Executive Director of the Association of Texas Photography Instructors visits journalism classes

Mark+Murray+speaks+to+Director+of+Journalism+Ellen+Austins+seventh+period+Yearbook+class+yesterday+regarding+how+to+effectively+organize+coverage.+During+his+presentation%2C+he+also+gave+tips+on+sports+photography+and+suggested+naming+conventions+to+keep+uploads+organized.

Tiffany Chang

Mark Murray speaks to Director of Journalism Ellen Austin’s seventh period Yearbook class yesterday regarding how to effectively organize coverage. During his presentation, he also gave tips on sports photography and suggested naming conventions to keep uploads organized.

by Isha Moorjani, News Editor

Mark Murray, Executive Director of the Association of Texas Photography Instructors, visited the upper school yesterday to teach journalism students about photography techniques and offer advice and feedback on student photos. 

Murray frequently judges for national conventions such as for the Journalism Education Association (JEA). Director of Journalism Ellen Austin invited Murray to the upper school so that Harker Journalism students could receive more personalized feedback. 

“Mr. Murray is one of the very best photo educators in the nation, and he brings an array of specific skill sets to my students,” Director of Journalism Ellen Austin said. “I asked him if he would be willing to instead come here specifically and work with our students to develop them at exactly the level they want to be developed.”

Murray presented to the TALON yearbook classes, giving interactive presentations covering topics such as the components of a good photo, photography strategies, sports photography and more. Tiffany Chang (11), TALON Academics Editor, received one-on-one feedback from Murray yesterday after school.

Tiffany notes that sports photography involves finding the right angle and background and framing the photo correctly. While she found this difficult at first, she appreciates the feedback and advice that Murray provided. 

“I’ve been trying to improve in terms of sports photography,” Tiffany said. “[I’m] not going to lie, it was quite a struggle. I was also picking mostly full body shots of a single tennis player, so he suggested trying to incorporate more angles and more variety into my photos.”

Additional reporting by Julie Shi and Medha Yarlagadda.