At The Q House, Photographers Focus In On Their Craft

Judy Sirota Rosenthal, who has been taking photographs of New Haven for decades. Photos courtesy of Aiyah Josiah-Faeduwor.

Roger Ridley’s “Stand by Me” was on full blast in a classroom in the Q House, empty except for a whiteboard. Unbeknownst to the children running down the hallways or the musicians jamming out next door, Judy Sirota Rosenthal extended her arms and swayed along with her class of students. The exercise was simple: “musically follow” the lead of another classmate, who in turn was meant to follow the former. 

“Who becomes the leader?” asked Rosenthal. “Notice that.” 

On a recent Monday, eight students gathered for the final installment of Rosenthal’s new class, a season-long course in photography with the artist and studio assistant Maher Mahmood. The eight have met weekly this spring to develop their photography skills, particularly in digital media, as they shoot across New Haven. In addition to their meetings at the Dixwell Community Q House, they have shot photos together casually outside of class. 

The classes received support from a Neighborhood Cultural Vitality Grant and in-kind donations from the Q House, Milford Photo, and the American Society of Media Photographers (ASMP). 

Photos courtesy of Aiyah Josiah-Faeduwor.

“It’s what I can do to make a change in the world,” Rosenthal said in a follow-up phone call, estimating that she probably put 300 to 400 hours of work into the class. “I can pass it on, but it's more than pass it on … I spent so many years learning this craft, and there's really an art and craft to it. 

“How do you hold your camera? How do you use your body as a tripod, as an instrument?” she continued. “The camera is an extension of all of our senses and our bodies. If I can help seven people then I've changed their worlds. I've added to their worlds. I've added to their potential in becoming photographers and I've passed that on.”

This year—which marked the inaugural and perhaps the only run of the class—Rosenthal’s students came from all walks of life, many traveling several miles and even across state lines to attend her weekly three-hour course. One such attendee, Aiyah Josiah-Faeduwor, is from Providence, Rhode Island, and traveled regularly just to be a part of the group. 

A Brown and MIT graduate, he does freelance photography and leads a community photography coalition, he said. Josiah-Faeduwor found out about the class and begged a spot from Rosenthal, who obliged when New Haveners dropped out.  

Photos courtesy of Aiyah Josiah-Faeduwor.

Another member of the class that Monday evening, Leon Bailey, is a friend of Rosenthal and decided to drop by as a guest. He dug the energy, it seemed: classes with Rosenthal are loud, busy, and energetic.“We don’t usually take a break because we have so much content to cover,” she said at one point. 

Still, she always begins the class with a grounding exercise, usually a five-minute meditation. Then, students transition into movement. The Roger Ridley dance break was not unusual for Rosenthal’s teaching methods; she likes to get her students into a literal groove before formal instruction begins. 

Classes at the Q House are also intimate, she noted. Each week, Rosenthal’s instruction breeds familiarity: she handwrites name tags for her students, and regularly emails them after class to debrief. This year, the cohort met outside of class informally to shoot together, and occasionally just hang out. Monday, they planned to attend an event at Lighthouse Point Park that Rosenthal was shooting, to see her practice in the field. 

During the latter half of class, students reviewed each other’s recent work. Each was responsible for aggregating work alongside a theme of their choice. Some chose family, and took close, intimate portraits of friends in their homes. Another, inspired by dance, attended local theater performances at night, craning her neck, she said, to get “the shot.” 

Maher Mahmood. Photos courtesy of Aiyah Josiah-Faeduwor.

When she was gearing up to teach this year, Rosenthal made sure she didn't lead the action alone. Mahmood, who came to the U.S. as a refugee from Iraq in 2014, has been her trusty assistant from day one; the two know each other from working together at Albertus Magnus College. 

When Rosenthal asked Mahmood to assist her at the Q House, his response was “100 percent yes, no hesitation,” he remembered. He’s remained excited to come into the classroom since. 

Part of that springs from his own love for photography. In Iraq, Mahmood “was allowed to have a gun, and not a camera,” he said. Years later, and as he builds his life around photography and design, “I want to show the world what I capture with my eye,” he said. 

During Monday’s class, both Mahmood and Rosenthal focused on movement. “How would you cover this meeting?” Rosenthal prompted at one point, after which the students began to mime shots. A few took out cameras and started to shoot. Rosenthal stressed the importance of stealth. She said that discouraging flash, unless necessary, can be the key to capturing “the moment.” 

Nodding their heads in agreement, students mused on her mastery of the skill. “She’s ninja!” one chimed, to which Rosenthal shyly smiled.

Rosenthal also brought in some of what has added to her own work. On the table nearby were titles ranging from "Tao Te Ching" to "Sacred Instructions: Indigenous Wisdom for Living Spirit-Based Change." Students often exchanged conversation in the free moments, or dove into a bowl of clementines Rosenthal brought. 

As class wrapped up, the students bubbled with excitement over what was to come: Rosenthal had instructed each to develop an individual, long-term project, and to connect with each other to create a more permanent group. 

Polly Korbel, a talkative member of the group, seemed to be at the head of the charge. Heartily, she stirred, “Let’s start something.”

This article is a collaboration with the City of New Haven's Department of Arts, Culture & Tourism, which is supporting young writers who cover recipients of the 2023 Neighborhood Cultural Vitality Grants.