Eli Randolph

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WKU junior Eli Randolph discovered one of the best things about photojournalism this past year.  Having consistent class assignments pushing him into the community, Eli discovered the photojournalism joy of meeting amazing strangers every day and stepping into their lives for a brief moment. Here are a few pictures the Murfreesboro TN native took the past year at school.

Four cowboys walk through smoke while holding the American flag before a rodeo event in Bowling Green, KY, Saturday, February 11th,2023. The scene depicts a patriotic display of Western heritage and American pride as the riders prepare for the competition. The atmosphere surrounding the flag was unmatched as the bearers honored United States service members. With the smoke and dust in the air the flag was unfurled and the national anthem sang.

Landon and Millie Westbrook sit in their kitchen after returning from a funeral at 10 pm on April 20, for a family friend whose father committed suicide the week prior. “After the tornados tore down all of his barns he was never really the same,” said Landon. According to the CDC farmers are twice as likely as people in other occupations to die by suicide.

Millie walks her zebra, Marti, though the doors of her barn to get it used to being led. Although there is a lot of struggles farming and surviving doing so there are moments of peace. Over the past 4 years Millie has refurbished an old tobacco barn to be a clean, welcoming space for people to rent for anything from weddings to birthday parties. In the early days of using the barn she got increasing questions from customers to pet her animals in one of the adjacent barns. After having so much feedback she decided to make a part of the event barn package.

Posted in: Class Work, Student Work, Through Our Eyes

2023 Capstone Projects

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What happens when your freshman year of college everything shuts down for a pandemic and your a Photojournalism Major? Learn to adapt. Our graduating senior class had to learn how to engage with people when the world says to distance. When events on campus don’t resume until your junior year in college. You learn invaluable skills in an always changing world. (Example electric at our senior picnic shelter would never turn on during a rainstorm)

Students in the photojournalism sequence spend the last semester of their major working on a individual or small-team 16-week long projects.  The results of their efforts can be viewed at this site:

http://wkuvjp436.tilda.ws/2023projects

 

Survivors by Allie Schallert and Arthur Trickett-Wile

Domestic violence is a worldwide problem, but in the U.S., Kentucky leads the proportion of women who face it.

http://wkuvjp436.tilda.ws/survivors

 

Champion of My Own World by Charlie Haynes

Despite challenges, boxing coach Josh “Rocky” Mata still manages to follow his passions and inspire other along the way

http://wkuvjp436.tilda.ws/championofmyownworld

 

Route by Gabi Broekema and Anna Leachman

A documentation of Kentuckians who work, worship and live along the historic Dixie Highway

https://wkuvjp436.tilda.ws/route

 

Stone of Comfort by Gunnar Word

Despite having overcome a rough childhood and unlikely odds, Ebenezer Griffith is on a journey to try and represent the United States in the Olympics in 2024

http://wkuvjp436.tilda.ws/stoneofcomfort

 

Tonality by Georgia Mallett

Finding a voice in identity and music

http://wkuvjp436.tilda.ws/tonality

 

Unbreakable Bond by Tyler Breneman and Cristina Betz

Despite their vastly different backgrounds, two sibling support one another in a way no one else can.

http://wkuvjp436.tilda.ws/unbreakablebond

Posted in: Class Work, Photojournalism Projects Class, Student Work

The Life After, By Arthur H. Trickett-Wile

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WKUPJ junior, Arthur H. Trickett-Wile looks at the challenges one faces while being a force to challenge students on a daily basis.

Dr. Craig T. Cobane built the Western Kentucky University’s Mahurin Honors College from the ground up, working tirelessly and enthusiastically around the clock. But during an exploratory shoulder surgery last year, the surgeon found something that would change his life forever.

Posted in: Advanced Short Form Doc, Student Work, Through Our Eyes

Coming Alive By Allie Schallert

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WKUPJ Senior Allie Schallert looks at the paths one chooses and the influence family has over those choices.

Karen Davis was recognized from a young age for her artistic talent and was frequently encouraged to pursue it professionally. But without parents that properly encouraged her skills growing up she struggled to find her direction as an artist into adulthood.

To view the entire project: http://advancedshortform.tilda.ws/comingalive

Posted in: Through Our Eyes

Carry On

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From the moment the world learned of the death of Queen Elizabeth II on the evening of September 8, 2022, to the funeral held at Westminster Abbey on September 19, 2022, could be described as a fever dream. The city of London was still simmering with activity as it always has, but a blanket of calm and quiet sadness cloaked the streets. Citizens dressed in black and adorned in medals representing their service waited in the queue zig-zagging along the banks of the Thames to see the casket of their queen and to pay their respects to the monarch who dedicated 70 years of her life to her people.

WKUPJ student Gabi Broekema, who was studying a semester in Denmark, took the opportunity to hop over to London to document this historic event.

You can view the project here

Scenes from across London, England, of people mourning of the passing of Queen Elizabeth II and looking forward to a new era with the recently appointed King Charles III.

Julia Finder poses for a portrait after waiting nearly 8 hours in the que to pay her respects to Queen Elizabeth II’s casket as she laid in-state at Westminster Abbey on Friday, September 16, 2022. “It’s my queen,” Finder says. “I would have even waited 12, 15 hours.”

A mourner pauses on her trek to lay flowers at the Green Park floral tribute for Queen Elizabeth II and waits for a glimpse of the recently crowned King Charles III on Friday, September 16, 2022. The King and his siblings were to stand vigil at Westminster Abbey over their mother.

The crowd outside of Buckingham Palace gets pushed back by security to make way for the recently crowned King Charles III as he headed to stand vigil over his mother, Queen Elizabeth II as she laid in-state at Westminster Abbey on Friday, September 16, 2022. Parents and guardians keep a steel grip on their children’s coat collars while pushing forward against the wall of spectators in hopes of helping them catch their first glimpse of the new head of the monarch.

The crowd cheers and waves as the King Charles III rolls by in full military uniform to stand vigil with his siblings over his mother’s casket as it laid in state on Friday, September 16, 2022.

Posted in: Photojournalism Projects Class, Picture Stories, Student Work, Through Our Eyes

Painting by Number by Gabi Broekema

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WKU Photojournalism senior Gabi Broekema during her 6-month winter internship for Mlive tells the story of a Kalamazoo artist whose durational painting project documents mass shootings as they happen across the United States.

Mass shootings inspired Pitts to take on the large-scale project. Keith Pitts launched his endeavor to create small paintings he calls “markers” — one for each mass shooting that occurs in the United States through the entirety of 2022.

Click here to view the interactive project.

 

Posted in: Internship, Student Work, Through Our Eyes

Nourishing the Soul by Kennedy Gott

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Kennedy Gott’s WKU Photojournalism capstone project, examines a family as they tackle the challenges of sourcing their own food in a more healthy manner.

Ellen Aldridge practices modern homesteading by growing and raising her own food on their family’s land at their home in Bowling Green, KY. The Aldridge family is living an old-school and natural lifestyle while many in society struggle with the conveniences of a fast-paced life that results in unhealthy eating.

Click here to view the interactive project.

 

 

Posted in: Class Work, Photojournalism Projects Class, Student Work, Through Our Eyes