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We are all about local culture whether we are in Boston, RI or Maine. We get to know people and places!
WHY: Big Picture was created by photographer Jennifer Connelly to fill the gap in programming available to middle school students in the Spring of 2011. Student interest has led to longer and more diverse programming including week-long overnight classes.
2018 Programming is a guide for what to expect. See images below of our photo and film adventures!
Boston guest photographers were John Capps- Action, Mathias EZ- Fashion, Mike Ritter- Editorial, Chuck Jones- Alternative Processes. Private visits to The Boston Globe with Bill Greene, the award-winning Director of Photography, BIG film studios in Brookline, Boston Herald's Mark Garfinkel, a 25 year veteran staff photographer during his last season (now he works for NBC10Boston) and an Apple Store film workshop. We welcomed new teacher, wedding photographer and filmmaker Jess Pegg, TA photographer Samantha Guajardo and RA Emily Spagna, student of photography at Fitchburg State. During overnight class in Galilee RI we had private tours with owners of Sunset farm- Ethan, Aunt Carries- Elsie, The Fantastic Umbrella Factory- "Dready Dave", Narragansett Indian Tribe- Silver Moon and a group tour with Perry Russo of his Matunuck Oyster Farm. We bought lobsters off the boat and got fresh eggs daily from the chickens that lived at our rental. My son Desi was the in-house cook and he did a pretty good job!
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WORKSHOPS: Classes run over BPS school vacations including 9 weeks of summer programming. Jenny runs a one-week overnight documentary photo class each summer to a New England destination town like Narragansett RI, Bridgton ME for 2019 Ogunquit ME. The home teaching space is in Jenny's turn of the century house in Dorchester near the Franklin Park Zoo. DSLR cameras are provided and students leave with samples of their work. Classes are one to two weeks and take place on-the-go around Boston and close by areas with the teaching space as our home base for lessons, editing and downtime. General ages are 11-15 with some classes for 14-16 year olds. All overnights are girls only. The teaching space has provided many set opportunities for movie making classes where students write, film, act and edit a short movie. It is 2 miles from the "monument" in Jamaica Plain where students are picked up and dropped off daily by teachers in a Big Picture Van.
Big Picture Teaching Space
FIELD TRIPS AND FOOD: Traveling around in 8 passenger vans driven by teachers gives us much more freedom to get to and from ideal shooting locations. Typical photo excursions are to Copley Square, North End, Eastie Marina, Chinatown, The Zoo, Public Market/The Greenway, Newbury Street, Harvard Square, Caste Island, Fort Revere, Concord Minuteman, Fenway Gardens and more. Jenny is a foodie and likes to visit classic Boston spots a few times each summer without sending student budgets through the roof. So although you will find regular options like sub shops and Panera, we will also visit touristy spots like Pizzeria Regina, Boston Public Market and Georgetown Cupcakes an Tasty Burger.
