Students recognized in national photography contest

Six students from Liberty University’s Studio & Digital Arts Department (SADA) were recently recognized as finalists in Photographer’s Forum Magazine’s 36th Annual High School & College Photography Contest (see photos in gallery below).

Every year Photographer’s Forum Magazine hosts a photography contest for high school and college students, giving them the opportunity to share their talent. This year, the contest received over 21,000 entries from students and universities around the world.

Liberty senior photography minors Hannah Baker, Michaela Diddle, Brian Funderburke, Charles Harrell, Joel Isimeme, and Ronald Johnson II, were recognized for their work photographing nature and human subjects. Hannah Baker was also recognized last fall by Photographer’s Forum Magazine as a finalist for “Best Photography of 2015.”

Todd Smith, chair of the SADA Department, said that in order to enter, a high level of creative and technical skills is required.

“Liberty students gain expertise in these areas through the faculty mentoring and advising paradigm that runs throughout the SADA department, and photography classes in particular,” he said. “This competition included students from colleges in the U.S., Canada, and around the world. For our students to place, their work had to be of the highest aesthetic and technical quality.”

Dr. Norman Mintle, dean of Liberty’s School of Communication & Creative Arts (SCCA), is excited to see how these students and other “visual storytellers” from the SCCA will “make their God-inspired marks on our culture.”

“Our students are so creative, innovative, and imaginative that they are winning national recognition for their work,” Mintle said.

• The Liberty University Department of Studio & Digital Arts, under the School of Communication & Creative Arts, prepares students with a theoretical and historical understanding of studio art or graphic design. The department launched a Master of Fine Arts program and a Bachelor of Fine Arts program in 2015. A bachelor’s degree is also available with concentrations in graphic design, studio art, and teacher licensure. Minors are offered in photography, graphic design, and studio art.

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