174 BEST OF TEXAS HIGH SCHOOL PHOTOGRAPHY 2017 ATPI
continued from page 172 starved students than close-minded technical geniuses. As a student I would also much rather be surrounded by these people who are excited about what they are doing. Get yourself excited. Have your picture taken every year in one of those automatic photo booths. Write how you felt at that particular time on the back of them. Were you anxious? Were you in love? Were you broken? Line them up from time to time and realize that you have been through so much. Be proud of what you have accomplished and of the scars you show. One of the hardest and most important things to learn as a photographer is when to put your camera down and take in the moment as a person. A picture often helps us remember a feeling or monumental event but have you ever seen a picture of the night sky – blazing with stars and galaxies from one end of the horizon to the other – that could encapsulate the feeling emanating from within your soul as you witness it in person (or with someone close to you)? Go outside and look at the night sky and allow yourself the pleasure of having a feeling you can share with yourself or with only one other person in the entire world...a private moment to which no picture can ever compare in evoking feeling. Don’t be afraid to learn new things or ask questions. I’ve had good teachers help me, and I still seek out others from whom I can learn. I’ve come to realize that the best teachers are not always the ones behind the podium. You can learn so much from doing it yourself or from looking at books. At the university one of my favorite things to do was to go to the library every Friday and fill up my backpack with photobooks. I can’t imagine the sight others witnessed of this college kid staggering to the bus stop with his chest thrust out straining under the enormous weight of 15 photo books looking as if at any second his spine would bend back and snap. But when I got back to my apartment and looked through the images I felt nothing of the earlier pain and this only strengthened my resolve to get 16 books the next time. The pictures that mean the most to you will not be the ones that are perfectly printed or composed. Take pride in what you do...care about your work. Do it with love. Don’t rush or force things. Allow yourself time and revel in the luxury of having the darkroom all to yourself because it is a rare and special occurrence. Remember to give of yourself. Give of yourself in your work and in time when others seek you out for advice. I am proud of what you have done in this class. Not all of you will be professional photographers but know this: each of you has a gift....recognize it and don’t waste it. Look for this gift in others and help them see it for themselves. Remember that feeling from your first time in the darkroom and make it part of your life. I still take steps two at a time and what I say to myself has changed, but the sentiment is still the same. Don’t be afraid to believe that you can accomplish the impossible. n
Drew Loker, West Brook High School (Beaumont), 2014
Will Milne, Advanced Technology Complex (Denton), 2014
Brenda Marafioto, Robert G. Cole High School (San Antonio), 2014