People and Places

A Day in the Life

Posted on February 9, 2011

You have probably seen those coffee table books that are “A Day in the Life of….” and that chronicle a 24 hour period somewhere.  I think one of the first ones was “A Day in the Life of America” and it included photographs from around the country taken by hundreds of photographers professional and amateur.

In late April (when maybe we will be down to just two feet of snow everywhere) we will be hosting a Day in the Life of the University, an invitation to all interested photographers to capture aspects of the university in one 24-hour period, midnight to midnight.  The event will be open to all  SNHU community members, including alumni and students studying at our centers and online, and a panel of judges will recognize the top photographs.  First prize will be $2000, second will be $1000, third will be $500, and there will be a number of $100 honorable mention prizes. 

The best of the photographs will be made into large format prints and hung in the Dining Hall.  A larger collection of the photographs will be reproduced online, in marketing materials, and in a commemorative book. 

We hope to get photographs that go beyond the standard- view-book fare.  In any 24-hour period of a university’s life there are moments of great joy, celebration, community, enlightenment, and culture.  But there are also moments of loneliness, defeat, disappointment, and struggle.  It’s fun to enter the Dining Hall in the middleof the day when it is full and buzzing with energy, but few people see that middle of the night moment when a sole person works away with a floor buffer or that before dawn flicking on of the lights when our baker arrives to start his work.  There is drama and joy to be captured when a team wins, but there is dignity and beauty in shots of defeat as well.  We hope to capture the life of SNHU in a more nuanced and insightful way than is typical. 

We are playing with the idea of themes such as:

  • Connections
  • Joy
  • Pain
  • Quiet
  • Solitude
  • Celebration

and more.  In March we will send out the official details and announcement, but for all those who like to take photographs, you might want to start thinking about the shots you would like to take.

There is an enormous amount of talent on campus and a lot of it has to do with photography.  Quite a large number of our University Staff mini-grants have gone to support that interest.  Walk through the offices and cubicles around campus and you will see ample evidence of people’s visual creativity and expertise.  It will be fun to rally that talent and energy around capturing a single day in the life of SNHU.

One thought on “A Day in the Life

  1. Jeff says:

    This is a great way to caputure the essence of the university. I look forward to see how the final, collective effort unfolds.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *