Focusing on emotion though her lens

PETERSON AIR FORCE BASE, Colo. - Airman 1st Class Keshia Corpuz, 21st Force Support Squadron fitness specialist, earned her degree in journalism from Arizona State University and fell in love with photography and videography. It was while she was in college that her passion for telling a story through film began and grew. (Courtesy photo by Keshia Corpuz)

Focusing on emotion though her lens

PETERSON AIR FORCE BASE, Colo. - Airman 1st Class Keshia Corpuz, 21st Force Support Squadron fitness specialist, began taking photography courses at Arizona State University while earning her journalism degree. She began with self-portraits, sometimes using multiple exposures to display emotions. Photography was a way for her to get through tough times and began to be a way for her to help other people through tough times as well. (Courtesy photo by Keshia Corpuz)

Focusing on emotion though her lens

PETERSON AIR FORCE BASE, Colo. - Airman 1st Class Keshia Corpuz, 21st Force Support Squadron fitness specialist, first got into photography as a way to channel inner turmoil while in college. Since then, she earned her degree in journalism and also became interested in videography. Her dream job would be to create videos highlighting important social issues. (courtesy photo by Keshia Corpuz)

Focusing on emotion though her lens

PETERSON AIR FORCE BASE, Colo. - Airman 1st Class Keshia Corpuz, 21st Force Support Squadron fitness specialist, earned her degree in journalism from Arizona State University and fell in love with photography and videography during her pursuit of a journalism degree. It was during college her passion for telling a story through film began and grew. Corpuz began with self-portraits and continued to create videos to highlight important social topics. (Courtesy photo by Keshia Corpuz)

Focusing on emotion though her lens

Published Oct. 27, 2015
By Senior Airman Rose Gudex
21st Space Wing Public Affairs

PETERSON AIR FORCE BASE, Colo. -- Many parents tell their young children they can be whatever they want when they grow up, but how realistic is that? It's not always as easy as simply wanting something to happen or a dream to come true for it to be a reality. For Airman 1st Class Keshia Corpuz, the route she took on her way to achieve her dream was not what she had hoped.

Her dream job? To create videos that tell a story, expose and address certain life situations and have an impact on those who watch those videos.

In college, Corpuz was just a typical student trying to figure out how to achieve her dreams. College seemed like the right path to follow to get there. She attended Arizona State University, where she majored in journalism and took both videography and photography courses.

While in college she volunteered for a Catholic ministry and produced a video series about survivors of sex trafficking and another about adoption and the need for quality foster parents.

After college she couldn't find a job and worked as a waitress to make ends meet. She knew she had to make a change if she wanted to achieve her goal. Having family members in the military to guide her, she decided to follow in their footsteps.

Corpuz enlisted in the Air Force November 2014 and arrived at Peterson in April 2015 year as a fitness specialist for the 21st Force Support Squadron. While she enjoys it, she said her passion for social work videography is still there.

Telling a person's story and providing a listening ear is what is important to her. When she was younger, battled depression and needed a way to cope. She turned to photography as a release.

"That's why I want to do social work," she said. "It helped me, so I want to help other people and tell their story too."

Beginning as a self-portrait photographer, Corpuz said she took photos of herself to capture the changes in her emotion. When she went to college, self-portraits turned into photos of events and other people.

In her experience, people aren't always the best listeners, so by taking the time to listen to someone's story, she can help them.

"(Maybe) someone out there can relate to their stories and know what they're going through," she said.

Corpuz began to volunteer with a local ministry only a couple months after getting to Peterson and created videos for their outreach. Currently she said she is working on a homeless outreach project that includes instructional videos and cooking videos based off the food given out by the ministry she volunteers for.

As people watch her videos, she encourages them to have an open mind and actually pay attention to what each person has to say. She said by lending an ear, in life in general, people will feel like someone does care.