Assignment

2015 UCR Riverside School of Business graduation

Family members of graduates reacting on hearing the names of their loved ones.
Family members of graduates reacting on hearing the names of their loved ones.

Each year I look forward to being called upon to photograph at least 1 of 7 UCR’s commencement ceremonies.

It’s the weekend of graduations: 1 on Friday evening, 3 on Saturday and 3 on Sunday.

“Pomp and Circumstance” might as well be playing on a loop for that weekend. 😉

My former colleagues at the newspaper reading this will probably be thinking I’ve finally lost it.

Keynote speaker Susan Atherton
Keynote speaker Susan Atherton

Photographing graduations as an assignment while at the newspaper was very different.

The newspaper for a time, covered literally every high school and college graduation.

So on certain days, it wasn’t unusual for staff photographers to have to do two ceremonies on the same shift.

Logistically it was a chore even if they tried to group the assignments geographically.

Finding and making good pictures was expected but that wasn’t the most challenging.

Keeping the IDs straight was probably the biggest headache when covering a graduation. (We have to identify the subjects correctly since this implied consent so that the paper could publish the pictures)

There are happy faces to be found everywhere not just on the graduates but also family members in the audience
There are happy faces to be found everywhere not just on the graduates but also family members in the audience

When I do get assigned a graduation these days, I’m just looking for images of excited folks, graduates and other oddities like decorated mortarboards and other fun moments.

I try and not stand in the same spot for too long because I know I’m not the invisible man.

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Peter Phun Photography

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