Our favorite photos of the year

Penn Today has covered momentous occasions, groundbreaking research, and exemplary students in the last year. And in addition to stories, featured photos have been equally impactful. From scenes of innovation, collective joy, and natural beauty to the simplicity of athletic perfection, staff photographers have captured Penn’s finest.

First and foremost, Penn’s campus is picturesque year-round, so much so it is a designated Tree Campus USA by the Arbor Day Foundation. Spring blossoms are especially sublime on campus. Penn’s architecture, captured equally in late winter and high summer sunlight, especially at Fisher Fine Arts Library, is as visually impressive as the art at the Arthur Ross Gallery. Penn’s sustainability efforts extend to innovative land use, turning parts of Penn Park into viable farmland.

It’s the people of Penn who often capture the beauty and vibrancy of the University. Students gathered to celebrate Holi with traditional colorful powder and dancing, they gathered as a community to take in a solar eclipse, they met as an entire Class of first-year students to mark the start of their Penn experience at Convocation, and celebrated the remarkable achievements of its researchers and faculty, including the Nobel Prize in Medicine.

The students are key to Penn’s spirit, and their documented talent is always a vision. Penn photographers captured performers, cultural ceremonies, athletes, and old-fashioned play throughout the year.

For the times when photos are most treasured—celebrations and achievements—Penn Today photographers captured the emotions and energy, not just the event—from the joy and relief of Hey Day and Commencement to the deep focus and precision of fine art and athletics.