Erin McCoy, The girl she was (PEOPLE 2026)

This image forms part of an ongoing series exploring the girl she was- the traces of the childhood that remain within every woman long after she has grown and in the world after she is gone. Created in black and white as a tribute to the women who were once girls I recently lost in my own family. This image honours a woman who never lost sight of the girl she once was. Her life and her education centred around childhood. She had a deep love of monochrome photography and understood its ability to reveal emotion in its purest form. Through light, shadow, and simplicity, this work pays homage both to her memory and to the universal journey of girlhood.

Images have been resized for web display, which may cause some loss of image quality. Note: Original high-resolution images are used for judging.