Club members discussed plans for the semester.Shaima Eissa/The Daily Cougar
The Photography Student Association is back in full gear after its recent fallout from UH student organizations.
Seasoned photographers and wishful newcomers came together Thursday for PSA’s first meeting of the year where introductions were made, events for the upcoming semester were discussed and $100 scholarships were awarded to one undergraduate and one graduate student.
Formerly the UHPSA, PSA was re-founded in the fall after the previous association lost its steam. Sharing only a logo and some T-shirts with its predecessor, PSA serves as a networking, teaching, learning and social experience for everyone from experienced photography graduate students to those who have never held a camera.
“We took bits and pieces from them, but it really is a new organization,” said Katelin Washmon, PSA president and a third-year photo visual media graduate student.
“This (club) has graduate students involved as well as undergraduate students, and I think that’s really crucial because that communication needs to be there. That networking needs to be there in order to have the club survive from year to year” she said.
The club will host workshops on photographic techniques such as lighting or how to properly clean a camera, and the officers will offer portfolio critiques for students that want perspective on their work.
The highlight of the meeting was the announcement of the scholarship winners. The students were chosen based on short portfolios that were evaluated by a panel of judges. Undergraduate winner Brenda Franco was not present to receive her award, but second-year photography graduate student Jeremy Underwood said he was grateful.
“It was great. What more can you ask for? That’s the great thing about the organization; you get involved, you can participate but also get something out of it,” Underwood said.
PSA will host a viewing at the Houston Center for Photography later in the semester, with students’ work turned to face the windows, so pedestrians walking past can view the photographs as well.
“(I like) the whole idea of organizing people in a non-academic environment. You get a chance to socialize. You get a chance to learn things in a less-formal way and get to know everybody,” Underwood said.
“The relationship between undergrad and grad is always been separated, so it’s nice to get that collaboration between the two.”
