My First Day Of School

Today’s high hit 79&degf! (That’s 26.1&degc.) Even though this warm weather isn’t going to be sticking around, it’s still fantastic for the lower half of March in Seattle.

I headed out to school early and took care of the little details before class started. I had to get my student ID so I could score on the associated freebies– like discounts on software and computers, use of the school library and gym, the ability to check out equipment, etc. I enjoyed poking around the campus too. (The pictures I took of the campus don’t do it justice, so I’m not sharing them. The spread of the Shoreline’s campus doesn’t really allow for a good picture of the whole thing from one location.)
The first day of class started slowly. “Chris,” our instructor, was ready to begin right at the 6:00pm class time, but the six of us that were there waited for another ten minutes to allow others from this “should be a class of twenty” to arrive. It wasn’t bad. Today was all about introductions. We were given a syllabus, and we all went over it together.
Something caught my attention while Chris (who specified that he does not want to be called Mr. So-and-so) was talking to us. I really appreciated the emphasis he gave to the distinction between “taking” pictures and “making” pictures, but I was really impacted by the way he’d refer to us, “as photographers.” There was something empowering in it, and I think that will be staying with me for some time.
Anyway, Chris comes across as a very pleasant, down to earth man. He made several cornball jokes throughout class to put us at ease, but I think most of my classmates (most of whom appear to be quite young) were not amused. It was hard to get a good gauge on them, actually. Maybe I am being critical, and maybe this is what I should expect for a first day of class. Then again, I couldn’t help notice that one of the students appeared to be fighting the nods.
Class ended early with a tour of Shoreline’s photography facility, which impressed me. The photos below display the Mounting Room, the Computer Lab, the Darkroom, and the Studio. (Those pictures are popups, so give