“I don’t act the way that I act because I’m gay and HIV positive,” said Teddy Talyor, 22, of Bowling Green, Ky. Taylor was infected with HIV when he was 19, changing his life forever. Taylor contracted HIV after having unprotected sex with one of his partners. Since then he has decided to live life to the fullest. Most nights consist of drinking alcohol, doing drugs or having relations with new partners.
Sisterwives
Mark, 48, lives in South Central Kentucky with his wives, Marian, 32, and Heidi, 23. Together they are raising seven children under the principle of Celestial Plural Marriage, also known as polygamy. Their beliefs about plural marriage are rooted in their faith, what they call independent fundamental Mormonism. Mark leads the family in a home church service each Sunday. Marian and Heidi home school the children. The family lives a life of sustainability, growing their own fruits and vegetables, and using solar energy to power their home.
Capturing a dramatic rescue
WKU Freshman Tyler Cacek spent several weeks working with an ambulance crew for a project for Intro class. One day he documented the dramatic rescue of several people from a car crash.
Margaret Mason, 63, of Marion County, Ky, attempts to remove the victim of a head-on collision on highway 50 outside of Lebanon, Kentucky. The crash resulted in the hospitalization of 5 people, two of which were flown directly to Louisville, KY hospital from the scene.
Sending off toe-to-toe
WKU Senior Cody Duty photographed this couple in a somewhat different way, focusing on a tender touch of toes, using the contrast in footwear to tell the story of a soldier departing for war.
Mary Lewin (left) spends the remaining moments with her husband, Sgt. Mark Lewin of the U.S. Army, before the 36th Sustainment “Rawhide” Brigade Deployment Ceremony in Temple, Texas on July 4, 2009. “I’m proud of him, but it’s hard for us,” Mary said. The soldiers will be deployed for a 13-month tour overseas.
Peace After War in Uganda • WKU student Tyler Cacek travels to Africa
In June 2009, I left the United States for East Africa. The primary purpose of my trip abroad was to document the efforts of The HALO Foundation (www.haloworldwide.org) working with disadvantaged youth in Kampala, Uganda. The majority of my time was spent creating a portrait series for each of the homes HALO works in, but in my off time I pursued other stories dealing with issues across east Africa. For years I have wanted to be a documentary photographer working in the Third World. This was the perfect opportunity for me to embrace my dreams and take a step into a career that I will hotly chase for the rest of my life.
I spent two months photo-mentoring a group of boys living in one of the group homes HALO supports. There isn’t much art appreciation in Uganda, so giving disadvantaged kids cameras and allowing them to explore the world in a way that they never thought possible allowed them to grow and appreciate a little bit of something that they never had.
I will continue to return to Uganda to document human stories an elements. My trip this summer allowed me to solidify my passion and honed my vision for my future.
Photojournalism Project students publish team effort on music of the Bluegrass.
Enjoy this multi-media journey through some of the stories in our region as twenty-five students worked together on this team project for a mid-semester exercise on group projects and storyboard development.
Highlights: Student’s work from the Projects in New Media class.
Seniors in the Projects in New Media class, a capstone course, produced stories that provide thought provoking story telling using multiple forms of media to produce mini-documentaries. Click on the images below to see their stories.
Closer to Home: A Daughter Becomes a Caregiver • by Taylor Hayden
Under the Table: Illegal Immigration in America • by Philip Andrews
The Road to Stability • by Krista Schinagl
Telling stories, using one frame at a time – and lots of them.
Senior Projects student Matt Schauer used single frame imagery used in rapid sequence to create this “poetic” montage of the water cycle. Students were given the theme of “State of your environment” and then were told to use multimedia techniques and music to explain their point of view.
Senior photo students capture a moment by shooting only one frame.
Photojournalism Project students were assigned the theme of “Black and White” and then told to immerse themselves in a real situation where they could look at opposites. They had to observe the environment they were in and then determine when would be the right time to take ONE picture. They could use any lens they wanted but they were only allowed to shoot one frame. This exercise makes you think about the power of the single moment and encourages the photojournalist to observe.
Photojournalism Projects class makes use of inexpensive cameras to tell their stories.
Students in the Photojournalism Projects class were asked to represent the “state of their environment” by making use of plastic cameras. The images they took were to represent a complete feeling or emotion surrounding their theme.