By CATHERINE PORTER
Swelling to their bursting point, the on-campus photography classes are flooded with students wishing to develop skills in the increasingly popular art form. Photography teacher Perry Allen teaches seven classes and more than 194 students.
“[Photography] gives [students] an independent voice. [However, the class sizes have] made it more difficult to teach effectively because the dark room can only house 14 students at a time. I’ve had to accommodate. Most times I had to delete part of the curriculum,” Allen said.
In addition to fulfilling the necessary fine art credit, photography is a hobby that can provide college scholarships. Web sites such as brickfish.com host upwards of 20 in-house photography competitions for a period of three to six months, and winners can be awarded scholarships ranging from $50-$1200. After going on a photography scavenger hunt during Writing I, senior Sydney Morman decided to actively pursue the art as a hobby.
“Photo is a hardcore hobby. You don’t ever go anywhere without thinking, ‘Hey, I should take a picture of this’; you never stop doing it,” Morman said.
Now photo editor of the Legend yearbook, Morman enters in competitions for college scholarships.
“I’m currently entered in five [competitions for scholarships], and I plan on continuing to take part in them; free money is always good for college,” Morman said.
In a competition for one photograph, Morman ranked 83 out of 18,000 overall and was in the top 100 for Most Viral Photo.
As student interest in photography increases, so have members of photo-hosting sites such as Flickr, Photobucket and SmugMug. While Brickfish, Flickr and Photobucket are free to join, upgrading to a pro account on Flickr costs $24.99 per year. This alternative to the standard account provides benefits such as more space to store photos and additional information on one’s photographs. Smug Mug offers professional services such as printing and the capability to sell photographs online. The site offers three tiers of membership, ranging from $39.95-$149.95 per year. However, Flickr alone boasts that as of October 2009, it hosts more than four billion images. Flickr also allows its users to enter competitions within the site, though no money is awarded to the winners.
“I’ve put my photos in contests on Flickr before, and I’ve actually gotten first place a couple of times. [I’ve considered taking part in competitions for scholarships],” junior Thompson Wood said.
Wood hopes to pursue photography while in college despite the fierce competition that exists within the field.
“The hardest part of photography is trying to get a shot that’s new and innovative. I think it’s interesting that a lot of people are into photography, but it’s frustrating because with cameras now, it’s not so much skill—you don’t have to have natural talent,” Wood said.
After taking photography with Allen, senior Lee Pancake decided to pursue the art further by doing strobist (photography with a strobe light), portrait and promotional photography. Pancake has received offers to do photo shoots for bands such as City of Ifa, Surface the End, and The Rookies. He has even had his work placed in the online magazine, Alliance Wakeskate.
“I felt honored that I was asked to do [photo shoots] even though I have not done as many of these types of photo shoots as other more experienced photographers. I felt responsible for the way the subject was going to be portrayed. It was all up to me whether the shoot came out boring or interesting,” Pancake said.
Though Pancake learned photography on-campus, other opportunities to learn the basics abound. Crealde School of Art in Winter Park and Harmon Photo in Orlando offer workshops where one can practice photography in indoor and outdoor settings, perfecting lighting, posing and camera technique.
On campus, Allen’s program will be adapted to fit changing times, along with his plans to stay with the program for at least one more year.
“[Photography] is going to change to totally digital at some point. I think the dark room after a year will be a thing of the past. I personally see digital as being less creative because it’s not the student making the decision, it’s the camera. The only reason to keep film is for students who wish to continue in the arts,” Allen said.
Though the on-campus photography program’s future is unsure, the efforts of those participating in the ever-burgeoning art form ensure its prolongation for years to come.