Capturing images that engage a viewer's attention, beyond just a glance, is Sydney Weber’s goal when she takes a photograph.
Weber is a senior, majoring in visual communication design in ’s School of Visual Communication Design within the College of Communication and Information, with a minor in photography.
She is from Hermitage, Pennsylvania, and after graduation, she would like to pursue a career in social media management and content creation.
“I have skills in both photography and graphic design, which makes creating content for a brand’s social media convenient for me,” Weber said.
Weber feels that Kent State has prepared her well for the kind of career she wants by helping her gain skills that will make her stand out from other candidates in the eyes of potential employers.
She said, “I have learned how to strategize for social media, code a website, design, photograph, illustrate and prepare for the ‘real work world.’”
Photo by Sydney Weber
Shooting the Swamp
Weber has completed an internship with Kent State’s University Communications and Marketing department and now works with the division's photo team as a student worker. Last spring, she was assigned to take engaging photos of a unique, 3D display in the DI Hub.
Photo by Sydney Weber
“Draining the Swamp: An Environmental History of Wetlands on the Kent Campus” was on display from April 3-21, 2023.
Photos by Sydney Weber
The project was an interdisciplinary collaboration between Jen Mapes, Ph.D., an urban geographer and cartographer in Kent State's Department of Geography, Lauren Kinsman-Costello, Ph.D., a wetlands ecologist in the Department of Biological Sciences and Seth Rainey, a master’s student in geography who studies climatology.
Photo by Sydney Weber
Together, they created a large, physical representation of what the Kent State campus environment was like before it was developed as part of the university. The 3D map showed the locations of wetlands, explained why and when they were removed, and identified recent work to restore some areas of wetlands on campus.
Photo by Sydney Weber
Looking Deeper and Finding the Unusual
“My strategy to taking these pictures was to just have fun and take pictures that I don’t normally take,” Weber said.
Typically, as part of her job in University Communications and Marketing, she said that she takes a lot of headshots and does some event photos.
“So, when I get the opportunity to take creative pictures, I try to have fun with different angles and depths,” she said.
Senior Sidney Weber discusses the kind of photos she seeks to capture.
“It was interesting to see places I go every day on campus, or in Kent, laid out,” Weber said. “A lot of my friends say that Kent State’s campus has the most hills for a college campus and this project showed me that it is probably true.”
Photo by Sydney Weber