With a clear eye for detail and an environment full of possibility, senior Ellie Garry of Evanston Township High School is no ordinary student.

Pictured above, senior Ellie Garry photographs a sign at Indiana University in Bloomington. “Photography gives me an outlet to express my creative thoughts in a visual, non-verbal way.” Garry is very devoted to her photography and plans to go deeper in studying it at art schools.

With just one click of a button, anything can be seen and captured with a camera. Great photos and opportunities can happen anywhere, especially in urban areas like Evanston, Illinois, home of Ellie Garry. Ellie is a senior at Evanston Township High School, and she has a special place in her life devoted to art. Ellie is especially involved in photography, both digital shooting and film.

Living in a large urban area like Evanston, which is fairly close to Chicago, the city can provide a photography playground for people like Ellie. Or she can even work in school as she has claimed “We are very fortunate because we have a big school with a dark room, computer labs, and photography equipment that we can check out. Plus our teachers are very flexible and reasonable with scheduling if you want to meet with them or use labs during free periods.” Ellie also works as a receptionist at Stuart-Rodgers photography studio in Evanston, which Ellie states “I really like it and it’s chill, working in something I’m interested in. It does help teach me how to handle like a real job for the first time.” While Ellie is incredibly involved and surrounded by photography, it also is a special activity that helps her learn things in different ways.

Ellie had struggled in school in the early years, and would have to go to special rooms to learn school material. It wasn’t until 11 that she washad been diagnosed with dyslexia, but she had been homeschooled for years prior to 5th grade. When she came back to school, however, Ellie had improved her reading level and learning abilities for school stating “I think that the time helped.” Despite some difficulties in school, Ellie was able to learn things in a creative aspect when she discovered photography. Photography, in Ellie’s definition is “a way of storytelling without the difficulty of words, since words aren’t my thing and also I just love photography because you can tell a story but it also gives people their own interpretation of something.” Ellie’s love of photography can provide her with a way to learn and see, without the difficulty.