"Hello and goodbye!" Memories of DPH2015

By John Hoseok Seo

Editor's note: I saved John's blog submission for a special day.  Tomorrow the graduates will receive their diplomas and thus end their time as a student in the Digital Photography program.  We look forward to seeing their futures develop.  Yes Pun intended.  All the best to the class of 2017!  P.P.P!!!

September 2015, I met my classmates of DPHT 2015 at the photography studio L319.  It was very interesting. The range of age of us pretty widely spread from teens to 50’s. This encouraged me because I thought I was too old to get back to school. 

John Hoseok Seo during the first week of first year. By Christina Watts

My age was 44years old then. This course has been getting tougher and tougher. Our expectation for the course that it would be easier than before has been broken always till now because the assignments have been getting harder and harder.


The overwhelming pressure for the assignments might fuel us. 


We can remember the first time in the class, the first time we saw each other. For now, I describe our short and long history as an observer for my classmates.


They and their actions were good subject matter for my photography.

There have been great efforts of the faculties for their class. We, the students have learned photography for 2years.  

It might not be sufficient time for them to build up their skills, experience, and self-confidence. But the faculties’ enthusiasm and efforts could make students get their skills, experience, and self-confidence as professional photographers.

I believe and hope these brand new photographers are going to be more competitive professional photographers in the future.

The first week of September 2015 was still hot. It looked like the summer didn’t want to go away from us.  Fall 2015 class started as hot as the summer fever. They (my classmates) were surely nervous, and tense, but enthusiastic.

Somebody’s enthusiasm must have been an interesting subject matter for some other photographer include me.  Their skill might not have caught up with their enthusiasm yet.

But, they couldn’t stop their challenges.  At any place, any time they lay down on the floor to keep track of subject matter with no hesitating. They were the professional photographers already in their mind.

To learn diffusing of light, highlight, shadow, cast, reflection is the first step for the professional photographer.

To understand light is the basic of the basic. The students recognize how important this step is now.  Lighting is an extremely critical issue for photographers.

The volunteer project was another big step for the students who want to be professional photographers.

To be a professional, they should break down the wall in their mind that makes photographers uncomfortable in front of the customer. They have built up self-confidence through the experiences of the volunteer projects.

After 1 year from the start, their appearance had been changed like that the above pictures show.  How about this?  They were very different from their first step.  How can these dramatic changes be?