Last Post for This Class

Jake, a rottweiler, was adopted after this photo was taken.

This is my last post for this class.  It is very sad for me indeed.  But I'm so excited about all the good I've been able to do for the Animal Shelter and these animal through my photography and this blog.  I've seen many of my photographs uploaded on WCAS website and always get a nice jolt when I see one of my photos published by someone other than me.  We all take similar photos of the same animals.  Some of us prefer working with the dogs while others of us prefer working with the cats. The point of this course was to experience all of it including hamsters and rabbits!

I learned to be proficient at Photoshop.  I wasn't expecting that yet.  I was expecting I'd still be struggling with that.  I grasped every lesson and mastered all of them.  That was very uplifting for me, especially since I had already spent two classes struggling with Photoshop.  (I've even asked for it for my birthday--keep your fingers crossed!)

I entered this class very last minute with a lot of hesitation.  I already signed up for six credit hours this summer, I wasn't sure how I'd have room in my schedule for this class.  Prof. Johnstone worked with my schedule so I could do this and for that, I am forever grateful and indebted to her.  Thank you Prof. Johnstone. 

I hope my photos and blogs have helped others to see the importance of spaying and neutering animals to reduce overpopulation of these animals.  It's heart breaking to go to the shelter every week and see the same animals have not been adopted yet.  It's not that there is anything wrong with them, they just haven't found the right fit yet.  What's sadder is when you know which ones will be euthanized.  That really broke my heart.  I became attached to every cat I photographed and it became my personal intention to do everything I could to make sure they were adopted.  I even interacted with people coming to adopt.  I could tell them about the personalities of each cat, whether the cat would get along with other animals and/or children in the home.  I could tell them if a cat they were interested in was interested in them or if their was another one that would be a better fit for them. 

These were all benefits of this class, and all were unexpected.  I chose this course because I needed more experience with photography.  This is one medium I chose to pursue when I graduate and so I am pursuing as many photography classes while at Meredith as I can.  I am a senior, majoring in studio art.  I expect to graduate in 2013, but am holding off until December because I would like to go to Italy with the Art Department next summer on another photography experience.  I am already thinking about my Senior Exhibition and am expecting to use photos from Italy, but it is my hope I will be able to incorporate some from this class as well.

My next immediate photography endeavor is an internship photographing for Wake County Public Libraries that I will start in July.  I am as excited for that internship as I was for this class.  I think I'm off and running.  Thank you to all of you for viewing my blog while I was in this class.  Wish me luck as I continue on this photographic journey.

Twix is a 4 year old cat that was adopted after posting this photo! 

It's so great to be able to help these animals' voices be heard.

Remember, the next time you're looking to bring a pet into your family, please consider the Wake County Animal Shelter, a rescue group, or the ASPCA.  I always imagine and ask myself, what if these were children?  These are children.  Children who cannot speak for themselves. I'm so glad I could speak for them for a short while.