The photography program is often overlooked, even though the students in it show extreme talent from their first year of the class.
Many incoming freshmen are unsure of what elective classes they want to take, as the school has so many options.
Lilly Bryan considered themselves to be one of those people. This was before their friend told them about the photography program, in which they immediately signed up.
“It was something I’ve always been interested in, but have never really had a reason to do it,” Bryan said.
This program not only gave them an outlet to do it, but also taught them all of the fundamentals in an engaging way.
“When I had first heard about the class in middle school, I initially thought it would be a class I could get an easy A in, but taking it gave me a deeper appreciation for the art form.” Sophomore Olive Russel said.
Providing in-depth lessons to students taking this class, but explaining them at a basic level, allows students to fully grasp the concepts being taught to them.
“I barely knew anything about photography. I’ve learned about working in the dark room and how to work with film. I’ve also learned a lot about the technicality of cameras and photography in general.” Bryan said.
This is all thanks to Mrs. Nicole Croy, who has been teaching at Carroll since 2001 and built the photography program from the ground up. Not only is she an award-winning educator, but she is also a well-respected artist.
She described her space as the “Taj Mahal” of photography classrooms and designed it herself by visiting the nation’s most esteemed college photography programs. It was designed to be a space where both functionality and creativity thrived.
“To me, leading by example is one of the most important parts of teaching. I want my students to see that I am an active artist—someone who is not afraid to experiment, take risks, and make mistakes. I believe that showing my students my own creative process, successes, and failures helps them understand that art is about growth, curiosity, and courage.” Croy said.
Croy goes out of her way to provide different opportunities for students to display their work, sizing down photos and placing them in tiny frames before distributing them throughout the city of Fort Wayne. This sort of project is the exact thing that students are talking about when they say Mrs. Croy is an amazing teacher.
“I love the environment and my classmates. Mrs. Croy is such a great teacher, and there is never a boring day in her class. It is such a great program because you can experiment with so many different things.”Russell said.
While finding inspiration for pictures can be quite challenging at times, Lilly Bryan has a unique approach.
“I feel like a lot of my influence comes from album covers and music in general. Sometimes I’ll hear a lyric in a song, and I’ll picture something in my mind, like a photo, to go along with those lyrics. With some lyrics, I will think that it would be a good title for a photo and figure out what the photo is later,” Bryan said.
The future for the photography program is extremely promising, with both photo 5 and 6 being offered beginning next school year.
To any student who is looking for another elective to add to their schedule with course selections coming up, you should absolutely make photography one of your classes.
