From dawn to dusk. Chasing light and horses

Camera bags, tripods and energy drinks are scattered around a white tent in a dark field as students and mentors pace beneath it, anticipating the long and exciting day ahead. With an arrival time of 6 a.m. and an unknown departure time, the photographers prepare for a day they have been working toward all semester.

The Talmadge Moore LeGrand photojournalism workshop, an elective course taught by USC professor Renée Ittner-McManus since 2023, gives students of varying levels of photography expertise a chance to capture the annual Carolina Cup steeplechase horse races.

Twenty students, along with Ittner-McManus and four professional photojournalists, spent Friday evening and all of Saturday at the Springdale Race Course in Camden, South Carolina, executing all of the skills learned throughout the spring semester.

John Wollwerth, a digital storyteller and one of the mentors, has been a part of the workshop for the past four years. He said the experience is valuable for the students.

“It’s really great to be able to convey knowledge to people who are just getting started,” he said.  “You can give them the experience you’ve got and show them the things I wish I knew when I was getting started.”

To prepare for the Carolina Cup, students attended and photographed various sporting events around campus. Amanda Lee, a junior who’s a double major in criminology and media arts, said she enjoyed photographing the families who brought their children to the games.

“When we went to some of the games, it was really impactful seeing everyone make memories,” Lee said. “Being able to capture a special moment for someone else is really impactful for me.”

This was Lee’s first time doing any form of photojournalism. She said the class has given her the chance to do something new.

“There’s room for everybody in journalism,” she said. “I’m not a journalism student, but I’ve learned so much from my peers.”

Patrick Higgins is a senior public relations major who, similar to Lee, had no prior photojournalism experience. Higgins, the only guy in the group, joined the class looking to try something new in his last semester at USC. He said that despite not having any photography background, he was able to succeed in the class.

“Back in January, I was an amateur photographer,” Higgins said. “I would still consider myself an amateur photographer. But I’ve learned some skills along the way, and I can apply those skills later on in life if I decide to pick up a camera again.”

The workshop is funded through a grant from Janet Tarbox and her late husband, Tal LeGrand. Tarbox established the grant in honor of her husband, combining his love for the USC School of Journalism and Mass Communications and her love for photography. The professional camera equipment is loaned from Canon. For Higgins, the opportunity to use this gear elevated his experience.

“I got to use new materials like the 600 lens,” he said. “I’ve never used it before, but I got some really nice action photos.”

From photographing horses in the stables during sunrise, to capturing the colorful outfits of spectators, to working on a deadline to edit and submit the best photos of the day to be published in The State newspaper, Wollwerth said the workshop gives students a real photojournalism experience.

“You can go through college and have a lot of book knowledge, but you really don’t know what you’re doing until you go out into the world and do it,” Wollwerth said. “Going around the Carolina Cup the past couple of days and actually practicing going up to people and asking for their name and information, looking for things that tell a story, that’s just not something you can get from the classroom and in a book.”

The class is open to anyone who wants to join, regardless of experience and major. Delany Kral, a junior visual communications major, said she learned a lot from the course despite already having a strong background in photography.

“My biggest takeaway would be the time with the mentors,” she said. “It’s nice to be able to learn from someone new, get different insights on things, and to be able to have someone give their opinion on our work as well.”

Wollwerth said the biggest thing he tries to instill in the students is to see what other people are missing.

“Whether it’s shooting from different angles or turning around when everything else is going on in front of you,” he said. “It’s just seeing the story unfold that most people are missing.”

Going into the event, Lee thought the Carolina Cup was just a horse race.

“I thought it was just going to be horses, but then I came out here and was surprised to see everything they had to offer,” she said. “It was really cool, and I never thought I’d see anything like this, and now I want to come back again next year.”

The annual workshop continues to give USC students the opportunity to either start or continue their photography journey.

“Just being out here today getting some pictures really showed me that I can boost my experience and career in photojournalism if I decide to take it somewhere,” he said. “I know Ms. Renée has my back, and I know the girls in the class will have my back. Just doing this out here, I think I really found a new passion.”