All images copyright by the individual photographers

	Holding the Light at Gettysburg by Sulyn Bennett-Hennessey Sulyn Bennett-Hennessey, a photography teacher at Eastern Monroe Career Center, is exhibiting a photograph as part of the teacher presentation of Through the Student Lens 2025. Her photo, Holding the Light at Gettysburg, references a phrase associated with the Eternal Light Peace Memorial on the Gettysburg Battlefield, a monument dedicated to peace and unity, featuring a natural gas flame visible for miles. Through research, I discovered that this may be a photo of the undercroft or vaulted cellar of the Pennsylvania State Memorial at Gettysburg, which was completed in 1914. Sulyn employs various compositional elements in her photograph. The leading lines of the railings, their shadows, and the stairwell draw the viewer’s eye to follow the descent of the stairs. The overhead lamp reinforces this focal point, adding a sense of theater. The descending staircase enhances the feeling of depth, inviting us to imagine what lies beyond our field of view. The photograph’s warm color palette—golden hues from the light contrasting with the darker, shadowed areas—creates a striking interplay of light and shadow. The deep browns and blacks of the walls and stairwell contribute to a three-dimensional effect, further enriching the composition. These elements combine to evoke a moody, almost forlorn atmosphere, mirroring the emotions many experience when visiting the battlefield, where more casualties occurred than in any other battle, with over 7,000 soldiers losing their lives. While it is likely that this is simply part of the memorial’s base and serves no functional purpose, Sulyn’s image offers a poignant way of visualizing the horror of those three fateful days in our collective history. Thank you, Sulyn. by Dick Bennett
	Drowning in Sorrows of Yesterday by Sara Rogers Sara’s Gallery Pick is a hauntingly beautiful and evocative piece that captures the raw sensation of being overwhelmed by one’s own past.The photograph, encased in a stark black frame and softened by a wide, neutral matte, immediately draws the viewer into its circular focal point---a window into a submerged world. At the heart of the composition, a lone figure floats weightlessly underwater, arms outstretched, hair flowing freely as if surrendering to an unseen current. The way the light fractures through the surface creates a disorienting, dreamlike quality---blurring the boundary between realty and memory.  The clarity of the overhead grid, with the turbulence surrounding the figure, suggests the tension between structure, chaos, control and emotional release. The photo’s subdued color palette of blues and grays enhances its melancholic tone, evoking the cold grip of nostalgia and regret. The viewer can almost feel the heaviness pressing down, like the water itself, perhaps representing the crushing weight of unresolved feelings. Yet, there is also a quiet grace in the way the subject floats, suggesting a moment of acceptance or even liberation amidst the sorrow. The image invites viewers to confront, and perhaps make peace, with their own submerged memories. By Marie Costanza