Passion to Entrepreneurship: Juliana Thornton's rise as student photographer

By: Steven Moe

http://jthornportfolio.weebly.com

You find yourself in the student section at a Glenelg football game. The first play of the game starts. Glenelg is on offense. The team gets a first down.

Click! Click!

The crowd cheers, and you hear that noise again.

Click!

You look over to see senior Juliana Thornton, student media, on the sidelines of the game. Since attempting sports photography as a junior, she has become a valued member of the Glenelg media team.

But Thornton didn’t start photography with football.

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Thornton remembers her first experiences with the arts were from finger painting in elementary school. Forever curious, Thornton said she wants to explore non-traditional mediums of art, and Glenelg gave her the opportunity to do so with the photography courses under the direction of Rachel Stein. Thornton used the opportunity to improve both her skills and the community around her.

In her junior year, Thornton began sports photography with the outdoor Track and Field program.

“I fell in love with sports photography. Being able to capture so many different emotions, such as those personal ones from coach to player, teammate interactions, and triumphs, were what really sold me” she said.

Now a senior, she’s an accomplished artist; her work can be found across all the halls of Glenelg High School, the main lobby of the ARL, and in the picture frames of her clients. But not everything she does is photography. Thornton loves digital art in all its aspects which led her to graphic design—an art she has equal passion for. She explained, “I’ve always been drawn to anything involving art or design, being able to express myself through creativity is one of the best feelings ever.” 

She never forgot her background in sports photography, though. Between fall, winter, and spring sports, Thornton keeps an active portfolio of Glenelg’s athletic programs. She said she loves art and sports, but it’s also her love for her brother and his soccer games that initially kept Thornton in sports photography. ”I’ve made a lot of connections through local youth sports teams that my brother has played for such as Soccer Association of Columbia and Warhawks. My brother and I have been best friends since day one, and I love that we can both do something that we love when he’s out on the field playing and I’m on the sidelines shooting.”

The skills Thornton honed were not just from practice. She said she has great friends and mentors to teach her and help connect her to other photographers in the industry. Some of the best of these friends and mentors, she met through social media where both they and Thornton share their best creative projects.

“I made a lot of bonds with different students and clients outside of the school that will definitely follow me in life,” Thornton added.

Or, at the very least, online where Thornton manages her own business and brand, Blue Fin Photography. She looks forward to continuing a professional career by studying graphic design and photography at Salisbury University.

“The relief and satisfaction at the end of a photo gig or being able to give a client a design they commissioned for me is incredibly fulfilling,” Thornton said. “At the end of the day, I want to be able to build a connection with my subjects and clients and have them just as excited as I am for shoots. Knowing that someone appreciates and loves my work out there really drives me to continue.”