Read what former students have to say about us

One of the best things the Department of Journalism and Photography at San Antonio College did for me was to not let me give in to my own insecurities. The professors and staff of the department helped me build self-esteem and confidence in my writing.

My first assignment for The Ranger came from an introduction to news writing class. I was so nervous over the fact that something I was about to write would be scrutinized by not only The Ranger's staff, but by the paper's readership as well, that I almost quit.

Before I could bolt, Chairman Chet Hunt and Professor Irene Abrego stepped in and immediately went to work on me, just a simple, newbie news writing student with a massive case of reporter anxiety.

Their calming words come to me still today when, instead of a weeklong deadline for a 3-inch brief, I am facing two hours to produce a 25-inch column. Needless to say, their instructions against procrastination were the ones I should have paid more attention to.

In short, SAC's journalism department will never quit on you, even after you have tried to quit on yourself.

Christopher Quinn
former editor of The Ranger
San Antonio Express-News TV Now columnist

I've been lucky enough to learn journalism in various environments.

None, however, was more fulfilling than my time spent at The Ranger.
I learned how to become a better writer and editor, and was given the freedom to dabble in other areas of the field that interested me, like newspaper and web design. I also learned the importance of paying attention to detail and respecting deadlines. Many, and I do mean many, of the skills I use in my everyday workload I can attribute to The Ranger.

If it hadn't been for my time at The Ranger, I might have never gotten my foot in the San Antonio Express-News door, except maybe for a tour.

Besides preparing me for the newspaper environment, I am especially grateful to the Ranger staff for giving me an outlet for my cartoons and teaching me design.

Ranger cartoons in my portfolio got me hired at the Express-News. The fact I had my work published put me ahead of my competition, I believe.

Things like typography and the use of dingbats I learned in Magazine Design have been most valuable. That class taught me how to direct the reader. I have relied on that knowledge now for the past 21 years.

Thanks again.

My experience on The Ranger has been invaluable to my current position as a staff reporter of The Shorthorn, the daily newspaper of The University of Texas at Arlington.

I have learned, through scrupulous edits, what questions to ask during an interview and how to put everything together for a concise and informative article.

It is now nearing the end of the semester, and I have yet to spend more than five minutes with an editor after they read my copy.

The fact that the reporters can edit stories and design the pages of The Ranger is also another great opportunity I wish beginning reporters had at The Shorthorn. To have a working knowledge of all aspects of producing a paper is something The Ranger offers, and I would recommend San Antonio College to any beginning journalism student.

Alyssa Fry
reporter
The Shorthorn
University of Texas-Arlington

San Antonio College's journalism program and The Ranger provided me with the necessary skills and experiences needed to succeed in the field of photojournalism. Upon leaving the program and entering the career field, my experiences from SAC allowed me to quickly prove my abilities as a photojournalist at the San Antonio Express-News.

From the classes I took in reporting, page design and layout and news photography, my supervisors were impressed by my skill set and ability to perform with little training at the paper. I believe that these skills I acquired at SAC Ð along with some hard work Ð is what led to my eventually being hired full-time to the staff.

Nearly 10 years later, I still find myself relying on the writing and photojournalism methods I learned in the Journalism Department. I continually recommend to students interested in the field of journalism or photojournalism to seek San Antonio College as their choice for higher education.

Thanks to Mr. Hunt and to all the faculty for their devotion and support to the profession of journalism and photojournalism.

Kin Man Hui
Staff Photographer
San Antonio Express-News

San Antonio College's Journalism Department prepares you for the real world. The cornerstone of the department, The Ranger, is run like a major daily newspaper and provides students a strong foundation in reporting, editing and other skills needed to make it as a working journalist.

When the San Antonio Express-News hired me as a reporter in 1985, it was apparent after a few days on the job that life as a professional journalist wasn't much different than what I was exposed to at SAC. The fundamentals are stressed at SAC. That means accuracy, tight writing and dogged reporting are stressed, the same as they are at any major daily.

Tom Orsborn
sports reporter
San Antonio Express-News

I realized I wanted to be a journalist when I was 23, having decided against law school after getting a degree in political science from St. Mary's University in San Antonio. I ran into an ex-roommate who mentioned the SAC Ranger as a reputable, cheaper and local alternative to the University of Texas at Austin, especially since my goal was to get my foot in the door as a newspaper reporter, not to get another degree.

I spent two very newsy semesters at SAC, taking journalism and photography courses and working on the Ranger as if my life depended on it. In a sense, it did.

A week after I left SAC, I got a reporting internship at a nearby city, which turned into a job. I have been a reporter a total of nine years at three newspapers, including the Austin American-Statesman. I have taught and advised aspiring journalists in some form at three universities, including UT Austin. I have been an editor with direct supervision of reporters since 1996, starting at the Brownsville Herald.

