Emily Gan Week 11- Yearbook
That was until my brother got into yearbook at school. Unlike me, he always been interested in the more professional side of photography. I remember in quarantine my brother pulled out my dad’s little camera and started playing around with it. Eric (my brother) always had a keen eye for how to execute his creative endeavors, excelling in drawing, singing, and now photography. Throughout the year he had yearbook, he would occasionally pull me out of class to accompany him on his journey to find people to cover. Through this experience, I got to see my brother capture moments in high school that aren’t necessarily the most important but also key to everyday school. I enjoy the little things around campus even more than the extravagant events. Yearbook highlighted both of them and that was the moment I knew I wanted to take yearbook.
Entering my junior year of high school, I picked up a professional camera for the first time. As the editors explained the instructions for how to use a DSLR, I took my first photo: clear and crisp, exactly what I saw in real life. I fell in love. Taking good photos when the subject is not standing still was definitely a learning curve, but I saw my photography improve as I did more spreads and documented more events.
Savoie (the yearbook teacher) always preached the importance of preserving these memories. Although these moments might seem like normal typical life right now, in the future generations after us will look back on our yearbook as a historical document of what high school was like this year. There is a cabinet in Savoie’s English room, filled to the brim with yearbooks dating back to the 1970s. Those high schoolers back then were older than our parents, yet looking through the book I can see exactly how an average high schooler at American in the 70s lived. Although yearbook could be taken as a free class, I strive to make the best spreads I can since a yearbook is an important part of history.
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Hey Emily, I found your story about discovering your passion for yearbook really inspiring, and I love how you were able to gain insight into the world of yearbook through your brother before actually committing. The way you frame yearbook as a way to "capture high school" and "enjoy the little moments on campus" allowed me to look at yearbook with a different perspective, and helped me understand why you enjoy it so much. However, your most effective point was made when you mentioned how future generations will be able to view our lives through these photos. I remember looking at old photos of my parents, and their childhood, feeling it helped me understand their past lives much better. I truly felt your conclusion about yearbook being an important part of history was excellently supported through multiple coherent points throughout your blog. Your technique of using personal experience to persuade the importance of yearbook was really effective. Overall, it was extremely well-written, and revealed some necessary insights about the importance of photographs and yearbook!
ReplyDeleteHello Emily! I wanted to start my comment by talking about that camera! I am a huge sucker for small travel point and shoots, and I have my own Canon Powershot when I want to give my photos and videos a nostalgic 2000's look. The only difference is that you seem to have a A550 from 2007 while I have an SD1000, also from 2007. As far as my brief research concludes, there isn't much that is different between the cameras, although I have a cool little blue woolen strap with a small metal fish on it (the SD1000 didn't come with a strap). I'm glad that you were able to turn your passion for photography and have so much fun with it for yearbook. Sometimes when I go outside to hike here in California or out-of-state, I sometimes bring my family's Canon T3i and a pair of binoculars to take photos of whatever I find interesting. My mom gives me a little bit of an earful sometimes when I spend more time taking pictures of nature rather than them, but I really love capturing nature and landscape shots. I only wish I had the money to purchase a good telephoto lens for proper wildlife photography, but the animals keep running away when I'm in range with my 5x zoom lens :(. Anyway, enough about my forays with cameras, and I hope you could share more updates and journals with your experience with photography and yearbook!
ReplyDeleteHi Emily! Your blog was really interesting, and I could relate to it a lot because photography is one of my hobbies. I definitely agree with your explanation on the importance of photographing both the important, extravagant parts of your life, as well as the ordinary, everyday part of your life as well, because one day these moments won’t be “everyday” events anymore, and you’ll always be grateful you found a way to preserve a part of your life. I like photography for its realism, since other art forms, such as drawing, focus on artistic interpretations and creativity, photography is a great art form to use if you want to document reality in the most accurate form possible. While a lot of people detest taking photos in the moment, it’s always nice to have them to look back on. For instance, I used to hate taking photos in middle school, but now I’m glad I did because I would have forgotten what seventh grade was like without these photos. It’s also interesting that you became interested in professional photography because of your brother’s passion for it. Some of my favorite hobbies that I have right now are hobbies that I found through my friends and family, and the impact the people around you have on your life is really profound, especially when it comes to hobbies. Overall, I found your blog well written and captivating because of how personal it was and because of how you utilized a past example that got you interested in professional photography.
ReplyDeleteHi Emily. I thought your blog was really interesting because I also find cameras fascinating. I was never a big photography buff, but I've been into cinematography and videography for years now, and there's a lot of similarities between the two. Both require thinking creatively, applying previously understood camera techniques, and of course, cameras. I tend to perceive yearbook as being more graphic design-geared (and I'm sure it is to an extent), but I never really considered the photography aspect to it. I realize now how crucial the pictures are to yearbooks and how if the pictures aren't very good, it can take away a lot from the book itself. That's cool that getting into yearbook allowed you to get into something your brother is interested in as well. Definitely explore the field more, even if it's outside of yearbook. Photography is a fun hobby, and it can be a really useful skill as well in the future.
ReplyDeleteHi Emily,
ReplyDeleteYour blog about photography was truly inspiring. Thank you for sharing your journey into the world of photography through your experience with yearbook. How your brother’s passion and exploration sparked your own interest in photography underscores the influence older siblings have. I have an older sister, and how much she has shaped my personality and passions is actually crazy. She introduced me to basketball (which has been my most favorite sport since childhood), put me on to various genres of music, and essentially shaped my view on the world. Your blog pleasantly captures the evolution of your perspective on photography, from initially appreciating as a form of preserving memories to delving into the intricacies of professional photography through your participation with yearbook. Moreover, your reflection on the significance of yearbooks as historical documents is relatable. I often find myself looking through the yearbooks of Forest Park and reminiscing on how easy those times used to be. It's thought-provoking to consider how subtle moments captured within its pages can offer future generations insights into the everyday life of high school students and help us relive memories of the past. In the end, your captivating blog helped me understand the power of exploration in shaping our passions and interests.