General
Wood & Steel
I went to a violin shop it St. Louis to work on a video project. While I was there, I shot the most cliche frame.
And I don’t care. Stay tuned for the final piece…
You Suck at Photoshop
So brush up on those skillz.
Well, I feel dumb.
It just occurred to me as to why no one was commenting on my posts. Well, it’s because you couldn’t…unless you registered.
That’s just frickin’ lame…
So I changed it. So comment. Really. Tell me what you like. Tell me what you hate.
But please, just tell me. Because now we’ll all know how you feel.
Done, and done
Ugh. My hands hurt from all that typing, my eyes hurt from looking at my computer for so long…
But, I finished redesigning my site, and added a few stories and some more pictures in there, including some from Seattle, Maryland, and right here in good ol’ Columbia.
Check it out and let me know what you think. It’s always good to hear from those of you out there in Cyberspace.
Don’t be confused…
…I’m just redesigning my site. With new colors and a new logo. Hopefully, it’ll be done within the next couple weeks. Until then, feel free to let me know if you like the new colors and such. Feedback is always appreciated. 
New Web site
After long hours in front of my computer screen, I finally finished my new portfolio site.
Comments are always welcome.
New splash page
Well, I’ve just spent the better part of an evening creating a new splash page with Flash.
I probably took more time than I needed to, but it’s been a while since I’ve even thought about opening that program to create something.
Let me know what you think of it.
Photojournalist fired
Patrick Schneider of the Charlotte (N.C.) Observer was fired today for altering a photo of a fireman. Only the photo wasn’t faked, it was altered in Photoshop to correct the color and it seems that some think Mr. Schneider went too far.
It isn’t his first time that he has dodged and burned a bit to much. He was stripped of some awards in 2003 from the North Carolina Press Association for dodging and burning too much.
Here’s some related links I’ve found:
“Newspaper Photog fired for altering photo — again”
“A photojournalistic confession”
“In defense of a photographer Patrick Schneider”
It seems that this incident wasn’t as serious as past incidents, but it was his past that did him in. Only, I don’t see the difference between what he did on a computer and what photographers like Ansel Adams and Bresson did in the darkroom. Burning is burning and sometimes it’s done to make an image more aesthetic; other times it’s done to more accurately portray the scene.
It’s a complicated issue that has far-reaching implications. But just remember, as a photojournalist, the first thing to consider is: Does this photo accurately convey the story and represent the people in it?
Train to the North
Check out this audio slideshow by photographer Jacquelyn Martin about Central American migrants and the challenges they face as they head north through Mexico, and eventually to the United States.
These migrants aren’t walking, though. They’re jumping aboard freight trains to get to their destination, which adds a whole new level of danger to their journey.
The News
Reader beware: I’m going to go on a philosophical rant.
Ok, with that said, I really think that we, as journalists, sometimes undervalue our audience and what they think should be in the news.
Today in the newsroom, we had a discussion about a story that we were considering running as the main feature, in color, in the center spread. I simply suggested this story because I knew it would have good photos and it would have more than one, a necessity for a center spread.
The story is about a woman with cerebral palsy who’s service dog needs surgery to repair a torn ACL. She’s wheeling 15 miles to raise money to get the surgery because she doesn’t have enough money and can’t work(an entirely different story).
She doesn’t go to KU and has no direct tie to the University. That said, I still think it’s a good human interest story, because it speaks on multiple levels that EVERYONE can relate to: compassion, dedication, loyalty, love, etc.
I was basically told that no one here on campus would give a shit. No one would read it. It’s a waste of ink, time and, most importantly, money.
First of all, not all college students are bumbling idiots who only want to get drunk, high and have sex. Some of us actually do care and we like to hear stories that reflect the good, not just the bad, in our communities.
But the key word here is community. KU is part of the Lawrence community, and neither would be what they are without each other. I don’t think it hurts or shows bad news judgement to run a story like this woman’s. It’s feature-y, will have good photos and is a nice break from all of the other accidents, deaths, crimes, etc.
But apparently, college students don’t give a shit about these kinds of things. Well, I think they do and I don’t think we give them enough credit for it sometimes. We [journalists] are supposed to know the newsworthy from the not-so, but not every death, accident, murder, fatality, person who gets screwed needs to be plastered all over 1A. And sometimes stories like this need coverage. It’s shows that we still give a shit.
The media always gets a bad rap. And maybe it’s because people think we don’t care about them. We care about sales, ratings and readership, but not the reader per se. Don’t believe me? Listen to Jack Johnson’s “The News”, and tell me that people think we care about them.