I have always had a keen interest in photography, especially in capturing the beauty of the night sky. Astrophotography has been a passion of mine for many years now. I find imaging the cosmos absolutely captivating, from glowing nebulas to distant galaxies. There’s something magical about using photography to reveal and share the wonders of the universe that are invisible to the naked eye. I love exploring this niche area of photography and enjoy the challenges of mastering long exposure techniques to photograph faint celestial objects. My goal is to continue developing my astrophotography skills and create images that evoke a sense of awe and inspire curiosity about the contents of our vast cosmos. I get immense satisfaction from the creativity and patience this form of photography demands.

LO1 – Identify own strengths and develop areas for growth.

Through my school’s photography club, I realized that I have a knack for portrait photography. I find that I’m able to put people at ease in front of the camera and capture their personalities. To further develop this strength, I spent time practicing different lighting techniques and poses for natural yet striking portraits. I also researched tips on directing photo subjects effectively.

Once I gained confidence in my portrait skills, I wanted to give back by providing printed photos the kids could cherish, since many couldn’t afford professional family portraits. My teacher loved the initiative and helped me organize a few weekend sessions for students in my school.

I thoroughly enjoyed working with the enthusiastic kids and testing my skills in posing and photographing active children. Seeing their joy at being able to take home printed photos that highlighted their uniqueness was incredibly rewarding. The sessions challenged me to further refine my direction, patience and technical abilities. Being able to identify this photography strength and cultivate it to bring joy to others was such a fulfilling experience. I’m grateful I could use my club participation to develop and share my skills in this meaningful way.

LO3 – Initiate and plan a CAS experience.

As the logistics manager for my grade’s photography club CAS project, I took the lead on planning and initiating this experience. Knowing there were many aspiring photographers in my class, I volunteered to get the ball rolling.

First, I reserved a classroom we could use for biweekly meetings. I then created flyers announcing the club formation and highlighting the hands-on photography activities we would offer. To generate interest, I highlighted guest speakers, photo walks, contests, and technique workshops.

I hung the flyers around school and made classroom announcements informing students about the club and meeting times. To manage logistics, I created a signup sheet so interested students could add their names and contact info.

About 18 students signed up within the first week! To plan the first meeting, I borrowed cameras from the media center, drafted an agenda of introductory activities, and asked our art teacher to speak about photographic composition.

On the big day, I felt proud seeing our classroom filled with excited photographers ready to get involved. Leading this initiative from ideation to execution was very rewarding. As logistics manager, I enjoyed bringing fellow students together to pursue our shared passion for the art of photography in a collaborative environment.

LO5 –  Demonstrate skills and benefits of working collaboratively.

Here is a scenario about collaboratively working with friends:

When my friends and I decided to start a photography club at school, I learned a lot about working collaboratively with peers.

We each brought unique skills and perspectives to the club. My friend Sanidhya had access to photography equipment we could use. Pavitra created a website and social media pages to showcase our work online. I contributed organizational skills for planning meetings and photo shoots.

As a team, we were able to achieve much more than any of us could have done alone. We chose weekly themes that pushed us creatively, gave each other feedback to improve, and promoted the club to get more students involved.

The whole process of brainstorming, planning, and executing ideas together built strong bonds of friendship between us. I learned so much from their photography styles and technical tips. Seeing how positively others responded to our collaborative work was really motivating.

This experience showed me the skills vital for working cooperatively, like communication, compromise, and dividing responsibilities based on each person’s abilities. But most importantly, collaborating with friends on our shared passion made the club experience way more fun and rewarding. I’m lucky to have worked with such dedicated photographers and friends.