Students in Newhouse School to chronicle life in the Town of Clay

Wendy S. Loughlin
(315) 443-2785

Some 40 photography students from Syracuse University’s S.I. Newhouse School of Public Communications will turn their attention to the local town of Clay this month, spending the weekend of Oct. 17-19 getting to know the community during an annual photo workshop sponsored by the school’s Department of Visual and Interactive Communications (VIC).

The students will document life in Clay not only by shooting photographs but also by recording sound, writing stories and shooting video. Ultimately, they will publish their work online, in The Post-Standard and in a student-produced book.

“For many Newhouse students, the workshop is a pivotal point in their education,”says Bruce Strong, associate professor of VIC and a workshop leader. “They are able to learn by doing.’ Some learn through their mistakes and others through their successes, but all of them grow in numerous ways throughout the weekend. It’s a real-world, real-time exercise.”

The students will work out of the Clay Town Hall, where 20 journalists from across the country will be on hand to offer advice and guidance. “The students get to interact with some of the best professionals in the field,”says Strong. Participating journalists include two-time Pulitzer Prize winner Michel DuCille, assistant managing editor for photography with The Washington Post, and award-winning photojournalists Nikki Kahn and Preston Keres. In addition, multimedia editors from the Newark Star-Ledger and The Washington Times and photographers and editors from The New York Times, Seattle Times and San Antonio Express-News will be in attendance. Many are Newhouse alumni who participated in similar workshops when they were students.

Each student will complete at least one story, capturing a visual record of the Clay community. Several of the stories will be published in The Post-Standard, and all of the student work will appear online at http://www.thefallworkshop.com. In addition, graphic design students will produce “blurb books”featuring the students’ work, due for release in early 2009.

In addition to photography students, other students from VIC, as well as students from Newhouse’s Military Photojournalism Program, will participate in the workshop.

The students will hold a community presentation on Saturday, Oct. 18, at 8 p.m. at the Clay Town Hall, 4401 State Route 31.

For more information about the workshop, contact Mary Buttolph at (315) 857-5224 or mebeatty@syr.edu.