Hands fly to the lens cap. Steady arms lift the camera, the viewfinder clear. The top dial shifts back and forth, waiting for that perfect moment when the light sits just right. Finger on the shutter release, Claire Luo (’24) snaps the perfect photo, the cityscape alive in front of her.

 “What I really like is having the atmosphere of different moments and environments I’m in,” Claire said. “For example, when I went to Japan, I was in this little city called Otaru. There wasn’t a lot going on, but there were a lot of pretty little houses with snow on them. Being able to capture that type of peaceful essence was really cool.”

Beyond the artistic element, photography serves as a medium for Claire to capture moments special to her. As a DECA CEO and a member since frosh year, Claire holds the memories of bonding with fellow DECA members in a special place in her heart.

“One of my favorite photos is from the DECA officer retreat,” Claire said. “It’s around the campfire, and you could see people’s faces, but it’s also kind of dark, and the glow is reflective. It just brings up a lot of good memories. The memories and feelings that it evokes are very special to me.”

In DECA, Claire not only competes and wins awards but also serves as a leader and mentor to others, guiding them and sharing advice. She especially values the relationships she developed with her mentees.

“It’s very gratifying, because as first year members, all of us also had mentors, who really taught us a lot, and we were really close with them,” Claire said. “So being able to give back through the same process is really fun. I remember when I saw my mentees go on stage after helping them. It’s just a super, super exciting moment.”

Gabe Li (12) reflects on the close relationship he developed with Claire through working together on the DECA officer team, both as collaborators and on a personal level. He describes Claire as a great mentor to whom he turns to for advice on a multitude of decisions.

“She’s very smart, nice and bubbly,” Gabe said. “She has good decision-making skills. Whenever I ask her a question about something or about a choice or decision, she’s very straightforward about it. Anything I need help on, she’s always there to help me.”

Ella Yee (’24), who has known Claire since elementary school, appreciates her kindness and empathy, which shine through in everything she does.

“Claire is just such a sweet and caring person,” Ella said. “I think it shows up in everything. For example, just the way she greets me, or when we are talking about stuff that happened during lunch, and then all the way to times when anyone is going through something rough or a challenge. She is that person who will be there right away to take care of them, provide support.”

Although the public-speaking element of DECA was initially daunting to Claire, leaning into the challenges allowed her to branch out and emerge as a strong leader and communicator. She emphasizes the importance of stepping out of one’s comfort zone. 

“Why not? So many things are very foreign or unknown to us, but there’s not much to lose by just trying things. I initially wasn’t very comfortable with DECA, especially with impromptu, but the community really helped me grow out of that. DECA is now one of my top high school memories. Just giving things a try is really worth it, and if it fails, the worst thing that can happen is you just try something else.”

Fellow DECA officer and close friend Sanaa Bhorkar (12) cherishes many fond memories with Claire. She noted how Claire’s appreciation for aesthetics and attention to detail brings a special charm to any activity.

“We bought one of those Popin’ Cookin’ things and made it together,” Sanaa said. “Everyone else was just kind of playing around with it, but Claire really wanted to make it look aesthetically pleasing and make it look good. So while we were all half-annoyed at her because we just wanted to do it and then eat it, she was like, ‘No, it needs to be perfect.’ That was really fun.”

Claire also applies her detail-oriented nature to her creations, which have evolved from contraptions of ping-pong balls she made as a child to beautiful, complex 3D models built in Adobe Blender. Combining minuscule components and tweaking hundreds of parameters, she brings her imaginative visions to life. 

“My favorite part is the creativity aspect of not having any rules you have to follow,” Claire said. “I think that is something that’s very freeing, especially when life has so many things that you have to do. When I’m creating something, I can just do whatever my mind feels like.”

Whether photographing the scene in front of her or building a new model, Claire abides by her own rules. Without other boundaries, she feels free to change her frame on life. Wide or tight, Claire’s frame captures all the details around her, creating memories to last.

“In photography, you have the zoom, which allows you to be very flexible in terms of being able to see things very close up and macro, but also, zoom out and look at the bigger picture,” Claire said. “I use a combination of those. Sometimes I’m looking at really small details, but other times I’m looking at the whole city. And I think the mindset of thinking of the bigger picture but also looking at the smaller things is really cool.”