I wish I was an ingenious photographer. I remember during my internship this past summer, the editor would send the photographers out on the most mundane photo assignments and they would come back with amazing pictures. They made something like a farmer's market look like a work of art through their photos. The assignment this week, to go out and take pictures exemplifying a theme, seemed easy enough but getting the right angle and snapping "the moment" was actually kind of hard.
My pictures from Saturday's football game illustrate spirit and teamwork. I included a couple of extra photos from Saturday's events in my slideshow to show landscape and that the day wasn't all just fun - police officers work hard to keep their eyes and ears open and look for any drinking-related issues.
I got a snapshot of the tight-rope-walker while walking home from class Monday afternoon. To me, he exemplifies courage and individual athleticism.
The pictures of the UNH ROTC members taking down the American flag show duty, tradition and honor.
Monday, September 28, 2009
Tuesday, September 22, 2009
Police grant project
Andy, an anonymous University of New Hampshire student, had just picked up a 30-rack from a 21-year-old friend on campus Saturday night when an undercover UNH police officer emerged from the Strafford woods.
“We got beer and I was like, we’ll go back to my apartment, it’s probably safer to do it there,” he said. “So we go back to my apartment and this undercover cop comes out of the woods as I’m walking up to my apartment. This kid’s carrying the beer; I’m just getting out of my car, getting my stuff out of my car, and the undercover cop comes out of the woods and is like, ‘Hey, drop the beer, let me see your IDs.’”
Andy, 19, knew he was in trouble, but it wasn’t the first time, or even the second.
“The first time I didn’t really realize what was going on,” he said. “Second time, when they called me and were like, ‘Hey, come down to the station,’ my heart just sank; I was sick to my stomach. The third time I was just kind of like whatever, this is getting old.”
Andy was arrested twice his freshman year, with charges ranging from resisting arrest to littering to trespassing – but this past arrest was something he never thought would happen.
“I guess I had kind of heard of cops, but I figured I’d see it on like Madbury or something, like cops would come out of the bushes or uniform cops but I never expected to see an undercover cop, ever,” he said.
The Durham, Lee and UNH police departments were given a grant of $6,000 this year in a hope to decrease underage alcohol consumption, both in the area and specifically on campus. The United Way of Seacoast Resolution, which was passed on March 16, allowed for further coordination among the departments.
The Seacoast Alcohol Task Force Grant, which was given to the Durham and UNH police departments several years ago, coupled with the new grant provides funding for extra coverage on campus and in town to deal with alcohol related issues, said UNH police officer Joseph Morganella.
“The state and federal government actually pay for us to enforce alcohol laws,” Morganella said. “We get grant money to work together and take care of all the alcohol offenses.”
Although the local police departments were hopeful of making more arrests, the beginning of the 2009 academic school year was slower than in past years.
“Last year, the first weekend, we had 12 arrests, and seven of them were drug related,” Morganella said. “This weekend we had maybe three arrests in the first weekend. So the start of the year was a little milder than last year. But as we progress through the year it seems to be getting pretty busy so I would say we are on a par with last year or possibly a little busier than last year already.”
With the new grant and the notorious first few weekends back at school, where alcohol consumption is at its peak, the police presence in Durham has been more noticeable than in past years.
“It’s hard to say, the first couple weeks back are always pretty nuts, but yeah, this past Saturday night I noticed there were cops everywhere,” Andy said. “You go home for the summer and like you don’t party that much, like you do, but you don’t really, not on the same scale, but I guess the first couple weeks when you come back from school you kind of go wild.”
“We got beer and I was like, we’ll go back to my apartment, it’s probably safer to do it there,” he said. “So we go back to my apartment and this undercover cop comes out of the woods as I’m walking up to my apartment. This kid’s carrying the beer; I’m just getting out of my car, getting my stuff out of my car, and the undercover cop comes out of the woods and is like, ‘Hey, drop the beer, let me see your IDs.’”
Andy, 19, knew he was in trouble, but it wasn’t the first time, or even the second.
“The first time I didn’t really realize what was going on,” he said. “Second time, when they called me and were like, ‘Hey, come down to the station,’ my heart just sank; I was sick to my stomach. The third time I was just kind of like whatever, this is getting old.”
Andy was arrested twice his freshman year, with charges ranging from resisting arrest to littering to trespassing – but this past arrest was something he never thought would happen.
“I guess I had kind of heard of cops, but I figured I’d see it on like Madbury or something, like cops would come out of the bushes or uniform cops but I never expected to see an undercover cop, ever,” he said.
The Durham, Lee and UNH police departments were given a grant of $6,000 this year in a hope to decrease underage alcohol consumption, both in the area and specifically on campus. The United Way of Seacoast Resolution, which was passed on March 16, allowed for further coordination among the departments.
The Seacoast Alcohol Task Force Grant, which was given to the Durham and UNH police departments several years ago, coupled with the new grant provides funding for extra coverage on campus and in town to deal with alcohol related issues, said UNH police officer Joseph Morganella.
“The state and federal government actually pay for us to enforce alcohol laws,” Morganella said. “We get grant money to work together and take care of all the alcohol offenses.”
Although the local police departments were hopeful of making more arrests, the beginning of the 2009 academic school year was slower than in past years.
“Last year, the first weekend, we had 12 arrests, and seven of them were drug related,” Morganella said. “This weekend we had maybe three arrests in the first weekend. So the start of the year was a little milder than last year. But as we progress through the year it seems to be getting pretty busy so I would say we are on a par with last year or possibly a little busier than last year already.”
With the new grant and the notorious first few weekends back at school, where alcohol consumption is at its peak, the police presence in Durham has been more noticeable than in past years.
