Zombie Gradumetation

I did it. I burned out on shooting graduations. I shot the UGA summer commencement Saturday morning at 9:30 a.m. My normal shift during the week doesn't start until 1 p.m. and I don't wake up until 11 or 12 everyday. This suits me very well as I've always been a night owl. The problem comes now that I work Saturdays by myself due to staff cuts. My Saturday shift flexes every week to whatever needs to be shot. Having to get up at 8 a.m. to make it to an assignment is the equivalent of a person with a typical 9-5 shift having to get up at 4  a.m. Needless to say, its brutal. I'm like a zombie at these assignments and the creativity that I rely on abandons me. Working with sleep deprivation clouding my mind results in mediocrity in my work. During the graduation I just wanted to leave. I didn't even stay until the end and certainly didn't work many angles to get something unique. Here are some of my blah photos from yesterday.  

Graduates file in for the University of Georgia Summer Commencement Saturday, Aug. 1. 2009, at Stegeman Coliseum.

Master of Education graduate Ryan Melvin looks on during the University of Georgia Summer Commencement Saturday, Aug. 1. 2009, at Stegeman Coliseum.

Rachael Eriksen Brown smiles to people she knows in the crowd after receiving her PhD in Mathematics Education during the University of Georgia Summer Commencement Saturday, Aug. 1. 2009, at Stegeman Coliseum.

Legendary former Gymnastics coach Suzanne Yoculan gives the commencement address during the University of Georgia Summer Commencement ceremony Saturday, Aug. 1. 2009, at Stegeman Coliseum.

Michelle Burns receives her doctoral hood from professor Steven Beach after getting her PhD in Psychology during the University of Georgia Summer Commencement Saturday, Aug. 1. 2009, at Stegeman Coliseum.

A graduate wears a cap decorated with polka dots during the University of Georgia Summer Commencement Saturday, Aug. 1. 2009, at Stegeman Coliseum.

Fernanda Dorea smiles to the crowd while heading to the stage to be honored for receiving her Masters of Science degree during the University of Georgia Summer Commencement Saturday, Aug. 1. 2009, at Stegeman Coliseum.

Karen Lux, center, reacts after getting her PhD in Kinesiology at the University of Georgia Summer Commencement Saturday, Aug. 1. 2009, at Stegeman Coliseum.