JACOB DANEK
PHOTOGRAPHY
ACADEMICS
The less popular area of high school photography is academic photography. There isn't enough passion, emotion, action, or spirit. This may be the case, as academic photography can be dull. But it's the photographer's job to make something seemingly dull, into something exciting and new. That is the challenge, the struggle with academic photos...since visible emotions aren't coursing through the subjects veins, we have to make sure make the photos as interesting as possible.
Be Careful: Lab work can be very meticulous. One wrong move and you can mess up the entire experiment. I wanted to capture the preciseness of lab work in a photo. So I made sure to to get both the subject's face and what the subject was doing in the shot. This enabled me to show how the student was being extremely careful. This picture was featured in the 2014-2015 Looking Glass yearbook.
One More Drop: Sometimes science involves exact measurements. A drop too much can cause something to boil over or even explode. I had to make sure to capture this measuring process, to show the audience that science is not just worksheets and vocabulary. I had to sit on a lab table (that was covered in bottles of chemicals) to capture this shot. This picture was featured in the 2014-2015 Looking Glass yearbook and is being entered in this year's MIPA awards for academic photo.
Fast Fingers: Band is such an amazing class. If I wasn't in the journalistic side of the creative spectrum, I would probably be in band. This picture was taken during the band's winter concert, and it shows two clarinet players, in sync with each other, playing the exact same note. This picture was featured in the December issue of The Informer.
In a Sea of Upperclassmen: Usually, I end up taking more pictures of upperclassmen compared to lowerclassmen. This band student is a sophomore and was in a row of upperclassmen. His small stature made him stand out, but he was keeping up with his older counterparts. In order to take this photo I had to climb over people (many of whom gave me nasty looks) to get the right angle. This photo was featured in the December issue of The Informer.
Sports photography can be a challenge. One second you can capture to right moment, but a split second later the moment is gone. When you did capture the right moment, the results are amazing. Some pictures even take your breath away. Being an atheletic person, being able to share the victories, losses, and hard fought tied games with my schools' teams is something
An Unusual Intrument: For this image I had to stand up in a crowd of people who were sitting down. Again, I got a few nasty glances, but I wanted to get a good picture of the assistant band director, who was playing a instrument that usually isn't played during concert season. I love this picture because the backdrop of students, waiting patiently for their next holiday tune, makes a great background for the subject. This picture was featured in the December issue of The Informer.
Trumpet Tunes: This picture was taken during the first song of the winter concert. The band was just warming up, but this senior band student started off strong. She played her trumpet like a professional, hitting the high notes with skilled grace and poise. This photo was featured in the December Issue of the Informer.
A Fearless Leader: This photo was taken during the final number of the winter concert. I had to run around behind the band to get a shot of the director, waving her conductor stick in a graceful dance. I like this picture so much because it shows a different angle, an angle that usually is not captured. This photo was featured in the December Issue of The Informer.