Aperture/Shutter Speed
As the first assignment of the semester, the project forces students to contend with not only how aperture and shutter speed affect resultant imagery, but also how to use these effects within the context of their images. Students experiment with wide and shallow depths of field, blurred and frozen action, and long-exposure photography. The project also introduces students to concept development. Technical requirements for assessment and evaluation include using proper exposure, sharp focus, considered composition, conceptual investigation and the successful demonstration of shutter speed effects and wide/shallow depth of field.
Portraiture
Once students have gained a basic understanding of camera functions, they are steered toward a more conceptual project. Students are directed to choose a single subject (a person or an idea) and create portraits for that subject. Each image must have a human presence in it. Most students take this requirement at face value, but for some, this requirement is a not-so-subtle challenge to subvert and question the definition of “portraiture.” Technical requirements for assessment and evaluation include proper exposure, sharp focus, considered composition and a demonstration of conceptual cohesiveness.
Documentary & Photojournalism
As an intermediate class, students are encouraged to seek out news and feature stories, from sports to hard news to human interest. Photos are featured on a class-specific blog with hard-and-fast deadlines and an adherence to photographic and journalistic methods, ethics and techniques.
Self-Proposed/Self-Directed Projects
Students are invited to propose a project based on skills they have acquired throughout the course and concepts they would like to investigate. Technical requirements for assessment and evaluation are determined by each student. As a self-directed project, each student must present a five-paragraph thesis explaining the concept, technical and conceptual choices, historical precedence or influences, and the future of the project. Each student must defend technical and conceptual choices during a peer critique.
Dana Girouard
Freddie Gray Protests in Baltimore
“Recently in the city of Baltimore, there was a young man whose death was known across the country. The death of this young man, Freddie Gray, has added more reason and just cause to the social uproar from the public towards an unjust police system.
In Baltimore the people were hurt and confused over the fact that one too many lives have been taken in the hands of the justice system that is supposed to be there to help these people and insure their safety. These images show the progression of the protest.”
Mallory Manly
Hailey and Scooter
“People don’t notice the little things such as the way your hands and legs begin to move with the horse how the horse becomes an extension of your own body. They don’t notice the way a horse looks at you when they truly love you and the way you can see an entire world looking into their eyes. There is a special love and form of protectiveness between horse and rider.”
Cesar Papa
A Wanted Man
Inspired by Larry Clark's Tulsa, A Wanted Man documents a wanted fugitive deciding to turn himself in, run or kill himself as he spends one last night getting high and having sex with his White Trash Princess.
Nicholas Orozco
A Child Playing War
"A child of former Marines, he wants to become a Marine as well. A scout sniper. His favorite thing to do is to play Marines. On any given day you may catch him playing Call of Duty or playing war games with his neighborhood friends.
The current generation of children—born in the late 90s and early 2000s—are a generation of war. From the 24-hour news coverage to war video game franchises and movies depicting war, this generation is overwhelmed with stories, videos, and images of military combat. War is a part of life to them, being raised during the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. It is unknown who will be the United States' enemy by the time this child becomes a Marine. If his future unfolds the way he has planned, his generation may very well be the next kill generation."
Hailey Bedford
But You Don’t Look Sick
"The idea behind this project was to capture what my life has been like over the past two months. This project is meant to document the struggle that I have been going through with both mental and physical health issues—to show my struggles through an unfiltered lens with self-portraits. I choose this because it forces me to pull back and look at my life and what it has become."
Luke Fattorini
Lehigh Riding Club
"Horse shows are a chance for riders, young and old, to show off their horses. Riders are supposed to learn their course, learn from others, and control their horse when it is their turn to ride. The gaits of a horse go from walk to trot to canter to gallop. This daylong competition is a test of the bond between rider and horse. Riders strive for the Champion Ribbon and the Reserve Champion Ribbon."
Garrett Grove
Hunting
“Camaraderie is often a significant part of the hunting experience. For these men, hunting is an activity that brings them together, and provides a chance to build and keep relationships with friends. The subjects were not used to having a camera present, but the more the camera was present, the more it became a fixture of the hunting process for the men this hunting season. I attempted to capture the activity as it occurred in reality; to simply be a bystander looking into the world of hunting. Modern hunting may not be a necessity in our culture, but it still provides food for families.
My photography is just another form of hunting.”
Jaclyn May
Fear
"Every person has deep rooted fears, whether they want to admit it or not."
