The Year In Pictures: A Compilation

What better way to reflect on 2008 then through the year's photos? The year has been marked by some of the greatest events in the last decade: the U.S. Election, the Olympics, genocide, terrorism, war, natural disasters, economic crisis and much more. Here is a photographic compilation of 2008 from some of the world's leading publications. If you only have time for one, the Daily Beast collection is especially poignant.

BBC: Year In Pictures 2008

Daily Beast: The Year In Pictures

The New York Times: 2008- The Year in Pictures
Divided into sub-categories: The Election, The Nation, Sports, The World, Arts, Entertainment.

Slate: A Year of Pictures

Puffy clouds to our northeast

Molly Baum '11 sends us a photo of some beautiful clouds to the northeast of campus, taken yesterday.

Sunset over Foss Hill, as seen from Usdan

Life Magazine Releases Online Photo Archives

LIFE Magazine just released their photo archives. The site offers millions of photographs from the magazine's records. This perfect procrastination destination may even help with your school work!

Did you snap this photo?

Thirteen brave, bare students run across Andrus during Spring Fling 2005. Originally found on Facebook, the photographer is unknown.

Are you the one who captured this moment of naked Wesleyan history on film? If so, please email me as soon as possible at jlaselva@wes.

Obama's Election Night Photostream

In case you were wondering what the Obama family was up to on election night, Obama's campaign photographer, David Katz, was on hand to take some excellent behind-the-scenes shots of their reactions. And he posted them on Flickr! That's what young people like us do!

Click through for various shots of the Obama kids, Uncle Joe Biden stopping by along with Jill and various campaign advisers, extended family members anxiously awaiting the results, and general warm, fuzzy feelings:
Anyway, this really excited me as yet another example of the unprecedented freshness of our next president's campaign. Check out all the collections in his photostream if you feel like reliving it - photosets are organized by major events, states, and various interest groups.

[via gawker]

Eye of History: Discussion on Documentary Photography

Several of the photographers whose works are currently displayed in the Zilkha Gallery will be on campus tomorrow afternoon. Come for their panel discussion, Eye of History: The Camera as Witness, followed by a book signing and public reception:

Internationally renowned documentary photographers Wendy Ewald, Eric Gottesman and Susan Meiselas join acclaimed writer and critic David Levi Strauss in a panel discussion about photography's role in the world today. Wesleyan President and historian Michael Roth will introduce the panel. A Q&A session will follow. Participating as audience members will be a significant number of international scholars of photography and history including former photo editor of the NY Times, Vicki Goldberg.

Following the Panel there will be a public reception and book signing at Zilkha Gallery at 6:30 pm. If you haven't seen it already the reception will be a wonderful opportunity to view the current exhibition curated by Nina Felshin, "Framing and Being Framed: The Uses of Documentary Photography," which features works by the Panel presenters and other artists.

All are welcome. Hope you can join us for this exciting event.

To visit the presentation's website, click here.

Date: Friday, November 7
Time: 4:30 pm
Place: CFA Cinema, then viewing at 6:30 in Zilkha Gallery

Many Worlds: A student photography exhibition

From the Facebook group:

Wes Shutterbugs, a newly formed photography club that hopes to provide more opportunities for student photographers to display their works on campus and to engage the campus in issues of identity, culture, and diversity welcomes all to a dinner reception for the opening of its first exhibition.

Titled "Many Worlds", the exhibition aims to showcase the myriad communities our students come from, and how they perceive the world. Additionally, University photographer, Will Burkhart, will give a talk about his own works at the reception.

Date: Thursday, April 17
Time: 6:00 PM
Location: Zelnick Pavillion

Shutterbugs Spring Photo Exhibition - deadline TONIGHT!

The Shutterbugs Spring 2008 photography exhibition: Many Worlds is accepting submissions, but only until tonight, April 1st, 11:59 pm.

Please submit digital copies of your photos, together with an introduction/description to Shutterbugs.wes@gmail.com. (If you only have your works on film or prints, please send a description of your pictures to the same email address). The exhibtion will be held in Zelnick pavilion from April 16th till commencement week.

Theme: All about you. Tell us who you are; showcase your world through images: be it pictures of home, people you love, an unforgettable journey, or even yourself.
We accept works of all medium and genre (be it digital, film, collage, photo-essay, or even Facebook albums). Please provide whatever context that supports your work.

There is no limit to the number of submissions.

