Often before her first cup of coffee, Valerie Nyce is evaluating the probability of a beautiful sunrise. While peering through the viewfinder of her Nikon, she frames shots of the vibrant red, orange and purple backdrops as the sun rises over the Wicomico River outside her backdoor. “Every morning is different—every sunrise is different,” said Nyce of the ritual that began when she opened a Facebook account several years ago and wasn’t sure what to post there. In addition to spectacular sunrises, the College of Southern Maryland’s (CSM) lead photography coordinator posts her images of soaring bald eagles and flora and fauna she finds on her rounds of Southern Maryland.
Seeing the world anew each day is something that keeps photography fresh for Nyce and that is what judges at the National Council for Marketing and Public Relations (NCMPR) saw when they awarded her with a Gold Medallion of Excellence for original photography.
“I can’t express how very fortunate we are to have a dedicated photographer at CSM of the caliber of Valerie Nyce. She is an outstanding photographer and photojournalist who has been telling the stories of the college, our students and events through her visual talents for 15 years,” said CSM Vice President of Advancement Michelle Goodwin. “Everyone in the Southern Maryland community knows Val and appreciates her work ethic and level of expertise. Many other organizations wish they had a Val of their own, but we have her.”
Nyce is the sole photographer on staff at a college with more than 26,000 enrollments, 800 faculty and 100 programs of study, and where she covers events at campuses in La Plata, Prince Frederick and Leonardtown as well as the college’s Center for Trades and Energy Training in Waldorf, Center for Transportation Training in La Plata, Center for Nuclear Engineering Training in Prince Frederick and the Waldorf Center for Higher Education.
When Nyce turns the camera on some people their reactions run from ‘oh, no you don’t’ as they try to pull the inside of their jacket up over their head, to hamming up by striking a model pose, tossing head back and swinging a hip out. “Reactions run both ends of the spectrum, but in the end, [the reluctant subjects] usually give it up and let me do my job,” she said.
Over the 15 years she has worked at CSM, Nyce estimates that she has shot more than 3,000 events and countless portraits, and she is charged with maintaining the college’s institutional photo archive as well as the tens of thousands of photos she has taken. She approaches each shoot looking for ways to capture the essence of the event in a unique and artistic way. She is not opposed to climbing a ladder or gaining access to a roof to snap a high-angle shot. She photographs 18- to 60-year-old graduates crossing the stage after accepting their degrees as well as 4- and 5-year-olds, in caps and gowns, graduating from the college’s St. Charles Children’s Learning Center on the La Plata Campus. T
