Photo by Claudia Ceja Welcome, I am Natasha Brennan, a journalist and photographer interested in focusing on Native American issues, homelessness and mental health care. I am a senior journalism major and photography minor at the University of La Verne, graduating in Spring 2019. After graduation, I will be attending USC Annenberg to earn my master’s degree in Journalism. After my education, I want to be a magazine writer covering Native American culture and issues through feature writing and profiles. I enjoy narrative writing and hard news photography.
Currently, I am the President of the University of La Verne’s chapter of the Society of Professional Journalists and the first ever intern at ULV’s Voice alumni magazine and website. Previously, I served as Editor in Chief of La Verne Magazine and Photography Editor for the Campus Times. At these publications, I also held the roles of Arts Editor, Copy Editor, Designer, Editorial Cartoonist, Staff Writer and Staff Photographer. In my free time, I volunteer at Cafe con Libros, a community center and bookstore in Pomona, to help establish their community oral history project.
I use a Nikon D7200 and D60 with a Nikon 18-55mm, Nikon 70-300 lens and a Tamron 18-300mm lens. I also occasionally shoot with Nikon 30mm and 50mm lenses. I use a Wacom Intuous tablet to create my cartoons and graphics.
Journalism is my life. I have been doing yearbook or newspaper for my school or local Girl Scout service unit every school year since the fifth grade. It was in the eighth grade that I decided going to J-school was for me. In high school, I took Journalism I-IV, helping to pioneer the school’s news media site. I became the Features Editor as a freshman, News Editor as a sophomore and Editor-in-Chief my junior and senior year. In December of 2014, I was accepted early to the University of La Verne and began my studies as a journalism major the next fall.
Outside of school, I enjoy going to Disneyland with my family and boyfriend, attending San Jose Sharks games, and attending local cultural or community events. I like to make crafts, like candles and Mickey ears, and sell them at local craft fairs. I’m very proud of winning ULV’s Mini Maker’s Fair this past spring.
Photo by Kayla Salas In my last semester at ULV, I am working on two senior projects: a magazine for my journalism major and a photography book for my photography minor. My magazine will focus on Southern California Native American culture including profiles, features on local Native-owned businesses and non-profit organizations, articles on prevalent issues in the community and photo spreads of local events. My photography book will focus on the Kizh tribe, which is native to the area surrounding my University. I am working with their current leadership along with local museums, archives and academics to document the Kizh’s story from pre-Mexican/European contact to the modern day. I hope to publish both my magazine and photography books and donate them to the tribes, archives and museums I am working with as future reference to anyone who is also interested in this history. To publish the amount of copies I would like to, I am looking to raise $800. To donate to my project, you can follow the link below!
My father grew up on the Cahuilla reservation, and after a landscape photography class field trip to Joshua Tree (formally part of the Cahuilla territory) this past winter, I became interested in revisting my native roots. I was inspired by the petroglyphs and hope to one day get special permission to document and research the remaining glyphs that are not available to the public. This experience has inspired me to continue my passion into a senior project and eventually my work in graduate school and beyond.
