Pam Piffard in full Stride
It’s been 12 years since Pam Piffard stepped foot inside a Huntington High School classroom for the first time and since then the photography program has flourished to the point where today it has a remarkably devoted following of students and alumni.
“Photography is my main career,” Ms. Piffard said last week. “I am a high school photography teacher by day and a freelance band photographer by night. It is a great balance.”
Ms. Piffard studied at the Fashion Institute of Technology, earning an associate’s degree in photography in 1996 and then obtained a B.A. in photography and a state teaching certificate at Parsons School of Design/New School University in 1998. She received a master’s in graphic design at Long Island University – C.W. Post College in 2003.
The faculty member’s love affair with photography started early in life. “I first took a class in middle school,” she said. “I wanted to do it because my sister had liked it. Immediately I knew it was a passion. By the time I was 14, I had my own darkroom and I spent every spare moment printing.”
By the time Ms. Piffard was 15, she was already shooting local bands and the following year as a 16-year old she was working for Under the Volcano fanzine and had done three albums.
What’s her advice to aspiring photographers? “To get started just shoot a lot and keep doing it,” Ms. Piffard said. “Network as much as you can and show your work to anyone who will look at it.”
She’s a popular teacher, and many students spend their free periods in the photography room. Teenagers find her easy to talk to and sincerely interested in what they have to say. Lots of graduates stay in touch with her from all points across the country and the world, years after leaving Huntington High School.
Her career choice is a perfect match. “I absolutely love teaching,” Ms. Piffard said. “It is the most gratifying job in the world. Freelancing is the icing on the cake. I am a very fortunate person. I love what I do.”
With summers and school year vacations off for special projects, Ms. Piffard shoots for bands, promotional kits, websites, magazines and band merchandise such as albums, posters, shirts with photos, postcards and the like.
A sampling of the bands she has shot includes Blink 182, New Found Glory, Thrice, No Doubt, At The Drive In, Alkaline Trio, Rufio, Veda, Brand New, Greenday, Taking Back Sunday, Story of the Year, Linkin Park, Korn, The Darkness, Crime In Stereo, The Bled, The Bars, Morrissey, Glassjaw, Midtown, Hot Rod Circuit, The Beastie Boys, The Hope Conspiracy, Dashboard Confessional, The All American Rejects, Incubus, The Get Up Kids, The Starting Line, Lux Courageous, Thursday, Armor For Sleep, Recover, Good Charlotte, The Reunion Show, MC Lars, Underoath, FATA, Most Precious Blood and Northstar and many others, too.
Ms. Piffard is also the longtime faculty advisor for The Huntingtonian, the high school yearbook. It’s another activity that has her working closely with students every afternoon.
“Pam has really developed a high quality photography program and her students produce superb work,” Superintendent John J. Finello said. “We’re proud to have her on our faculty.”
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