Video Assignment No. 1

I am first and foremost a writer—it’s why I decided to go into journalism in the first place. I figured I needed to make at least some kind of money. While studying journalism has instilled a passion for the news in me, old habits do die hard, and my instinct is to pull out my reporter’s notebook and a pen— not set up a tripod and hook up a camera. I’m not a spatial person and have very little sense of artistic setup, so I think a major challenge is going to be thinking in a totally different way about how to capture an event or a person or a feeling on the scene rather than later on when I’m going through my notes. Video seems a lot more spontaneous, and while I know editing can do a lot, I think there’s a lot less room for error when you’re sent to report with a camera, not a notebook. Being on camera is also going to be a challenge. I worked for the host of a Webcast this summer and operated cameras, did research and came up with editorial content, but as soon as they got me in front of the camera just for a test shot, I felt nauseous. I’m comfortable going up to strangers and interviewing them; I’m definitely not comfortable being the center of attention on camera. I’d like to let the stories speak for themselves in these assignments as much as I can.