I just realized that it will be 40 years in December that I graduated. I haven't been involved in the photography business for thirty years and was quite disappointed to learn that BIP closed a couple years ago, I believe it opened in 1947. A patient said his daughter was enrolled when they abruptly shut down.

Ernest Brooks II spoke of the future of photography being in "electronic imaging" at our graduation ceremony. Unfortunately, few of us realized the magnitude of that statement at the time.

while not an alumni, I had applied and accepted to the class beginning in the Fall of 1992. But, then, I was also accepted to U-M in Ann Arbor with an athletic scholarship. So, I ended up at U-M, had intended to attend Brooks after graduation from U-M, but, other things like brain cancer got in the way, and I never achieved my dream of attending Brooks. Damn!!!!!

Speaking of U-M and cancer, my wife was hospitalized at U-M hospital for 8 months in '98 following a bone marrow transplant for leukemia, they basically saved her life (still doing well).

I'm not

However....I have thousands of negatives in my attic from an old girlfriend who is. She would have graduated mid/late 80's probably

She worked freelance combat and AP stuff. Pretty sure I have is her travels through Africa and the first democratic election in Cambodia amongst other stuff

This message has been edited. Last edited by: snwghst,

Wow, I didn't know that Brooks had closed.

I graduated in '81 with a BFA in photography and I'm still a working pro, his words on digital was very true.
I had a friend who graduated from Brooks, I remember his class ring, it was an aperture.

If you graduated from Brooks you knew your stuff because you had a top-shelf education.

It's been amazing to see how drastically digital has changed photography, most of it not for the good.

I had one of the first Nikon D1's in the D.C. area, it helps to have friends.

Needabiggersafe

I graduated December of '81 and ran the B&W lab at the Riviera Campus for the first half of '82. Also worked at the B&W lab at the Montecito Campus for a while in '80 and '81.

I didn’t attend Brooks Institute, but I graduated from The Southeast Center for Photographic Studies at Daytona Beach Community College in 1984. (Now DBCC is called Daytona State College).

I remember at the time that Brooks Institute was a very well-respected school. Rochester Institute of Technology was another very good photography school from what I recall.

I was a stringer photographer for UPI for a few years while going to school; I shot several races at Daytona and Sebring, that kind of stuff. Worked in a few camera stores from age 16 to 21. Then in 1986 I joined the Air Force and did a little photography for my unit, but then gradually kind of stopped.

I remember in 1984 the concept of digital photography was on the horizon. The Sony Mavica camera was one of the first of the new-fangled non-film cameras, if I recall correctly. The idea of being able to shoot a news event and then transmit all the pictures over the phone was incredible; when I was shooting for UPI we were still using 35mm Tri-X film and making prints to transmit on a rotating drum facsimile-type machine. But it was lots of fun!

I’ve thought about taking up photography again after I retire and have time for it. I understand the University of Arizona here in Tucson has a pretty good program; I may check into it in 5 1/2 years when I retire for good...

Sorry to hear about Brooks Institute closing...