Perseverance pays off for Prairie State College photography students

Chicago Tribune

27-05-2025

Two young photographers from vastly different backgrounds had a chance to share the spotlight at Prairie State College as the spring semester wrapped up.
Jamel Conner, of Chicago Heights, who won the school's Photographer of the Year award for his commercial art, and Huynh Vinh Duc Le, who has won various awards and scholarships for his serene portraits and other images, both share a love of the camera and what it can portray.
Neither could afford a good camera when they came to the community college in Chicago Heights, but their work was featured in the school's Christopher Gallery in April and May. Both students are working on associates degrees in photography.
Conner's featured photos were of a wedding dress, pages from magazines, glassware, jewelry and a percolator, all in calm, artsy settings. The images, he said, were the results of his efforts to bring objects to life.
'The idea of it being almost like a painting but it's real life,' he said. 'The ability to capture a moment to stop in time is something I wanted to be able to do myself.'
He started toying with the idea of assembling a still life photo, but it morphed into something more commercial.
'It's almost editorial in a way,' he said.
Conner's teacher, Rebecca Slagle, a professor of visual communications and multimedia arts, said there was much to like about Conner's work.
'It's very clean, he put a lot of thought into it,' she said. 'I like that it's quirky and fun and not boring still-life.'
Duc, whose photos also were on display, said he'd loved taking pictures of landscapes and people ever since he was a middle schooler in Hue, the city where he grew up in Vietnam. Photography, drawing and journalism were required courses. But cameras were pricey, so he had to borrow one from a friend at school.
'I loved it and decided to get into it,' said Duc, who continued photography at the University of Education in Vietnam.
He immigrated here with his mother in 2022, both sponsored by his grandmother, who has lived in Oak Lawn for 15 years. He's working toward his work visa.
'My mother wanted a new life,' he said. 'She's helped me a lot. She pays the rent and everything so I can focus on my studies.'
He started helping out at a nail salon where his mom worked to help pay bills.
'When I came to the United States, I felt like I didn't belong here,' said Duc.
But he persevered and made a home for himself at the college and started doing wedding photo gigs with another photographer.
These days, one of his favorite subjects for pictures is his friend Ngoc, who he met at Tinley Park Community Church.
'She really liked the way I took her picture,' he said.
Many other people have shared her enthusiasm for his work and he has received a number of scholarships and awards, including the Arts Unleashed Scholarships from the Prairie State College Foundation's Nicholas & Jacqueline Rinaldi and John B. Abate' Prize in the Arts recently. He has a full ride scholarship to Columbia College, which he'll attend in the fall.
For Duc, the beauty of an image is in the details.
'I want to express my personality through the color grading,' said Duc. 'You can see my color is not that bright,' he said, pointing to his portrait shots displayed in Prairie State's gallery.
Slagle, his photography professor, is one of his biggest supporters.
'Duc is an amazing photographer,' she said. 'Just the artistry and the connection I see with him and all the people he photographs. He has a way of making people comfortable.'
Photography is making Duc more comfortable, too.
'When I take a photo, it makes my life happier — better. I'm improving myself,' he said. 'I want to tell people a boy from Vietnam came here to improve himself and to do things to gain experience and achieve a better life,' he explained.
That sentiment isn't lost on fellow photographer Connor. Though always a hard worker, Conner said he was taken aback when he discovered he'd won the Photographer of the Year award, which includes a $1,500 scholarship to PSC.
'I felt like the other competitors were more talented than me, me being my own worst critic,' he said.
But then he just felt grateful, not only for the award but for his own perseverance.
'Never assume you're not good at anything,' Conner said. 'After taking photos more and more, I gained more confidence and skill. It was that willingness to experiment and take risks.'
He aims to use that confidence, skill and perseverance to do more commercial work, perhaps within a company's marketing department.
Slagle, who also is coordinator of photography and graphic communications at Prairie State, said she was proud of the students' accomplishments as she 'watched them grow and the confidence they gain through the two-year program.'
'They're like your kids,' she said.