“It’s hard to say, the first couple weeks back are always pretty nuts, but yeah, this past Saturday night I noticed there were cops everywhere,” Andy said. “You go home for the summer and like you don’t party that much, like you do, but you don’t really, not on the same scale, but I guess the first couple weeks when you come back from school you kind of go wild.”
Audio and Script project
As the weeks progress, the multimedia assignments seem to be getting easier. This week we did a cool ride along with a UNH police officer and I got to interview a student who has been arrested three times since he's been here. Writing the story and then working on editing the audio made it easier - I went through and pulled the quotes I needed for the written story and wrote down where on the recorder they were, making the Audacity part of the project really easy. Voice over's always a little strange at first. While at my internship, I was encouraged to try it but never did and wish I had, it makes a piece sound that much more professional.
I love, love, love finished multimedia!
I love, love, love finished multimedia!
Wednesday, September 16, 2009
first multimedia, team project
Cam, Keeley and I decided to do our project on bus drivers - they're fundamental to campus, they go unrecognized for their contributions and, most importantly, they make for a good audio subject.
For the b-roll, I just went out and rode the buses. The first loop around on the Gables Connector I realized the voice recorder was low on batteries. After spending about a half hour riding around, I realized the batteries weren't low, they were dead. Finally, after replacing the batteries, and going on another loop with a pretty friendly bus driver, I had the b-roll. Of the twenty or so minutes of recording I had gotten, we used a total of about thirty seconds in our final project, if that. One thing with audio that I learned is that although you've spent the time obtaining the material, that doesn't justify using all of it or even most of it. Similar to writing a story, one often gets attached to a phrase, a sentence or some other seemingly ingenious creation - but if it's not needed, it's not needed.
The hardest part of the project: technology. When we went to work on our project we realized we needed a CD, located in Cam's hometown of Conway, to upload the audio. After overnighting the CD, we were finally able to sit down and work on editing the material.
As a group we interviewed the bus driver, John Steere. So when it came time to put our project together, we all had a pretty good idea of what we wanted to use out of the conversation. All in all, putting together the final sound clip only took about an hour. I was impressed with the way we were able to tell a story. It has a beginning, a middle and an end - but it's not written, it's spoken. I've heard great stories told through song and radio interview and I'm always moved and impressed by the message they're able to get across. But I guess as a writer I'm still not completely use to telling a story through audio or multimedia - but I love the finish product!
For the b-roll, I just went out and rode the buses. The first loop around on the Gables Connector I realized the voice recorder was low on batteries. After spending about a half hour riding around, I realized the batteries weren't low, they were dead. Finally, after replacing the batteries, and going on another loop with a pretty friendly bus driver, I had the b-roll. Of the twenty or so minutes of recording I had gotten, we used a total of about thirty seconds in our final project, if that. One thing with audio that I learned is that although you've spent the time obtaining the material, that doesn't justify using all of it or even most of it. Similar to writing a story, one often gets attached to a phrase, a sentence or some other seemingly ingenious creation - but if it's not needed, it's not needed.
The hardest part of the project: technology. When we went to work on our project we realized we needed a CD, located in Cam's hometown of Conway, to upload the audio. After overnighting the CD, we were finally able to sit down and work on editing the material.
As a group we interviewed the bus driver, John Steere. So when it came time to put our project together, we all had a pretty good idea of what we wanted to use out of the conversation. All in all, putting together the final sound clip only took about an hour. I was impressed with the way we were able to tell a story. It has a beginning, a middle and an end - but it's not written, it's spoken. I've heard great stories told through song and radio interview and I'm always moved and impressed by the message they're able to get across. But I guess as a writer I'm still not completely use to telling a story through audio or multimedia - but I love the finish product!
Tuesday, September 8, 2009
how I'm feeling about multimedia
The first day of Multimedia was encouraging. I like that the class is not full of experts. Although I have a fair amount of experience in making multimedia, I still feel like I have a lot more to learn. Working in an enviroment where everyone is at a different level will be exciting - on some days, I hope that I can demonstrate my experiences. On other days, I hope to be shown something I never knew existed.
Looking at some really exceptional pieces of multimedia for the first class, including the UNH student's work on the Durham food pantry, set the bar for the rest of the semester. I feel like I have a lot to work on to get a final piece of multimedia like the ones we saw, but seeing an example of multimedia at its best reiterated why I wanted to take the class in the first place.
I'm really looking forward to completing a multimedia project. I'd describe myself as technologically challenged, so some of the techniques discussed, like overlaying video with audio from a voice recorder, makes me question my abilities. I just can't wait to be shown how to fluently make a solid piece of multimedia that inspires people when they see it.
The multimedia I did at The Enterprise newspaper during my internship this summer was done using moviemaker, which I had become quite comfortable with. I'm nervous to learn a lot of software but I know it's necessary in order to make movies like what we viewed the first day of class.
Looking at some really exceptional pieces of multimedia for the first class, including the UNH student's work on the Durham food pantry, set the bar for the rest of the semester. I feel like I have a lot to work on to get a final piece of multimedia like the ones we saw, but seeing an example of multimedia at its best reiterated why I wanted to take the class in the first place.
I'm really looking forward to completing a multimedia project. I'd describe myself as technologically challenged, so some of the techniques discussed, like overlaying video with audio from a voice recorder, makes me question my abilities. I just can't wait to be shown how to fluently make a solid piece of multimedia that inspires people when they see it.
The multimedia I did at The Enterprise newspaper during my internship this summer was done using moviemaker, which I had become quite comfortable with. I'm nervous to learn a lot of software but I know it's necessary in order to make movies like what we viewed the first day of class.
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