Member Spotlight: Dani Cardinale

How did you first come across CMC, and what drew you to become a part of this collective?

I learned about CMC from Erica Reade, the founder of the collective. I don’t recall when but we had connected before 2020. I was intrigued by the critiques; I used to attend another photography collective for their critiques but following the pandemic meetings ended and I felt a bit lost. I remembered seeing a post about an upcoming critique and decided to attend and have been regularly attending since fall 2024. Honestly the community is why I participate, the creatives I have met at the events have been wonderful.

You’ve led a number of street photo zines. What do you enjoy most about putting them together? Is there one that stands out as a favorite or feels most personal to you?

Not many people know that prior to photography I used to write online and loved to read and edit. I also interned with a NYT bestselling author for 3 years, studied journalism and completed a publishing course that taught me about book and magazine publishing. Zines, to me, are practice for storytelling, curation and editing. I make them all the time because they help me to review my work and share with friends and family. My favorite zine would be my second zine, “Coney Island Days,” which features photos taken at Coney Island during the height of the pandemic.

Your street photography is rich with color. What draws you to color as a medium, and how does it influence the way you see or compose your images?

Color is, in my opinion, underappreciated as a characteristic of photography. It can help to evoke emotion, nostalgia, energy, and personality in a way that the medium cannot always convey unless an action/reaction is perfectly captured. In March I wrote an op-ed about how a lot of photography is beginning to look the same because of social media, the use of film (and filters) and the warming of the climate. Also, another fact that many don’t know is that our eyes process less color the older we age. I’m drawn to colorful subjects because I like how energetic and vibrant they are. Color makes me happy.

Could you share 3–5 images from your most recent project or photo series? We'd love to hear the story behind these works and what inspired the project.

This year I’ve stepped back from working on projects as I am trying to be more present, only photographing if I’m in the mood to do so. After 17 years of taking photos I’m trying to slow down to pace myself to avoid burnout. I used to tell myself that I had to go out every day I was free and do something I could document, but now I head out and bring my camera with me and take photos when I feel up to it. The last photo series I worked on was a zine I put together for this year’s Mermaid Parade at Coney Island. I’ve been attending the Mermaid Parade since 2021 and it’s become my favorite event to attend because participants are so excited to dress up and wear amazing costumes, most inspired by marine life. Something I noted this year was that a lot of people I photographed I recognized from previous years and I felt that I was able to stop and talk more which was nice.

The first photo was taken at the beginning of the parade, when the first few groups were walking onto the boardwalk. This participant was a drag queen who was wearing bright green and teal with a bedazzled bikini top and the most dramatic paper lashes; the way they commanded the boardwalk made me think that the band was following their lead.

The second photo was taken about an hour later - I moved after another photographer who snuck onto the parade route blocked my spot so I headed down towards the end of the route and caught up with a troupe of hula hoopers who were performing as they walked. This woman kept walking back and forth to show off her skills, twirling the hula hoop with ease. Her smile radiated joy.

The third photo is of a woman I saw at last year’s Mermaid Parade. I recall her wearing lilac or blue, but definitely not orange. As she walked by I told her she looked great and that it was lovely to see her again, which caught her attention and she stopped to speak with me for about a minute. Her outfit was bright and reminded me of orange sherbet, one of my favorite frozen treats I associate with my childhood. 

Lastly, the fourth photo was taken about 10 minutes before I left Coney, when the parade had ended and participants were taking photos and catching up with friends and family while others posed for photos. I saw a woman dressed in balloons and walked towards her, noticing the young girl as I got closer. When I arrived home and showed my family the photos I had taken my sister said she recognized the young girl, noting that she was fairly certain that she was a former student of hers. I don’t often run into my sister’s former students but when it does happen it’s quite funny to see how they react. In this instance, she was happy to see a familiar face.