Alumni Feature – Lia DiRico
Hey everyone my name is Lia DiRico and I graduated last year from the Biomed Photo program. My life since RIT has been a whirlwind of random events, only some pertaining to photography. As much as I value our program and enjoyed the things I learned while in school, I needed a break when I graduated.
I decided to take a leap and go on a road trip with my bunny all the way down to Sanibel Island, Florida where my dad is living. I had only been to the island a couple of times before, and I finally got the chance to spend more time to clear my head so I took it – let’s face it, everyone needs time to thaw their body out after living in the Rochester winter tundra! The road trip itself was really fun, I got to see friends I have stayed in touch with over the years on the way down, exploring new states I’ve never been to, taking different routes than what GPS told me, all the while documenting my trip with images through social media. The communication of images through social media is widely under appreciated so I’ve been actively trying to expand my presence online with this method.
The humidity down here can be cut with a knife so I try to avoid taking my 5D Mark III to certain places where I know it can get wet. Most of the time I don’t go very far to take good images because this entire island is protected by wildlife conservationists, so there are plenty of plants, animals, and bugs to shoot right in my backyard. Oh and the sunshine! Something we seriously lacked in Rochester that helps make the photography process a little bit easier, is getting bright sunlight everyday on my subjects to ensure rich color and beautiful highlights.
As I begin a huge life transition moving to San Diego, I am seeking to begin my career in Ophthalmic photography. I have realized that I don’t want to be editing images at a desk or sitting at a microscope shooting tiny specimens, but rather interacting with people in the workplace and helping them get the best possible healthcare for their eyes. So far the job process has been significantly harder than I imagined it would be, but keeping my head up and pushing along is the best word of advice I can give to upcoming graduates. Also, if you want a job right out of college, do not wait until the last minute to get your name out there and dive into the application process while still in school so that you have colleagues and professors there to help you! It’s much harder to begin once you are out of the learning environment and I encourage everyone to not procrastinate on that.
All in all, enjoy every moment to it’s fullest and take pictures along the way!
Check out more of Lia’s work here: liaphoto.co