Videos

One of my goals when I started working at the Telegram was to learn video. I have been meaning to post some examples for a while now, and so I will start with the first video I made while I was here, and the most recent one. I had dabbled in video a little bit, but the battle of the bands was my first real attempt at using video. The latest one I worked on was a first day of school experience as a back to school special. Video is a bit more difficult for me, though I like it because it forces you to become a quick problem solver. You really have to be thinking on your feet the whole time, the biggest difficulty for me is remembering to gather nat sound while shooting. A special thank you to all of those who have helped me learn, who have answered my calls at all hours and answered my questions without laughing (example, check to make sure there are no discarded clips on the timeline that would make your piece 12 minutes long and an obscenely large file size). Every time I look over a video I find things that I would do differently next time and try and incorporate those changes in my next video. I would appreciate any feedback as I continue to learn!

From the archives

Digging through my archives as I make backup hard drives and found some fun shots from my first internship at the Birmingham News. The first shot is from the Region Charity Classic, a charity golf tournament, and one of my biggest regrets of the internship is that I didn't get one of those "HUSH Y'ALL" signs that volunteers hold up to keep the crowds quiet.

I rode a horse! Ok, a mule.

We shot a story about a training class for a Search and Rescue team. After we, the reporter and I, had spent the morning shooting their drills, they stopped for a lunch break. Once they found out that I never rode a horse, they seemed personally offended. I was never a horse girl growing up, and the only time I tried to get on a horse was a few years ago. The darn thing was so restless, I could barely get in the saddle. Not a happy memory. So they sat me on a training mule (pictured above) and I rode around the padlock a few times. I now kinda get the whole horseback riding thing, it was very relaxing. Though the mule didn't seem to agree with the direction/speed I was trying to make her go, it was a much better experience than the first time.

a few random shots

Two recent favs

Ok, the fun run with the kids, the intensity of the kid in the gray always makes me smile. I gotta approach everyday with that kind of drive. Way to inspire kiddo! As for the frog, this kid kept bringing me all sorts of random things as I was shooting the family garden. A stick, a bug, a rock, you name it. Well he comes over with this tiny little frog between his fingers. Not a happy camper but cute as heck.

Dock Dogs

A competition where dogs leap into the water after a toy. Test speed, length, and intelligence (can they find the toy???). A really fun time, shot some video but the audio didn't turn out as good as I would like. Trying to decide what to do with it, because the video alone will make you smile.

Some end of the season baseball photos

Warren “Sneak” Lewis

Nash County Investigator Warren “Sneak” Lewis, 38, was shot and killed Thursday evening while on assignment with the Eastern North Carolina Fugitive Task Force in Kinston. We spent Friday at press conferences and driving around town to visit different memorials. Our hearts go out to his family that he left behind.

Bomb Scare

We had a gentlemen doing general home improvement on a trailer he rents out when he found a hand grenade. The bomb squad from Raleigh was called in, and they told us the grenade was rusted beyond use, and took it away. Amazing how boring a bomb scare can be when it takes over two hours for the squad to show up. In my boredom I found a willing model in the inchworm. To the great amusement of the reporter and several officers.

People

Places

Wow, so I have not been good at updating at all. My apologies. This week will bring massive updates as I have about 2 months to catch up on! First up, a sampling of some of the places I've been. Gotta love any room with an antler chandelier. As for that last photo, a gentlemen was doing his own version of a farm funeral with dead chickens, except the chicken parts were rather large and did not agree with state codes for fertilizer. I was rather sick when on this assignment, no voice and could barely breathe nonetheless smell. I figured what the heck, that wing would be really pretty against the sky with the grass so delicately hiding the remainder of the rotting carcass. So I threw on my wide angle and got down about 2 feet from the thing. The guy who took me out there asked I wasn't gagging from the smell. But I figure, if life hands you lemons make lemonade. Like this wider shot better than anything I shot with my longer lens and it's a different view than you'd expect.

Baseball!

It's baseball season so time to post some of my favs. Really tried to get variety out of the action shots. Enjoy! I love the kid trying to jump Superman style over the catcher in an attempt to score a run.

Tug of War

Rocky Mount/Nash schools have a fantastic program for Elementary students to battle the rise in childhood obesity. The students have from the first day of school to the beginning of April to walk 100 miles with the teachers. Every student that completes this goal gets to participate in a field day at the park filled with fun events. The children love it, and it's such a good way to encourage a healthy lifestyle. My favorite event is always the Tug of War just because it brings out the competitive side in every person, no matter the age or how reserved they may be in everyday life. The top image is a couple of boys reactions after they lose a girls vs boys tug of war.

Tornados in NC

We had a series of tornadoes touch down throughout North Carolina in mid April. Thankfully, Rocky Mount was spared and had very little damage from the storms. A neighboring town, Wilson, was hit and suffered damage to several residential neighborhoods and businesses. The tornado hit on Saturday, and I had Sunday off, so I drove down to Wilson to spend the day shooting the aftermath. Unfortunately, that is the only time I have been able to get down there. But even in the short time between when the tornadoes hit and the time I got there, the community outreach was incredible. It's always amazing how in a time of crisis people reach out to one another.