Every year, creative grad students from across the disciplines submit compelling images of their research and scholarship to the Image of Research competition. To accompany each image submission, the creator writes a short paragraph explaining how the image relates to their wider academic work, giving us a glimpse behind the scenes.
We caught up with some of the award winners from the 2024 Image of Research competition to ask them more about their process. Enjoy this interview with Benjamin Ringel, a graduate student in Aerospace Engineering and 2rd place winner in this year’s contest, and then view the video to hear Iyer read his award-winning submission, "Dynamic Decomposition."
Why did you enter Image of Research this year?
I have always been fascinated with capturing a moment in time to tell a story; however, pursuing my PhD studying hypersonic materials has given me the opportunity to use imaging towards scientific ends. Over the years, I have used numerous techniques to extract valuable information from images taken during experiments, and as a result, I have collected many images of fascinating phenomena. I selected my image from this year because it captured a scene that was deeply dynamic, both in light and in time. I was excited to submit it to the Image of Research, as this is a competition that encourages a beautiful mixture of art and science, allowing someone to tell a compelling story through technical imaging.
What was the process of coming up with your image?
Capturing this image was slightly incidental, as I was simply intending to collect a series of images qualitatively demonstrating spallation of the material under entry-like conditions. Using the lab camera during our test campaign, I took a series of images and videos, and found myself with an image that was interesting and could tell a story.
What did you learn or take away from this experience?
I was glad to hear that the connection between the narrative and the image resonated with people. I love when the value behind scientific research can be condensed to a simple story that anyone can relate with and understand.
This interview was conducted by Brandon Stauffer, Videographer here at the Graduate College. Brandon came to the Graduate College with a background in journalism and is now working to showcase the impact of Higher Education at Illinois.
