By Michael Ahearne ’14
THE ROUNDUP
Greg Vogel ’15 is making a name for himself both in front of and behind the lens.
Vogel is a member of the Student Council as well as a photographer and filmmaker across campus.
“I’ve done a lot of different stuff,” Vogel said. “I am in Student Council and I have been making a lot of videos for that. I’ve also done things like a lot of promotional stuff for Brophy.”
Mr. Pete Burr ’07 said that Vogel has really been great in what he has created for Student Council and campus this year.
“The expectation for Student Council is that everybody has a specialty, but they have a little of everything,” Mr. Burr said. “He’s been great with everything, but I think he has been incredible in what he has created for the campus this year.”
For Vogel, photography has always been a key part of his life.
“It’s something that I love and something that can maybe make the world a better place,” Vogel said. “I think the most important part is just doing something that you love and finding that and implementing that into your life.”
Vogel’s interest in photography and film making was sparked early by a family friend.
“He was really into it,” Vogel said. “I was like 8 years old. I would go their house and he would be talking about which photo looked sharper and I was like ‘I have no idea’ because they would look exactly the same.”
As time started to go by, Vogel started to get more into photography.
“It really didn’t appeal to me then but now looking back at it, it is something that really inspires me,” Vogel said. “Last year he passed away and I think just remembering him saying all that and instilling that in my mind, I think has driven me to continue it.”
Vogel began getting more into photography and film a bit in eighth grade, but really didn’t take off until second semester freshman year.
“Second semester freshman year I took photography with Mr. (Mica) Mulloy and I think that is what rekindled the interest and got me really into it and taking pictures,” Vogel said.
During his sophomore year, Vogel joined Brophy’s Digital Storytelling class taught by Mr. Burr.
Mr. Burr said that Vogel was recommended to him to be part of the Digital Storytelling class and was amazed at how good Vogel was at video making.
“I feel like I can confidently say that I have taught him nothing, that he was either always at the same speed as me or faster,” Mr. Burr said. “I could not think higher about him in terms of his creative ability and he is light years beyond most high school kids in terms of his ability to create, take photos and create videos and short content.”
Mr. Burr said that Vogel is a hard worker and he has nothing bad to say about him.
“His turnaround, his ability to create things quickly, it’s incredible,” Mr. Burr said. “We will shoot a video Monday afternoon and he’s got it fully edited and ready to be put online Tuesday morning. It’s mind boggling how efficient he is as an artist and a creator.”
Vogel has also helped out creatively in both Student Council and just for Mr. Burr’s own use.
“I’ve used Greg a lot as a bounce board for ideas and asked him what he thinks about these things because I really value his artist judgment in just how quality of a creative person he is,” Mr. Burr said.
Compared to last year when Mr. Burr created every Student Council video, he has only had to create one video this year and he admits that Vogel’s work is better than his.
“I have no problem admitting that the stuff he has made this year is so much better than I can make,” Mr. Burr said. “He knows his peers better, he’s able to do thing that I wouldn’t be able to do and he understands what they think is really funny and engaging.”
When asked why he thinks Vogel is a good artist, Mr. Burr said it’s his personality
“I think part of the reason why he is such a good artist is because he is really thoughtful and reflective and sometimes even a little quiet, but the wheels are always turning and he’s always thinking,” Mr. Burr said. “He’s coming up with new ideas and new takes on things and he’s really in perspective.”
Vogel said he tries not to just focus on one thing in particular when doing photography or film making.
“For photography I think anything can really be a subject,” Vogel said. “I don’t really do anything in particular. I try to stay away from just sports photography or just focusing on one facet of the art. There are so many things you can do with a camera that people don’t realize.”
In the future, Vogel would like to pursue photography and film making as a career.
“I’d really like to get into more documentary stuff just because I can see that as something I can do in the future as a career,” Vogel said. “Like traveling and doing documentaries around the world and stuff.”
