Lydia Coe, Riley Eck, Charlotte Emley and Julia Fillmore: Lessons we learned from Harbinger

Lydia Coe

Whether it’s with my phone camera, Snapchat or even a disposable camera, I’ve always loved taking photos. Capturing moments of me and my friends, everything from firepits to traveling the world — I love it. 

When I joined Harbinger, I was nervous that I wouldn’t get the photos my editors wanted or that I wouldn’t be fit as a photographer. Luckily, being on staff is about learning new skills. 

Taking photos came easy to me — or so I thought. After shooting my first basketball game, I went to the j-room eager to show Tate my photos. They were better than anything in my camera roll, that’s for sure. I was waiting for approval from Tate that everyone claims is so hard to get. These photos would get me that, or so I thought. 

Tate hated them. 

“Crop this. This one’s blurry. No facial expression. Too basic…”

He went on and on. 

Apparently my f-stop was too high and ISO was too low — whatever that meant. The main person was off center, the ball was blurry. Basically none of them were going in the gallery. Awesome. 

Three semesters later, I have learned that good things take time and there is always room for improvement. To my younger photographers, keep on trying, learning and doing what you love! Tate’s approvals will come, eventually.

Riley Eck

I’ve spent my whole life trying to be in charge.

I crave control — Mercedes knows to find me when she needs something done meticulously in Student Store. So, naturally, I applied to every leadership position offered my senior year: SHARE Exec, Student Store manager, Link Crew leader. But when it came to Harbinger, I never intended to be in a leadership position — opting to take the backseat where I could listen to photo editors’ ramble of tips and absorb Tate’s monthly photoshows.

I spontaneously joined Harbinger going into my junior year — possibly the busiest year of my life, so why not add another commitment to my plate? But as a beginner photographer, I had no obligations beyond getting my three credits every two weeks. 

Without the added pressure of leading and expectations from others and myself to be the best, photography developed into something I genuinely enjoyed doing. It was something that didn’t need to be perfect, something I didn’t feel the urge to have complete control over. 

Photography was my escape from perfection.

Not everything has to be about being the best or being in control. Life is more fun when you’re dealing with the unknown, and photography became my outlet to explore it. 

Charlotte Emley

“Get involved” was the most common piece of advice I heard from upperclassmen as a freshman. My older sister Ashton took that advice and joined the National Charity League, lacrosse and Student Store. Following in her lead, I did the same – I had a carbon copy of her schedule. 

But she didn’t join journalism. Growing up, I always looked up to my sister and wanted to be just like her, but when I got to high school, I wanted something that finally made me different — so I joined The Harbinger.

It was the first activity that set us apart. I started as a photographer barely knowing what a Nikon was or how to open Photoshop. But by meeting other photographers at conventions, I learned to show emotion through photos, tell a visual story and develop a strong portfolio — something my sister never did.

Two and a half years later, I’m going to the same college as my sister — shocker. But I’ll enter knowing how to use that Nikon and a rainbow of Adobe products. Just like I found my niche in high school, I can confidently join the photography club, interview peers or score an internship in the next four years.

Julia Fillmore

I’ve never enjoyed making impromptu decisions, usually opting to schedule my plans weeks in advance. So when fellow-photog Hadley suggested I join Harbinger a day before the application was due, I laughed in her face.

With no journalistic experience and lacking skills that others learned in J-1, I was unqualified. There was no way I could do something this spontaneous.

But somehow I found myself anxiously submitting an application by 11:59 p.m. that night — and I haven’t regretted it since.

Thanks to Harbinger, I’ve learned to take risks. At first, I clung to what was easy: shooting basketball or soccer. But when posed with the challenge of shooting swim for a story, I hesitated, but thought, why not?

My first semester on staff, I was given the opportunity to take on a bigger challenge. When Peyton came up to me and said the photo I took for a normal feature page had been moved to spread, I panicked. I’m only a first-year. The focus is off. That photo isn’t good enough.

I doubted myself, but when the paper came back a week later with “photo by Julia Fillmore,” I realized that photo was good enough.

Two years later, I’m thankful that Harbinger consistently took me out of my comfort level and pushed me to keep believing in myself. Whether a first-year photographer or the Head Print Editor, Harbinger can push anyone to be their best self.