Rebecca Lader Tackles FIT's
Many Challenges
When does Rebecca Lader sleep? She seems to pack an awful lot into each exciting day. The 2009 Huntington High School alum is living in New York City and studying at Fashion Institute of Technology. The demanding curriculum commands most of the teenager's attention.
After walking off the stage at Blue Devil Stadium last June, diploma in hand, Ms. Lader had a busy two months. "This past summer I did many personal shoots for my portfolio and shot some head shots and beginner modeling portfolios on the side," she said. "I had a very enjoyable last summer of high school and prepared for what I did not expect to be such an enjoyable start to my college career."
But, there was no reason any apprehension. "Everything at FIT has been going great," she said last week. "I'm taking six core photo classes and two liberal arts classes."
The photo courses included Introduction to Photography (darkroom), Introduction to Digital Photography, Computer Graphics, Basic Design 3D, Photographic Styling and Lighting Principles. "These classes, on top of my two liberal arts ones (math and English composition), keep me quite busy during the week," Ms. Lader said. "Most of the classes are at least three hours long and require individual projects so thinking up new and fresh ideas for each class can get tedious, but it keeps creative ideas flowing."
Huntington classmates found Ms. Lader to be incredibly hardworking and genuinely gifted when it came to photography. Her work displayed both creativity and depth. She developed close relationships with her teachers and learned as much as she could from them.
"I am so thankful that I had three years of darkroom experience from Huntington prior to enrolling here," Ms. Lader said. "The professor spent one day of class teaching us how to use and navigate the darkroom and develop our film and then we were pretty much on our own unless we had quick questions."
Not surprisingly, Ms. Lader joined FIT's photography club during the second week of classes. Fortunately for her, the group's meetings are held on Tuesday, her only day off during the week.
"We have already had some great experiences through the club," Ms. Lader said. "We got permission from Governor's Island to shoot in the old houses from the 1940s on the island that have not been lived in for decades. I shot a set of twins in the old house I was assigned. We also have been able to go to seminars run by popular big-name companies to learn about lighting and more advanced equipment."
Ms. Lader has found that the college darkroom is more advanced than its high school counterpart. "I am quite thankful for Huntington's great art program, and of course Ms. Piffard, for how much I already knew as a result of it before I even started classes."
FIT is well-known for its demanding professors, challenging courses and time-consuming projects. But, Ms. Lader's former Huntington teachers say she is up to the task.
"Though school work and projects take up most of my shooting time, I still do the best I can to make time to shoot on my own," Ms. Lader said. "Being in the biggest city in the world offers so many opportunities and places to explore. I am embracing this and absolutely love living here!"