One of the perks of being a freelance writer and photographer is that I can pick the assignments I would like to cover and then pitch them. And so I was happy to be able to photograph the Nationality Rooms at the University of Pittsburgh while they are decorated for the holidays.
The first room I photographed was the Austrian Room with a nativity scene that was handcarved in Austria. A wreath and guitar commemorate the origin of the song "Silent Night."
The German Room looked also very pretty with its Advents wreath and Christmas tree, but then I'm biased.
My goal was to photograph holidays in different cultures. The Chinese New Year is celebrated with an elaborate display of symbols, while the African room shows a simple Kwanzaa scene. From Russia to India to Italy, I photographed traditions around the world. But a photo shoot like this does not come without problems. The French Room, for example, showed a large creche under glass--impossible to photograph, especially when there are chairs posted in front of it. If you want to see how the holidays are observed in different cultures, I suggest a trip to the Cathedral of Learning. You will never get a cheaper deal on traveling around the world.
