President's Blog

Are you interested in getting into the film industry? Come to the Brooks Institute open house on Saturday May 15 to learn more!

Presentations run from 10am through 1pm.

The Ventura Campus houses our Film and Video Production program and our Graphic Design program.

Formerly a motion picture studio, the campus is complete with a back lot, film sets, sound stages, and computer labs for editing and graphic design.

Come by and see if Brooks Institute is the right school for you!

Please RSVP: 888-304-3456

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The Chile documentary group held three packed release parties. All proceeds from these events benefit earthquake relief in Chile.

Last year, a group of 16 Brooks Institute Film, Professional Photography, and Visual Journalism students along with faculty member Paul Michael Myers spent seven weeks in Chile researching  and recording the country’s culture, people, landscapes, and so much more with the vision to bring what they found back to California in the form of a documentary Book, DVD and website.

They returned and on February 27, 2010 devastation struck many of those they met and the places they traveled in the form of a massive 8.8 magnitude earthquake. With some quick thinking, the group partnered with Direct Relief and turned their documentary release parties into fundraising efforts for the country they have come to admire.

Documentary co-producer Jeff Johns issued this statement, “In our efforts to partner with local NGO Direct Relief International to aid the victims and those affected by the devastating earthquake in Chile in late February 2010, we are proud to announce that with your help, and the help of the local community, to date, we raised nearly $7,000 to be sent directly to organizations on the ground in Chile. With your help, this money, which totals almost $200,000 worth of medical supplies because of partnerships DRI has with medical supply companies, we are doing an amazing job getting desperately needed help to those who need it most in the country we fell in love with. Donations are still being accepted at http://www.directrelief.org/brookschile.html.”

Be sure to also visit the Revelar los Enlaces documentary website.

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On March 11, 2010 the world lost a great visual documentarian of the civil rights movement of the 50s and 60s. Brooks Institute alumnus and photographer Charles Moore died of natural causes in Florida. He was 79. His vivid and iconic images of the civil rights movement in the south will live on. Moore captured widely published images of Martin Luther King, Jr. In the 2005 documentary Charles Moore: I Fight With My Camera, Moore said, “I knew that this was a man who was going to make a difference.” Moore’s ability to identify this coupled with the huge impact the civil rights movement was going to have contributed to his success as a visual journalist. But without his talent behind the camera, this may not have been enough.

After serving as a photographer in the Marine Corp, Moore decided to study fashion photography. I am proud to say that he chose Brooks Institute. He studied here in the 1950s.

See some of Moore’s work in his LA Times Obituary.

Brooks Institute Board of Trustees member & editor-in-chief of Rangefinder and AfterCapture magazines Bill Hurter shared his memory of Mr. Moore, “I knew Charles Moore from my days at American University. He, along with another friend named Arledge Armenaki, was responsible for getting me to come to Brooks.”

Mark Mosrie, President of the Alumni Association of Brooks Institute recalls meeting Mr. Moore, “[I] met him once when I was in school and he invited me to his home in Northern California. A few weeks later, I took him up on it and spent three days with him and his wife. I remember walking around his darkroom and seeing PrintFile negative sleeves containing his most famous images.

Few people make a real difference in the world through their craft but Charles Moore was one of those who did.

He was truly one of the extraordinary “Brookies” (Brooks Institute alumni) whose “passion, vision, and excellence” have changed the world.

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The Alumni Association of Brooks Institute (AABI) announced the winners of their first annual Visual Arts Contest. The theme for the contest was Nature vs. Man. This contest was open to all Brooks Institute Alumni and held on the official AABI Facebook Page. They had over 60 alumni participants submit more than 100 images.

The images went through a three-tiered judging process comprised of esteemed Brooks Institute faculty and alumni. Thank you to faculty members Bruce Burkhardt, Ralph Clevenger, Chuck Place, Bob Smith, and alumnus James Neihouse for giving their time to review the images and select the winners.

