Pinhole photography captures students’ interests

By MEGHAN HOLLAND, Staff Reporter |

United Catalysts, Kim Garrison and Steve Radosevich, came to Amarillo College for an artist talk on April 25 and a pinhole camera workshop on April 28 for Worldwide Pinhole Photography Day. Their pinhole photographs will remain on display through May 8 at AC’s Southern Light Gallery on the Washington Street Campus.

United Catalysts built their own pinhole camera out of iron, which they used for their project that depicts “Stories of the Painted Desert.” Garrison said that she loves experimenting with this type of photography because there is so much a person can do with it and the pictures come out almost even ghostly. 

Since the photographer cannot see what the picture will look like until it is developed, the process is one of trial and error, she said.

“It was so cool when I first heard about them,” Ashley Denham, a general studies major and the vice president of Photo Club, said. “Just knowing that there are artists out there still pursuing pinhole photography is just an amazing thing, especially when you go out and make your own camera out of iron. They are cool people to hang out with and share a hobby and a passion with.” 

According to Denham, a lot of planning went into this event. The Worldwide Pinhole Photography Day workshop is hosted annually by AC, but Denham said that they try to change it up from year to year. She said Photo Club must organize guest speakers and gather the supplies needed to put on such an interactive event. “It is definitely a want from the public and through AC, so we continue to do it,” she said.

Denham said that pinhole photography is an art that Photo Club does not want to die out, even though there are less darkrooms available than there used to be. “We just want to have a chance for the public to come and continue that historical experience,” she said.

“We had a really great turnout,” Mariah McCrea, a general studies major and member of AC’s Photo Club, said. McCrea said that her favorite thing about pinhole photography is the darkroom because she enjoys exploring and experimenting with the development process.

Another attendee of the event, Jana Cobb, said that she heard about the event through her friend that is a former photography student of AC. She said that her favorite part about the workshop was seeing the darkroom and developing the pictures. “I’ve never done that before. I’ve always seen it in the movies. It was fun,” said Cobb.

She said that she would likely come back and experiment with this type of photography again because she would have a better idea of how to use a pinhole camera. “I had no idea what a pinhole camera was before, so that was cool to learn a new thing,” Cobb said.

Denham said that she encourages people to come next year. “We’re always open to ideas or if people want to come and try something new, we’re always open to it.”

For more information about United Catalysts and their work, visit unitedcatalystsart.com, and to find out more about Photo Club, talk to Rene West or Brent Cavanaugh, the sponsors of the club, who are both located on the third floor of Parcells Hall.

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