The University Record, September 3, 1997
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Photo Services staff (from left) Bill Wood, D.C. Goings, Bob Kalmbach, Kim Haskins and Paul Jaronski. Photo by Rebecca A. Doyle |
By Kerry Colligan
Photo Services is under new management.
Sound a bit uninspiring? When Photo Services became a division of News and Information Services (NIS) in July, there weren’t any speeches or gala events.
Perhaps the reason for the “business as usual” approach is that Photo Services has been operating as a full-service photographic lab since 1948. In addition to shooting passports, portraits and special events, Photo Services now has an extensive and growing archive of color and black-and-white images available for newsletters, brochures and publicity materials.
“The strength of the union between Photo Services and News and Information Services lies in the combination of services; all of the photographic services people require will be in one convenient location,” says NIS Director Julie Peterson.
“I don’t think people realize we’re right here next to the Union. The biggest problem we have is that, at least once a day, people tell us they didn’t know we were here,” notes Bill Wood, part-time photographer and office assistant at Photo Services.
While spreading the word may be an issue, rest assured that the staff at Photo Services knows its stuff. Composed of three full-time photographers and an office manager, in addition to Wood, the group has a wealth of experience and capability.
“Bob [Kalmbach] is always willing to learn new technologies and better ways to do things,” says Kim Haskins, office manager at Photo Services.
His ability to adapt to changes in the industry is just one reason Kalmbach has been taking photos at the University since the 1950s. As chief photographer of Photo Services, he has covered numerous U-M sports and news events and public relations activities. His work has appeared in hundreds of publications including Sports Illustrated and National Geographic.
There aren’t too many shots Kalmbach has missed over the years. Among the familiar faces he has photographed are author Arthur Miller, mime Marcel Marceau, maestro Eugene Ormandy, newsman Walter Cronkite, and former Presidents Carter, Ford and Bush. (See some of Kalmbach’s favorites on the Web: http://www.umich.edu/~newsinfo/Bob/bob.htm.)
Photographer D.C. Goings is a sort of jack-of-all-trades. Since joining Photo Services in 1974, he has done copy and slide work, location and studio photography, event coverage, print and reproduction work and machine maintenance.
Perhaps his most memorable photos are of the Dalai Lama. “He is an ego-less man. He was not in any way involved with his own greatness,” Goings says of the spiritual leader of Tibet who visited campus in 1994. “It’s hard to do that guy justice,” Goings adds.
Photographer Paul Jaronski came to Photo Services as a printer under the tutelage of Kalmbach 21 years ago. He quickly became a staff photographer, with black-and-white processing, reproduction, passport and portraiture responsibilities, among others.
“I think the youngest subject I’ve taken for a passport was a 3-day-old baby brought straight from the hospital,” Jaronski says. But, he says, the University community does not take full advantage of all the resources at Photo Services. “We take many photos for different kinds of identification, not just passports. I’ve had several taxi drivers come down here.”
To contact Photo Services call 764-9217, send e-mail to [email protected], or stop by the facility in Room B542 in the basement of the LSA Building on State St. Information on services and prices also may be found at http://www.umich.edu/~newsinfo/photo.html.
