Cheyenne Ruth is a Portland based photographer, friend of Rachel Hardwick and recent friend of mine. The haunting stillness of these photographs holds you. At first glace, they make you appreciate a surface level beauty – then after a moment a fear hits you and you look away. But you will look back again, their colorful fear resonates. The final photograph in this series sums up her voice nicely: a frozen, grainy moment in time as a girl runs to an expecting car and you urge her forward.

Do you prefer to take photos alone or with others? Why?

Definitely prefer to photograph with others, constantly something happening!

Are you the kind of person that sees a person in the right light, yells HOLD IT LIKE THAT and gets your camera out? Or do you mostly take what you happen to see with your camera out?

A little of both but mostly the former. It’s too much of a bummer to miss something really cool because you couldn’t get your camera out in time.

Is there a type of light you’re most comfortable working with?

Natural light is the best of course! Also little bits of light when it’s dark out are really great.

How do you select environments compliment your subjects?

I don’t really select specific environments, I don’t think. All the locations are just places we happened to be. But if we’re hanging out next to a big bush of tight flowers or something, I might tell a friend to go stand there and look nice, haha. Usually we’re outside though.

What sorts of adventures has photography taken you on?

MANY SORTS! I’ve met a lot of awesome people by photographing them on the street. Also, the other day actually I made my friend go run around naked in this field of cows when we were driving home from the beach; it was so much fun – probably wouldn’t have even thought to do that if I wasn’t thinking about the photo that would come out of the experience.

See more of her work here.