Vision, imagination, creation. The art of capturing a moment or creating a new one is one that people enjoy and value all over, and photography brings us these possibilities.
Robin Weinstein grew up loving photography. So as soon as she had the opportunity to take photo classes in high school she jumped at the chance. For her, this was the first opportunity to truly pursue her passion. And she didn’t waste it. After high school, Weinstein came to SUNY New Paltz where she studied to receive her Bachelor of Fine Arts in Photography and a minor in Journalism. It was at New Paltz where she was able to develop and practice various approaches to the art and learn new skills in traditional and innovative methods of photography production. Her study and hard work culminated in 2014 when she earned her Bachelor degree.
Weinstein threw herself into campus events as an undergraduate. While she was a student she worked as a photo editor for the campus newspaper, The New Paltz Oracle. She was in charge of photographing and editing photos for the News & Sports sections. Meanwhile, she also worked as a photography intern in The Office of Communication & Marketing at New Paltz where she became involved with residence life.
Initially, she imagined she’d be working towards teaching photography. “I knew I wanted to do something with photography in the future, and came to New Paltz planning to study to become a photo teacher,” she said. “However, once I started photographing things at New Paltz such as campus events and the athletic teams, I knew that I wanted to pursue a career in photography – not only teach.”
And that is exactly what she did. Following her graduation in 2014, Weinstein continued to find her home in SUNY when she got a job as the Photographer and Videographer at the State University of New York at New Paltz, her alma mater. Returning, in fact, to the very office for which she had interned. Her journey is a perfect example of how an applied learning opportunity allowed her to improve and fine-tune her skills which led to an employment opportunity upon graduation.
You can now see her work with New Paltz on the New Paltz website or on her own website, which features art from New Paltz, as well as the art from her senior thesis.
What advice would a budding photography star give to an incoming freshman? Robin says she would probably tell them to get involved in extracurricular activities. “I would say that all of my extracurricular activities influenced me the most. By taking part in so many organizations and activities at New Paltz, I was able to meet so many different people on campus and learn leadership qualities while enjoying myself. I was kept motivated by being so involved, which influenced the effort I put into my schoolwork as well. I became passionate about photography and higher education through my experiences.”