I learned things at SAC that I still use and practice today, things I have taught my own reporters and students. I've been to graduate school, but SAC remains, I believe, the best single academic investment I ever made.

San Antonio College's Journalism-Photography Department prepared me to transfer to Savannah State University by equipping me with the knowledge necessary to successfully compete at a collegiate level.

As an entering sophomore at the university, I already possessed the journalism skills my peers were just beginning to obtain in their major courses.

I was competent in knowing AP style, story structure and libel issues.

I consider myself fortunate to have studied under the leadership of Chet Hunt, Irene Abrego and Marianne Odom. Their instruction and my participation as a reporter for the college's newspaper, The Ranger, were invaluable.

How has the Department of Journalism-Photography helped prepare me for newspaper work? Aside from the skills and trade tricks I learned, the professionals to whom I was introduced, the hands-on work I was given and the accumulated experience to which I was exposed, what has stuck with me the most is how I was taught about the importance of what I was learning and doing. While a student at the department and in the years since, I have been shown that newspaper work is vital and those participating have a responsibility to their communities Ð readers and otherwise. More than anything, that ongoing lesson has guided me throughout my newspaper career. Zamarron and Dr. Fred Blevens (right) instruct students in the Urban Journalism Workshop.

Adrian Zamarron
Austin American-Statesman
Page 1 designer

Last week my co-worker had a great news tip that required him to look up some court records, including a divorce case. But he didn't know where to look on the Internet or at the courthouse. So I had to guide him through the process of finding the various records and I was able to do this because it was something I learned early on in my studies in the Journalism Program at San Antonio College.

Studying journalism at SAC prepared me for my job as a City Hall beat reporter not just because we toured the courthouse and learned how to look up court documents, but because of the myriad practical experiences I had working on The Ranger. Covering the Alamo Community College District Board of Trustees couldn't have been a more perfect beginning to covering the inner workings of the San Antonio mayor and City Council.  Students at the senior level of a university have to fight for this kind of experience. At The Ranger, it is a requirement to have this kind of skill set, not an option.

When I graduated from Southwest Texas State University in 2003, I knew I was better prepared than my classmates to enter a career at a newspaper, but only because of my education at SAC. I simply had more published articles and opportunities to cover everything from arts and entertainment events to a botched land deal for a new college campus. My success at the Express-News is evidence of the excellent preparation I had in the journalism program.

My name is Luis Castro, a graduate of Fox Tech High School in 1988. I'm a professional photographer here in the San Antonio area, and my business caters to weddings and quinceañeras.

My knowledge in this field and the reason for my successful business stems from the photography classes I took at San Antonio College.

I knew absolutely nothing Ð and I do mean nothing Ð when it came to cameras except to look through them and shoot (of course the camera was a point and shoot). I didn't know what an F-stop was, shutter-speeds, iso, composition and especially nothing about taking portraits.

The classes I took were Photo 1, Photo 2, Color Photography, Journalism Photography, Adobe Photoshop, computer classes (highly recommended if you're going into digital photography) and Portrait Photography.

These classes provided me with the foundation I needed to establish a successful business, Destiny's Photography. The business now has five photographers on staff, and we do up to three to five events per weekend. Keep up the good work.             

The photography program at San Antonio College has had a tremendous impact on employees of Photo Express, customers of my lab and myself. About 11 years ago, one of my employees, Alisha Miller, enrolled in the portrait class. Before taking the class, her photography skills were merely average. After taking the class, she was shooting like a professional photographer. She went on to shoot for various studios and eventually was shooting for newspapers in other cities.

After seeing the improvement in Alisha's photography, I have recommended the class to many friends and customers. Consistently, over the years, I have watched others take the class with the same results. Recently, Kim Goodwin took the portrait class and now she shoots for a local wedding photographer. When I met Kim, she was a waitress at a Jim's. I was impressed with her customer service skills so I offered her a job. She had no photo skills when I hired her. After taking the class, she decided to quit the lab and become a full-time photographer. I was sorry to lose her but happy to see her find a new calling.

I recently enrolled in the class, and in the first few weeks of school I found the missing pieces of my previous photography experiences, specifically regarding lighting and posing. Now applying what I have been learning is the difficult part. I have been involved in photography for more than 25 years, from my first B&W bathroom darkroom at age 12 to my current full-service professional photo lab at age 38. It is only now, with the knowledge I have gained from this class, that I will have the confidence to shoot my own professional baby pictures rather than the occasional "good shot" I would have received before taking the class.
Thank you for the opportunity and keep up the good work.

