Senior special project results in photography exhibit

Faculty, staff, students and other visitors to the Upper Iowa University Liberal Arts building at Fayette Campus can currently view a collage of vibrant photographs near the Writing Center. The exhibition is a collection of photographs captured by senior communication studies major Sze Xin Khoo of Malaysia.

“I chose this photography exhibit as my required special project because I thought it would be fun and interesting,” Khoo said. “My passion for photography started when I noticed all the beautiful photographs on Instagram a few years ago. I admired the skills of the photographers and aspired to be as good as them.”

Although she was eager to begin the project, Khoo did not imagine that it would be much of a success as she had not taken pictures for over a year.

“However, as I worked on this project, I saw a major improvement in my photography skills and photos,” Khoo said. “I have to say that this is my most successful photography project so far.”

Every week, special project advisor/associate professor of communication Dr. Melle Starsen would suggest a theme for Khoo to photograph. The subjects included people, trees, props, buildings, indoor flora, the sky, landscapes and selfies.

“My favorite would definitely be photographing people with the use of props,” said Khoo, who used fairy lights in her photography. “It was challenging because the lights interfered with the natural lighting and I often had to adjust my camera settings.”

Another theme that Khoo enjoyed was sky photography. She found the topic to be most challenging due to the cloudy, gray skies of winter.

“I’m proud to say that my special project has made me more confident about my photography skills as I took better photos as each week passed by,” Khoo concluded.