Without further ado, the winners are:

1^st Place: Paul Knudsen

2^nd Place: Joe Morahan

3^rd Place: Ashley Suzanne Taylor

Runners Up:

Gina Papadakis

Kodiak Greenwood

Willa Kveta

Congratulations Brookies!

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"Rodeo" Image by Emma Fernelius

Brooks Institute presents the grand opening of “Revelar los Enlaces,” a student-developed documentary of Chile. The documentary, which chronicles the country’s people, life and culture, will premier as a multi-media presentation April 8, 2010 at 6:30 p.m. at the Granada Theater in Santa Barbara. Immediately following the premier, an exhibit and artists’ reception displaying the students’ documentary prints will be held at Brooks Institute’s Gallery 27.

As the premier date approached, the Feb. 27, 2010 earthquake in Chile became a focal point for the documentary group. With relief efforts underway, the students at Brooks Institute teamed up with Direct Relief International, a California-based, non-profit organization that provides financial and medical support to those in need. All proceeds resulting in the sale of the book and DVD will be donated to help the people of Chile. The students also will be collecting donations and conducting print auctions at the three gallery opening events.

“Chile now has a home in my heart,” said visual journalism student and documentary co-producer Jeff Johns.  “I realized we have an unbelievable opportunity to use these products we created to gain attention, awareness and relief for the victims of this horrible earthquake. By turning our opening events into fund raising opportunities, we have high hopes of raising funds to immediately impact those in desperate need.”

Each year, the visual journalism program of Brooks Institute offers an international documentary trip for interested Visual Journalism, Professional Photography, Graphic Design and Film students. The class, which is staged in a different international location each year, is limited to the strongest applicants. In November and December 2009, the 16 selected students and instructor spent seven weeks in Chile. Upon their return, the students created projects to showcase their experiences from this documented trip, including a multimedia presentation, a print exhibition, Web site, book and a DVD.

Following this grand opening event on April 8 will be a special screening and multimedia presentation at Brooks Institute’s Ventura Campus Saturday, April 10 from 6 – 10 p.m.  A screening and print show will also be held at the Marriott Ventura Beach Thursday, April 15, from 5 – 7:30 p.m. Each event will be unique as the students bring their Chilean experience to Southern California.

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Brookies Danielle Sandoval and Devyn Arrey were on-hand to photograph celebrity attendees.

Eleven Brookies teamed up with Brooks Institute’s  Career Services team, Eli Davis, Daniel Smith, Katie Huber and Isis Wills and attended this year’s pre-Oscars events, specifically the Eco Red Carpet and celebrity portrait session for The American Red Cross and benefit for Haiti relief.

“It was an incredible experience for me to be a part of the Oscars pre-party celebration,” said Brookie Katie Fagan, “I volunteered to help these talented photographers, who were also donating their time and expertise, to raise funds for relief in Haiti. [The photographers] definitely taught me a thing or two while they worked with each star; however, I had a few tricks up my own sleeve and was able to problem-solve in some intense moments, thanks to the influence of some great Brooks faculty.”

Our Brookies photographed celebrities including Candy Spelling, Chelsea Hightower from Dancing with the Stars and Shar Jackson from Celebrity Fit Club. The career services team was present for the two day event and made a lot of great connections!

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Flyer image by Mark Turner

Outstanding work from the Brooks Institute School of Visual Journalism is being featured now at the Ventura County Arts Council Collegiate Exhibition. The exhibit runs from March 5 through March 31 at the Ventura County Government Center located at 800 South Victoria Blvd in Ventura. (The exhibition is located in the Main Administration Building, top floor of the Atrium Gallery.) The public is invited to a reception scheduled for Thursday, March 18 from 5:30 to 7:00 p.m.

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Brooks Institute’s School of Professional Photography unveils its certificate program in Wedding Photography and has begun enrolling students to begin in May of 2010. This 24-credit certificate program is designed to be completed in four sessions over 32 weeks, preparing students to successfully pursue and/or further careers in the wedding photography industry. Students in this program will gain knowledge of advance photographic techniques, lighting strategies and workflow processes as they relate to the wedding environment and flow.