My experiences at San Antonio College were the perfect foundation for my career in the photographic field. During my time at SAC I received training in both the theory and the practice of photography. This included everything from darkroom techniques in color and black and white to all aspects of taking photographs in the studio and in the field. These skills have served me well.

Since college I have made a living as a photographer, managed professional labs in Austin and Chicago and then gone on to serve as a technical manager for Ilford Imaging, a major photographic manufacturer. My time at San Antonio College not only gave me the skills I needed but also surrounded me with encouraging instructors and students who shared my love for photography.

For years I had had an underlying desire to learn something about photography.  I wanted more than the surface information I could obtain from a craft school or a continuing ed class at a local ISD.  I wanted to really get my hands around the medium to see if photography would be something I wanted to pursue.  Therefore, I enrolled in one of the  basic black and white darkroom classes that SAC offered.  What I found was astounding.  

The class was extremely thorough.  It gave me the tools that I needed to understand the camera and the development process needed to create  beautiful images.  Needless to say, I was hooked.  I found that the more I learned about the craft, the more I wanted to learn.  I just couldn't get enough.  I ended up taking every course SAC offered at the time.  I believe it was 18 hours.  

    However, a college can offer a class, but if they the don't provide a staff that knows the material and can impart that material to the student the class will just fall flat.  The knowledge of SAC's staff was deep and their ability to impart that knowledge was wonderful.  They were always patient, understanding, and encouraging.  They were willing to go that extra mile to make sure I understood the concepts they were teaching. 

I have to give SAC's staff full credit for taking a willing student with just a small internal seed of desire and helping that seed grow and grow and grow.  Photography not only has become my great passion, but it has now become my career.  I owe a great debt to San Antonio College.  My love for photography keeps growing as the years pass by.

I'll never forget the excitement I felt in the darkroom during Buzz McBride's class when I saw my first image develop before my eyes!

"This is it," I remember saying. I was hooked! 

At the time, I was not sure I could make a career doing what I loved so much, but today I am proud to say that I am doing well working as a commercial editorial photographer. 

Thanks to the extensive photography curriculum SAC offered, I was able to learn everything from the basics to the most advanced photography techniques that I still use today. 

The faculty and staff were very knowledgeable in the field of photography and were always willing to help in any way possible. Attending San Antonio College helped me launch my career in photography, and the knowledge and experience I received was more than I could have dreamed. 

Education is the best investment you can make for yourself, and the four years I attended SAC were well worth it.

Anyone can claim to be a photographer. Our industry does not require a degree or any formal education to begin a business. Consequently, there are a multitude of individuals starting a photography business and struggling to make a living. Very often this attempt lasts less than a year and the business shuts down. I have seen this happen both as a business owner and as a member of our local photography organization. Lack of education and experience are the primary reasons for this failure.

I consider myself very lucky to have had an excellent educational base, both with my classes and experiences at San Antonio College. I enrolled in every photography class offered. These classes were thorough, and the instructors demanded the best. In addition, I was fortunate to intern with the award winning college publications, The Ranger and The Fourth Write, for two years. These experiences went beyond classroom learning. When I applied for my first photography job, my instructors were there to advise me. This first job was as a photographer for the college. Again, I learned a lot. To this day, I remember the tough interview process, which became another learning experience.

My experiences with San Antonio College became a valuable asset. When I moved to Austin, I was able get a job as an assistant photographer with Christianson Leberman, the premier portrait studio in Austin, and also with the Texas Department of Public Safety as a forensic photographer.

I worked for Christianson Leberman for five years and for the Texas Department of Public Safety for five years. In 1988, I started my own business. This is the time when all the pieces of photographic knowledge and experience have to come together for you. My educational base, together with my job experiences, enabled me to start, and to successfully run a business. I own Susan Hoermann/Evergreen Studios. I employ two full time photographer/customer service sales assistants. My studio specializes in personal portraits such as children, families, business portraits and groups and weddings. We also currently photograph three debutante presentations a year.

In addition to the daily business of photography, I am a member of various organizations: Professional Photographers of America, American Society of Photographers, Texas Professional Photographers Association, Professional Photographers Guild of Austin, and the Greater Austin Chamber of Commerce. As a member of the Professional Photographers Guild of Austin, I have held all offices, including president.

As a professional photographer, continuing education is important. One of the best ways to measure yourself against your peers is through competition. My achievements have included four Loan Prints with the Professional Photographers of America, and Photographer of the Year for the Professional Photographers Guild of Austin. I have also achieved the Professional Photographers of America level of PPA Certified and Master of Photography.

I truly believe that none of the above would have been accomplished as easily if it had not been for my photographic education. It started with San Antonio College, and grew from there. We grow from our experiences and my growth can be attributed to this beginning. Thank you.