Lauren Beck: Rising Photography Star in the Eye Level Photo Show

We love seeing student work displayed on campus, especially when that work comes not from a class, but from an established studio downtown. Our own Lauren Beck ?14 interns at Emma Dodge Hanson Photography in Saratoga with several other Skidmore students, including sophmore Molly Leon and senior Kelsey Thorn, ‘helping Emma with her projects and working on their own. Lauren?s work was displayed in the “Eye Level” Photography Show at Murray Aikens Dining Hall on Dec. 14, and we wanted to get to know Lauren’s work and her perspective on photography.
 
Her Campus: So what is the “Eye Level” Photography Show?
Lauren Beck: The purpose of the show is a culmination of this internship, a way to be like, “Hey community, look what we did this semester!” So, on Dec. 14, we did a big print review at the studio where community members came and picked the photographs that would be in the final show. There?s no theme necessarily, the common thread is that the shots are more theatrical as opposed to documentary.
 
HC: How did you get involved with this internship?
LB: Last year I was taking Beginning Photography, and at the end of the semester I got an email for photo students who might be interested in a photography internship. During the internship, we met twice and worked on Emma?s jobs, such as weddings, family shoots etc. On Fridays we met in the morning for a weekly critique of the projects that we had been working on during that week.
 
HC: How do you find inspiration for your photographs?
LB: It definitely depends on the week, on my mood, and what?s going on around me. For example, my friend said out of the blue, “I wonder what I would look like bald” and I thought, “bald photo shoot!” It really varies. A lot of the time I see a prop that I want to use and build a story around that. Ideas might also by shaped by the people modeling for me.
 
HC: Have you always been interested in photography?
LB: Not my whole life, but definitely for a long time! Travel has always been something really important in my family. When we started to take bigger trips, that’s when I became really interested in photography. The most influential trip we took was to Africa. My parents gave me this really cool camera, and I got to play with it and get to know it there. I came back and realized that’s what I wanted to do and began exploring it during high school.
 
HC: What are some of the biggest challenges you face in your work?
LB: Currently, not having the budget of a celebrity photographer! I tend to overdo things in my head that can’t be carried out in reality. You also have to be willing to put not just your body, but your mind in a lot of weird places. For one shoot of a house, I had to lie down in the middle of the street to take pictures! You definitely have to be a little bit crazy. It’s also been especially challenging to balance photo work with three other classes.

HC: What do you hope to do with photography in your future?
LB: I have two totally different ideal tracks. I love doing studio work, posed shoots and everything, but I love travel and that’s been my main inspiration. I would love to do something documentary oriented like photojournalism, and that’s a little bit scarier. In high school I went to Peru on a National Geographic student trip, and studied photojournalism there. I learned the harsh reality of life as a photojournalist but I also saw how much passion goes into it and all the opportunities there are to travel.
 
We hope you got a chance to check out the Eye Level Photography show. Check out Lauren?s photography on her blog and keep an eye on this talented collegiette!