“The wedding industry in the last 10 years has changed dramatically,” said Tim Meyer faculty member at Brooks Institute and professional wedding photographer. “This program is designed to give certificate recipients a competitive edge by offering tools to better understand the marketplace and to enhance their photographic technique.”

Graduates of the certificate program will be trained to approach weddings with artistic vision and demonstrate proficiency in the art of visual storytelling. This program emphasizes the skills required to work within varying wedding environments as well as the discipline necessary to work with this specific clientele from start to finish.

The Wedding Photography Certificate program is open to professionals looking to expand in their field and high school graduates ready to get a taste of what the world of wedding photography has to offer. All classes from the Wedding Photography certificate program are transferable into the BFA program at Brooks Institute if a student would wish to continue his/her studies. Those interested in learning more about the Wedding Photography Certificate program can contact an admissions representative at (888) 276-4999.

Wedding Portrait Photographers International (WPPI) will be offering a scholarship to this Brooks Institute’s Wedding Photography certificate program. To be considered for the WPPI scholarship, photography students attending WPPI 2010 need to provide WPPI judges with a portfolio of at least 12 images, an essay on the topic “why I want to be a wedding photographer,” and no more than three letters of recommendation from people in the portrait/wedding industry.  For more information about WPPI visit www.wppionline.com.

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Left to right: Yao Shiguan, Professor & Vice Dean of Teaching, Administration Division; Xiong Ying, Dean of School of Foreign Languages; Dr. Roger Andersen, President, Brooks Institute; Kuang Guozhu, President, Dalian University of Technology Photo Credit: David Litschel

The three visitors from Dalian University of Technology were accompanied by Yuhsun Edward Shih, Ph.D., Director of International Admissions, Colorado Technical University, Colorado Springs, Colorado. The purpose of the visit was to meet with Dr. Roger Andersen and David Litschel, Vice President of Academic Affairs, to discuss ways in which the two institutions could cooperate in the future. Plans are to follow up with another meeting in March.

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Rick Rickman at reception for "The Wonder Years." Photo Credit: Nina Gomez

Brooks Institute faculty member Rick Rickman’s photographic career has taken many twists and turns. Rickman’s ability to remain flexible and his willingness to seize opportunities as they appear have allowed him to follow this luge-like course that now lands him on assignment at the 2010 Olympic Games in Vancouver. This marks his 14^th year photographing the Olympic Games.

“When I first started photography, I was strictly a news hound. I love the excitement of news. Later I did my stint with combat [photography].  When I think about what’s been happening with my career, it strikes me as a bit ironic because I never really had any interest in sports photography.  Personally, I’ve always been drawn to sports because I ran competitively most of my life, played volleyball with some pretty amazing teams and love to surf.  However, the covering sports aspect of my shooting has been somewhat accidental.  I think I’m just good at it because my hand-eye coordination has always been pretty good and my timing is pretty sharp as well.”

Just as the Olympic athletes do, Rickman will rely on his years of training, sense of discipline and physical aptitude to overcome the many challenges that the Olympic Games present for photographers.

“In the past, going on almost 40 years of this kind of coverage, the one thing that poses the most challenging equation is the number of photographers who are credentialed to cover these competitions,” said Rickman. “The number of photographers has increased exponentially and it makes capturing unique images increasingly harder. The other major challenge is staying focused on the important aspects of the games themselves. Each Olympic Games has a flavor that develops. There’s a sense of energy that carries the mood of the games forward. Think of Mexico City, Munich, LA, Barcelona, Beijing, Albertville. Every location has its own character and unique events that shaped how each Olympic Games was perceived. A photographer has to tap into that character to help bring coverage to life.”

For more information about Rick Rickman and to view his work, visit www.rickrickman.com and www.newsportphoto.com.

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