RIT Photography Students Recapture the 1980s and Let the Good Times Roll!

PHOTO OPPORTUNITY AT HORIZON FUN F/X ON FEB. 15

It was a time when feathered hair, leg warmers and roller skating to songs like “Mickey” and “Jessie’s Girl” were all the rage. Who can forget the ’80s? Photography majors at Rochester Institute of Technology will relive those memories at the rink when they recreate roller skating under the disco ball for a class project.

The photo shoot will take place between 3:30 and 5:30 p.m. at Horizon Fun F/X, 675 Ling Road in Greece on Thursday, Feb. 15.

This project is the final assignment for third and fourth-year photography majors enrolled in the production photography course. This portrayal of the past will be captured using the digital technology of the present with students shooting with a Leaf Aptus digital camera. Volunteer models will lace up their skates and take to the rink donning fashion looks of the era like neon-colored clothing, headbands, feather clips and jean jackets with fringe.

“This is going to be a challenge of combining effective choreography and appropriate lighting,” says Douglas Ford Rea, professor of photography in RIT’s School of Photographic Arts and Sciences and the project’s supervisor. “Capturing the action of the roller skaters will require careful planning and great timing.”

Previous photo recreations by RIT students include the registration of immigrants at Ellis Island in New York City, the trial of Susan B. Anthony at the Ontario County Courthouse and Harlem’s Cotton Club.

MEDIA NOTE: A digital file of the final photograph will be available upon request.