Overnight classes include tours and interviews with local businesses. Summer programming includes guest photo teachers and visits with artists and photographers around Boston. 2018/19 Staff
Jenny Jess Emily STAFF:
Jennifer Connelly, owner/lead instructor is a professional photographer since 1994, and has four children of her own. She lives in Dorchester and runs her school portrait company, Photo Charm and shoots events with Jennifer Connelly Photo. Summer 2018 Teachers: RA for overnight class is Emily Spagna. "Hi! My name is Emily. I am currently studying photography and creative writing at Bridgewater State University. I love animals and doing arts and crafts! I have so many fun things planned for our week in Narragansett!" Jessica Furtado Pegg is the lead teacher for Simmer Down II. She is a photographer, teacher and documentary film maker. She has two children and lives in Quincy. Her specialty is wedding photography and you can see her work at http://jpeggphotography.com TA for Photojournalism class is Samantha Guajardo. She is a documentary/visual journalism photographer/film maker and a graduate of NESOP. Floating sub is Eric Hess. He is a Boston photographer since the early 90's, an artist with Atlantic Works Gallery, and makes his home in East Boston. Note from Jenny: Welcome. I feel that this program provides something that is artistic, social and cultural. Big Picture is a safe and fun place for students to be themselves, express themselves individually and as part of a group. I have been blown away by the work these young students produce. With a small amount of basic instruction and the right gear, they have made photos to rival those I see everyday from professionals. Their energy and excitement is a pleasure. In movie class, their creativity has led to the productions The Cereal Killer, Ravioli Revenge and The Fortune Cookie Killer and 10 more films! In our social experiment movie classes we have explored The Bystander Effect, The Kindness of Strangers and Safety: Real or an Illusion. About me: I grew up In Brookline, studied Psychology at USC, then worked for Brown University where I continued to use their darkroom and moved to Jamaica Plain in 1994 to do photo work. I bought a home in Dorchester (1/2 mile from JP) in 2009 when JP real estate soared past my budget. BUT I still consider JP my home. I am the school photographer to many kids in this area with my business Photo Charm and have been photographing families and Mitzvahs for decades. I raised my 4 children in Boston and have taught and photographed many of their friends. I appreciate the power and comfort of community. Hope to meet some of you soon. 
North End 2012 YEAR ONE! Photo by Alexia Berry Photo
February 2018, Class on Boylston Street
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2018 Boston class field trip examples. We added the Lynch Family Skate Park, Old Orchard Beach and Salem this year! Other locations were East Boston Marina with the infamous Roy's Cold Cuts for lunch, Haymarket, Copley Square, Downtown Crossing, Chinatown, The North End, MFA, Fort Revere in Nantasket with side trip to the beach and Fascination arcade(where I went in 70s), 40 Steps Nahant, the Old Manse in Concord, Boston Public Library, Franklin Park Zoo, Castle Island and we experimented with fashion photography at the teaching space in the yard, garage and side alley.
More about Jenny's business:
Her photography business Jennifer Connelly Photo was officially established in 2000. In 2005, Jenny created her school portraiture company, Photo Charm and photographs pre-schools and elementary schools around the Boston area. The most recent addition to her photo adventure is Big Picture.
The Art House at the end is intended to inspire future programming for the entire community, such as adult workshops, movie nights, lecture series and dinner club. The seeds of this were planted when Jenny created Carnival Cafe Productions in Jamaica Plain. Carnival Cafe produced interactive theatre events in 1996-1998 involving food, music, dance, actors, set design and of course an intriguing theme. One goal was to have guests feel like they were entering another time and place (like walking into a movie). The other goal was to bring together a collaboration of artists in music, food, design, acting, construction, make up/costume, etc.
Jenny has a BA in psychology from USC, studied film and photo in Mexico at Instituto Allende, privately in Spain, at Boston Neighborhood Network and RISD. She has written two screenplays. She has four children and lives in Dorchester.
Check out/hire her for a private photo event:
Her photography business Jennifer Connelly Photo was officially established in 2000. In 2005, Jenny created her school portraiture company, Photo Charm and photographs pre-schools and elementary schools around the Boston area. The most recent addition to her photo adventure is Big Picture.
The Art House at the end is intended to inspire future programming for the entire community, such as adult workshops, movie nights, lecture series and dinner club. The seeds of this were planted when Jenny created Carnival Cafe Productions in Jamaica Plain. Carnival Cafe produced interactive theatre events in 1996-1998 involving food, music, dance, actors, set design and of course an intriguing theme. One goal was to have guests feel like they were entering another time and place (like walking into a movie). The other goal was to bring together a collaboration of artists in music, food, design, acting, construction, make up/costume, etc.
Jenny has a BA in psychology from USC, studied film and photo in Mexico at Instituto Allende, privately in Spain, at Boston Neighborhood Network and RISD. She has written two screenplays. She has four children and lives in Dorchester.
Check out/hire her for a private photo event: