Student Union - Erik Jacobs

Jay McCabe, October, 2005

© 2005, Jesse Osbourne, All Rights Reserved

Erik Jacobs
Western Kentucky University
Bowling Green, Kentucky

Inspired Choice
Erik Jacobs didn’t take a direct route to photography as a career. When he graduates in December from WKU with a degree in photojournalism, it will be his second diploma—he has a degree in exercise physiology and sports medicine from Skidmore. Interested in photography, what turned him toward it as a career was a copy of Magnum Degrees, a collection of images taken by the elite photographers associated with the fabled agency. “I sat with that book for hours,” Erik says, “and went through everything at least twice. I was so blown away by it I actually took a picture of the book on the table in the library. From that point on there was no turning back.”

When we talked with him he was doing a summer internship at The Boston Globe. It’s his fourth internship, and like the others he says it’s a “great learning experience. You’re treated just like a staff photographer and are assigned to shoot everything from NASCAR racing to portraits.”

All Photos© 2005, Erik Jacobs, All Rights Reserved

While he wasn’t specific about his post-graduation plans—“a few things are in the works”—they absolutely involve pursuing a career as a photojournalist.

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