Earth Day at LBCC Campus 2024!

    This Monday, April 22, is Earth Day, and things are in full swing on the LBCC campus in Albany! The Green Team—Meg Roland, Cait Morgan, Liv Gifford, Lisa Hoogesteger, Kelly Brown, and Kim Armstrong—is here! At their booth, you can get seeds and free plants and pledge to take a positive step for Earth Day!

    Here, they are setting up their booth, and Jana Svoboda, center, answers a question about the plants she just brought in. 

    The Green Team is full of fun and interactive members! Here, Liv Gifford and Cait Morgan talk with a student.

    The Green Team isn't the only one setting up shop for Earth Day! We also have members of the AAWCC, which is the American Association for Women Community Colleges. 

    Lena Spencer, part of AAWCC's leadership team, wraps up Douglas Fir trees to hand out to students who want them. Spencer also mentioned an event called Motorcycle Mamas that is coming up in May. You can find more information about this event or the AAWCC organization at www.aawccnatl.org. 

Week 3: Understanding Art Class

 

    The 10 a.m. class of Understanding Art students is hard at work on this week's assignment. They were given this class time on Wednesday to work on Creative Project #2 for the term. Creative Project #2 required students to pick an item with personal, political, and/or cultural narrative value. 

    Two students, Allie Benton(front left) and Andrew Olsen(back right), are hard at work completing the second part of the assignment: creating a representation of their object through drawing. Allie is majoring in marketing here at LBCC. Allie collects clown dolls, and her object is the newest doll in her growing collection.

    The Instructor of Understanding Art, Kelsey Hamilton Davis, participates in the class project alongside her students. The object she uses as an example is a decoy duck, which she collects. This is her first term here at LBCC. The students of this class will submit their finished products for grading by 11:59pm this Sunday. 

Extra(Not Assignment Related)

    This has nothing to do with the assignment; I just like sharing a picture at the end that brings me joy and hopefully brings you joy, too. This is a squirrel on the PSU campus; he is an adorable little guy. 

Week 2; Around Campus

     The goal of this week's assignment was to break out of our comfort zone, talk to people, and get their names, as well as an Overall, Medium, and Closeup. I wouldn't say I succeeded in my goal of talking to people, but I am proud of myself because I spoke to one person!

   On Wednesday, the 10th of April, I met Cara White, a staff member at LBCC who has worked here for 6 years in the Adult Learning Skills Department. They were exceptionally kind when I spoke with them. They told me a bit about their work and that they also had a hobby in photography, specifically Macro Photography! 

    On Thursday the 11th, I was walking to meet my fiance, Alexander Springer, a computer science major. I know we are supposed to avoid taking pictures of friends and family, but I saw this opportunity to take this picture and had to go for it. I love how the students are framed within the structure of the building. 

    On Friday the 11th, Sarah Rose and Rob Priewe took the students of Photo Journalism out to learn how to take photos. We split off in two groups but again conjoined at the Pickleball court. These two individuals were the current winning team. I wish I could've stayed longer because the game was exciting to watch, and by the end of my short time, I was dying to see who would end up the victor! 

    As we were walking to the pickleball court, I noticed these flowers! I love the contrast between the colors. Spring truly is in motion!

    

Necessary Introductions

     Hello! My name is Peter, and I am a Psychology student at LBCC. One of my courses this term is this Photo Journalism class. I love taking pictures, but my experience is limited to taking pictures on my phone or with my Polaroid camera. Below is one of my favorite pictures. 

    This is a picture of the Jesuit Church in Mannheim, Germany. Mannheim is where my Oma(German for Grandmother) grew up. I went there in late June 2023. I saw many beautiful places on my trip, but when I think back on it, I always come back to this church the most. 

    I hope to achieve three goals in this Photo Journalism class besides getting a good grade. Goal one is to learn more about taking better pictures with life and substance. Goal number two is to learn how to use the fancy cameras. I am particularly excited about this one because I don't have a fancy camera that is easily accessible in my free time. My last goal is to get out of my comfort zone. Taking photos can put not only a lot of pressure on me to take one that is good, but it can be awkward knowing that people may be watching as I bend over backward, so to speak, to get the right angle. 

    This week, we were assigned to take photos of people doing interesting things, I unfortunately have been ill all week, so my time on campus was limited. These photos were the ones I managed to get:

    I took a picture of our campus courtyard, dead and empty. Most people were in class then, and it was freezing!

    I lovingly call this photo "Sarah Rose in Action!" At the time, she was helping another student. I saw her move quickly towards the courtyard and captured this picture. 

    I had gotten out my phone to take a picture of the neon open sign. It looked so majestic between the limbs of this tree, and the rain was acting like a film of sorts. I then later noticed I had caught a student wearing a black hoodie by the railing walking somewhere. I love that they are not noticeable at first, but they almost take over the picture when you see them. I wish I knew where they were going, why they needed to grab the rail, and most importantly, their name! 

This is just a picture of some of the flora we have in the courtyard on campus. After finishing class, I walked out of the building and was exhausted beyond belief. It was a dreary day until I noticed this little pop of color. It made me happy. This picture has nothing to do with the assignment; however, I hope it brings you some unexpected joy, as it brings me. 
 

I have only just started this class, but one thing it has already done for me is remind me to take notice of the worlds outside my bubble.