Photographs and captions by Jasper Zhou, class of 2023
First-year student Jasper Zhou, a double major in geography and computer and information science, remained on campus during the coronavirus shutdown earlier this year. The absence of the typical hustle-bustle of UO life was not lost on the aspiring photographer—but as his pictures and words attest, even in repose the university inspires.
Black-and-white photos aren’t my type of style because it is hard to make the photo pop. Personally speaking, B&W is a type of storytelling, and it makes people think. This photo was at the corner of the EMU, and I shot it at night. Due to COVID-19, the whole campus became quiet and empty. That’s sad, and that's the main reason why I chose B&W for this shot.
“Blue hour” vs. “golden hour”? “Golden hour” appears after the sunrise and before the sunset; “blue hour” appears after the sunset and before the sunrise. Daily, most photographers tend to shoot photos during the “golden hour,” but I enjoy the “blue hour” more. In my opinion, the “blue hour” gives people a peaceful feeling. To achieve a better result for this panorama photo, I shot a couple of photos and stitched them together.
Squirrels are among the most common wildlife on campus. I hunt wildlife through my camera, and I do enjoy being outdoors with them. This little guy was playing hide-and-seek with me, so I had to minimize unnecessary movement. Surprisingly, it let me take photos later.
Macro photography is awesome! Normally we don’t really pay attention. With macro photography, you have a better chance to view the tiny stuff, and you would be impressed by this amazing world. From wildlife to plants, they are part of our community as well.
It’s me with the sunrise shot at Spencer Butte. In the past, I took many photos at sunset, but I barely shot sunrise photos; as a result, that's how this picture showed up. I shot this photo with my GoPro Max, and I do like 360-degree photos because you can wrap around them like a tiny planet.
Full moon. I like taking photos of the night sky sometimes, though I am not a huge fan of astrophotography. Taking photos of a plain moon might seem boring, and I tried to find some objects to fill in my frame. I took this photo under a tree, and I thought it was cool to shoot the full moon through the tip of that tree.
