I have always believed that by being a photographer, I can not only open myself up to new opportunities and work to capture important moments, but I can make other people’s achievements, stories, and actions known.
In photography, you share moments with the subject of your photograph: a reunion, a goal, a final performance. Whether these are small moments like the brush of a finger, a warm up swing, a light smile or hug, or a simple stroke during a swim meet, or big things like a winning shot, a blocked shot, or a celebration, these snapshots are what make photography so special.
This year I wanted to make sure to capture a variety of different things. I shot countless sports games for my school, traveling to away games with commutes ranging from ten minutes to over an hour. I attended school theater performances each time and covered the annual Bobby G awards in downtown Denver for the second time. I covered Denver’s annual Pride Parade in June as well as protests over gun violence in May, which fell after multiple shootings at a nearby high school.
Following my work on these projects, I was honored to receive multiple awards for my photography from the Columbia Student Press Association and the Colorado Student Media Association within a few weeks from each other. Sharing these experiences and receiving recognition for it further enhanced my belief that photography does have an impact, and encouraged me to continue my work with it.
My work this year marked as a stepping off point for large growth in my photography. After only a year on staff at my paper, I’d grown into positions where I could access more and more opportunities to photograph events, and that introduced me to a world where I was juggling multiple events at a time.
As much as taking the physical photo is what the focus was on, the only way I was able to achieve that was by staying on top of every event that needed coverage. I introduced a calendar system to myself and my staff, to ensure I could be at the right place at the right time, like the bobby G awards or an important swim meet. Without learning how to organize my events, I wouldn’t have been able to capture some of my most impressive photographs.
While photographing those events, I learned more about the way I could structure my photographs than I’d thought possible: standing above or below subjects and shooting through difficult areas gave me new ways to work. I learned the importance of high shutter speeds and automatic ISO levels, targeting emotion, and looking for the most exciting thing in every event.
All of these aspects came together to create my love for photography over the last year, and they’re the things that have made my job so important to me and my high school community. I’ve loved sharing my photos and experiences, and learning new things along the way.