Students in this semester’s Introduction to Photography course have partnered with the Altoona-Johnstown Diocese to develop new marketing pieces for various sites in the Loretto area. 

The class is a community-engaged (CE) course and the collaboration became possible through the work of Director of Community Engagement Lisa Georgiana, Fine Arts adjunct faculty member Jessica Campbell and the University’s marketing team. 

Members of SFU’s Office of Marketing and Communications provided students in the class with photography strategies and tips. 

“Everyone was a new photographer, so it was a matter of learning how to use the equipment. We were trying to gain an understanding of what to capture through our lenses,” said Campbell.

Once the students were assigned a Diocesan partner and location, they applied the lessons they learned in the classroom out “in the field.”

Student Joanna Sanders was assigned to the St. Michael Basilica and used her new knowledge of photo composition and orientation. Sanders said she took the course because “I like taking pictures, but I didn’t know how to take good ones.”

Sanders’ group created a brochure from scratch for the Basilica. Other students in the course updated existing brochures.

The goal of the collaboration was to provide quality marketing brochures to “inform everybody of how important this spot is and how much history is here,” said Sanders. 

The brochures will be available at area airports and other public spaces.

Sanders said she feels more confident in her photography skills as a result of the course and the project with the Diocese.

Campbell said she is optimistic that the success of this partnership could lead to other collaboration opportunities for future Fine Arts students.