhance and display the work, and the child finishes it. I ask the parents to send me images of the kids working on their masterpieces, which I then post on social media.\u201d<\/p>\n

All of Elisa\u2019s photos are memories in time<\/em>. \u201cI like to work outdoors in natural light. All my shots are in motion with a high shutter speed - even my portraits are never posed in a studio. While I look forward to working more with local sports teams and Olympic athletes, I enjoy covering everything in music and dance from classical ballet to hip hop.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>

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\"Desert<\/span><\/div><\/div>

Desert Landscape with Waterfall<\/p>\n<\/div>

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For Elisa, close collaboration with the people she photographs provides the magic. \u201cTogether, we choose the setting and anything special like props and clothes - all of which sets the mood for capturing the moment.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>

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\"\u201cThe<\/span><\/div><\/div>

\u201cThe Day the Music Died\u201d 30\u201d x 40\u201d acrylic of John Lennon<\/p>\n<\/div>

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On her website, she sums up her approach. \u201cViewing art and photography should be a liberating moment in time. The content should be secondary to the meaningful communication of emotion through color and composition.\u201d<\/p>\n

While Elisa\u2019s signature style is dynamic and evocative, her work always feels infused with graceful ease. She pulls us in to observe the world through the lens of her craft, leaving each viewer with new insights, awareness, and wonder.<\/p>\n

She\u2019s definitely one artist to follow as her career skyrockets!<\/p>\n<\/div>

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\"Performer<\/span><\/div><\/div>

Performer Bailey \u201cBailrok\u201d Mu\u00f1oz with Elias Terry<\/p>\n<\/div>

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\"Las<\/span><\/div><\/div>

Las Vegas COVID Memorial in March 2021<\/p>\n<\/div>

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\"USS<\/span><\/div><\/div>

USS Constitution Rigging in Boston<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div><\/div>

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In today\u2019s Instagram-saturated world, where everyone is a self-proclaimed photographer armed with a smartphone, the work of Elisa Terry, a true photographic artist jumps out from all the rest. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":3437,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"nf_dc_page":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[4522,3681],"tags":[1026,2831,3709,3198,605,707],"class_list":["post-3430","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-arts-and-culture","category-issue-11","tag-art","tag-artist","tag-elisa-terry","tag-kendall-hardin","tag-photographer","tag-photography"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/chiccompass.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3430","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/chiccompass.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/chiccompass.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chiccompass.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chiccompass.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=3430"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/chiccompass.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3430\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":11353,"href":"https:\/\/chiccompass.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3430\/revisions\/11353"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chiccompass.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/3437"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/chiccompass.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=3430"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chiccompass.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=3430"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chiccompass.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=3430"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}