Unlock the Open Media treasure chest!

A little poking around in Wesleyan's Open Media database uncovered some not-really-noteworthy but potentially-interesting stuff:

• Photos from housing inspections!
• Videos about agility for the Phys. Ed. department!
• Drew Black teaches strength training!
• Ridiculously high-resolution photos of African stuff!
• Less ridiculously-high-resolution photos of African stuff!
• Browse through these photos for faculty hotties!
• Random special events photos!
• And finally, two sets of WESeminar webcasts!

Shutterbugs Exhibition

Ting Liu writes in to tell us that The Shutterbugs (Wesleyan's amateur photography group) is holding an exhibition, and they want your photographs!

Hi all,

The Shutterbugs, Wesleyan's amateur photographers' club, invites you to participate in our spring 2008 photography exhibition: Many Worlds. The theme is all about you. Tell us who you are; showcase your world through images: be it pictures of home, people you love, an unforgettable journey, or even yourself. Many Worlds aim to unveil the myriads of vibrant microcosms that exist within our college community.

So, submit your pictures now! You do not have to be an experienced photographer to participate. We accept works of all medium and genre (be it digital, film, collage, photo-essay, or even Facebook albums). Please submit digital copies of your work (as many as you please), together with a short description to: shutterbugs.wes@gmail.com.

The deadline to all submissions is April 1st. The exhibition will take place in Zelnick Pavilion from April 14th to May 15th.

Thank you for your support.

"Exposure" seeking photography submissions

Submit your work to Exposure, Wesleyan's student journal of photography.

All photographic work is accepted spanning the spectrums of both medium (digital/film/color/B&W) and genre (art, essay, travel, fashion -- anything goes). Written work supporting or discussing the medium, academic or otherwise, is also accepted and encouraged.

Digital submission should be sent in jpeg format to Wesleyan.exposure@gmail.com. Printed work should be sent through intercampus mail to Box 91911. If special arrangements are needed, email us. Please provide whatever context your work necessitates.

Make a 3D Model of Wesleyan for Google!

Vernon Thommeret '10 is spearheading a team of students who aim to make an accurate and pleasing model of Wesleyan's campus to enter in a competition with those of other schools across the country to win a trip to Google and a workshop with their 3D wizardfolk. There can be up to fifteen team members doing a variety of tasks.
Hunting down blueprints sound like your thing? Go Team! How about finding that perfect shot of Olin's bricks in order to texture map onto the model? Or just some good old wireframe modeling? There's something for everyone. (Plus, I'm looking forward to flying around campus in Google Earth tagging squirrel lairs.)

Get involved here.

Vagabond/Photographer/Activist takes on American Racism

Photographer Jacob Holdt presents "American Pictures: A Danish vagabond's personal journey through the American underclass"

A self identified Danish vagabond presents his show (through a range of multi-media) on American poverty, racism and oppression. After spending many years hitchhiking across the US living among extreme poverty, KKK members, and being arrested by the secret service, he considers his show/workshop to be "racism shock therapy."

Date: This Friday, February 23
Time: 4:15-8:15
Location: Science Center 150
Motivation: Snacks will be served during intermission!

Introduction to Darkroom Techniques

Kara Brodgesell will be leading an "Introduction to Darkroom Techniques" Seminar on Sunday, October 8th, from 12-2 pm.

This is designed for darkroom beginners and will go over basic negative and print developing.

You MUST RSVP to lschiebler(at)wesleyan.edu by Friday, and they can take no more than 12 people this time around. Assuming this is successful and there's a lot of interest, they'll probably hold another one in November, so if you can't make it this time, please let them know.

Pinhole is the way to go

With Wesfoto hopefully reinvigorated in its third year, it's time to celebrate. Linatree is offering a free PDF for this beautiful build-your-own pinhole camera. Such PDFs have been floating around on the internet for a while now, but this is the prettiest one I've come across, and it even comes with a 3D animated guide to help you put it together! And what a productive jigsaw puzzle it is.

Photo club

Wesfoto, Wesleyan's photography club, is having its first meeting this Sunday, September 24th, at 10:00pm in the Woodhead Lounge of the Science Center. If you can't attend the meeting but are still interested, e-mail bstein(at)wesleyan.edu and he'll catch you up. If the meeting is anything like what happened last year, you will sign forms that give you access to the Science Center dark room and learn about some of Wesleyan's photography resources.