The best thing about Penn State

Our professor gave us an assignment to find "the best thing about Penn State". Without much explanation and virtually no guidelines, he set us free. The first thing I thought about was that I needed to get this assignment done ASAP because I was going home over the long weekend to shoot another story I've been working on for almost a year. I took my camera with me before class on Thursday in hopes to get a somewhat aerial shot of students dragging themselves to early classes in the rain, umbrellas in hand. It would represent the dedication of the student body as a whole. However, the sun decided to show its lovely face that day.


Walking through the HUB-Robeson Center that afternoon, I noticed there were students playing pool in The Break Zone game room and the vast majority of them were Asian. Ah-ha! went my brain. Diversity, opportunity, fun, friendship, etc. raced through my thoughts. I went back to the room that evening around 9pm.


Here is what I came up with after I asked a few people if I could photograph them:

Frank Meng, a freshman majoring in finance and mathematics, plays pool with his friend in The Break Zone game room in the HUB-Robeson Center at Penn State. Both he and his friend are foreign exchange students studying here from China. Photo by Krista Myers

Tyler Zhang, a freshman majoring in industrial engineering, plays pool with his friend in The Break Zone game room in the HUB-Robeson Center at Penn State. Both he and his friend are foreign exchange students studying here from China. Photo by Krista Myers 

Frank Meng, left, a freshman majoring in finance and mathematics, and Tyler Zhang, a freshman majoring in industrial engineering, play pool in The Break Zone game room in the HUB-Robeson Center at Penn State. Both are foreign exchange students studying here from China. Photo by Krista Myers

Once I overcame my own cognitive dissonance, I was able to talk to two very personable men studying here from China. Not only did I feel happy because I completed the assignment, but I conquered a silly fear of mine and had fun while doing so.