Variety is the spice of life

Preparing for the assignment

When I am asked to cover an event I try to think of it like telling a story.  So there are 7 things I try to always have in my coverage.  What I discovered just this week that my friend Mark Sandlin, Director of Photography for Southern Living, uses this same list.  Actually this is the list all photojournalists have drilled into them.

Mark Sandlin, Director of Photography at Southern Living.

1. Opener: Sets the scene for the story
2. Decisive moment: The one moment that can by itself tell the story
3. Details: Besides being like visual candy to the story, help often with transitions--especially in multimedia packages
4. Sequences: give a little variety to a situation
5. High overall shot: Gives a good perspective to how the elements all fit together
6. Closer: Besides the classic shot of the cowboy riding off into the sunset there are other visual ways to help bring the story to a close
7. Portraits: These photos are great for introducing the characters of the story

This is coverage of an annual meeting where the investors are brought in and the company gives them an overview of what they have done and where they are going.

One thing I am working really hard to do is make each photo have impact to draw the viewer in.  I use light, angles, composition and most important expressions of people to engage the viewer.  I wanted my photos to help this company communicate they are vibrant and viable in today's market.

This photo is to show how the attendees could interact with the leadership team. I wanted to show them engaging in conversation, so I shot a few to finally capture not just a good expression, but use the environment to draw you in.  If you notice even the lady in the mural seems to be paying attention to the conversation in the foreground.

Details for me are a way to just have fun. I am looking for unique angles, color and light to help create impact and entertain the audience. 

A high angle is usually successful today because it is unique to our everyday lives.  Seldom are we tall enough to see this angle, so it looks different than you just walking around.  Even the lady in this mural is looking from above to see what is below.

The man to the far right is the CEO and while he will be on stage later in more formal roles, I like to show him more relaxed and approachable.  I am using the lines from the window to help draw you into the picture.  I want you to see the conversation first in the foreground and then you should drift to the background.  This just keeps you engaged.

While you can see everyone on the panel and I always shoot the obvious, it isn't as compelling to me as some other angles below here.  But I always need to be sure everyone on the panel is well seen in one photo in case they need this.

As a panelist responds to the question you will find often that the rest of the panel may or may not be engaged. 

In this photo the CEO is the focus point and while the other panelist are not looking directly at him you can see from their expressions and slight turning of their heads to catch what he is saying as showing they are engaged.

PowerPoint presentations can be really difficult to capture the slide and the speaker in one photo. Thank goodness they had a spotlight on the speaker and had it balanced. The reason it was balanced it was being webcast live.  If you organize an event like this--always have a spot light on the speaker to make them not disappear into the dark.

While this isn't a really close-up portrait, I think in this situation it is a nice portrait of him working.

As I mentioned before they were putting this live on the web and I have a photo that can help say that for them.

Another high overall shot to help tell another part of the story.

The decisive moment photo should be the one that used alone and not part of the package could tell the story.  Which of the ones above did you see that would work for you?

Did you notice the sequence of the panel?  Now the hard part is often a closer.  Sometimes you don't have an ending.  This is because you want to communicate there was so much to see you want to leave the audience visually craving for more rather than wrapping it up to say well that is everything.

I suggest sitting down before you arrive to shoot a story and think through all that you have been told about the assignment and make a list.  Write down on a notepad that you will carry with you the outline of the 7 shots.  Under each one list a couple of options for each one.

As you shoot your story, check off the photos that you get.  Use your notepad to get names of people for the captions.

Once you have everything checked off on your list don't stop shooting.  I continue to shoot more photos, but now I may be looking more and taking fewer shots.  I am cherry picking the moments that I think will be better moments than I already have.

I want to thank my friend Mark Sandlin for reminding me of what I do at every assignment so that I could share this with you.

By the way Mark said he wished he had said one more thing to those attending the class.  He wanted to say "if you haven't made any mistakes, you are trying hard enough."

Why are you here?

For we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.

— Ephesians 2:10

Fellowship Of Christians United in Service, Hamilton, GA

“Stanley, why were you created?” is a question I remember being asked by my grandfather Rev. Knolan Benfield. 

My grandfather then quoted Ephesians 2:10 to me and let me know I was created to do good works. 

I believe one of the greatest movements in my lifetime has been volunteerism.  I saw this movement start in the late 60’s for me.

As a child I remember professional missionaries speaking to churches where they helped raise support. Most of the missionaries were all college graduates who often had masters and doctorate degrees in things like theology, law, agriculture and medicine.

Student marks the board to be cut as part of a roof repair for an elderly woman's house in Hamilton, Ga.

These missionaries felt called to give of their lives in service around the world.  They prepared through education so they would be well qualified to do the work in a different culture.  They would go to language school and learn to speak a foreign language.

Students clean the landscaping of Fellowship Of Christians United in Service offices in Hamilton, Ga.

Loren Cunningham started Youth With A Mission in the 60s when the mainline church thought that unskilled youth should not be encouraged to do short term mission’s projects.  It took a while to grow the concept to today.  YWAM currently has over 16,049 full-time volunteer workers in nearly 1,100 operating locations in 171 nations and trains 25,000 short-term missions volunteers annually.  It is a movement still growing and thriving today.

Former U. S. President Jimmy Carter got involved with Habitat for Humanity in 1984.  Habitat for Humanity is devoted to building "simple, decent, and affordable" housing using primarily volunteers.

IMPACT 360 student cuts board for roof repair in Hamilton, Ga.

Pay it Forward is a movie produced in 2000 about a 11 ½ boy’s response to school assignment to devise and put into action a plan that will change the world for the better.  Most folks feel like they need to give back to those who help them, but this boy’s concept is to Pay it Forward and creates a movement.

This past weekend I photographed college students who are in a gap year program in Pine Mountain, GA doing a service project. One of the appealing things about this college program is the service component and students are seeking ways to Pay it Forward in their communities.

John and Trudy White founded the college gap year program called IMPACT 360.  Trudy is the daughter of Truett Cathy, the founder of Chick-fil-A. One of the cornerstones of Chick-fil-A is based on biblical principle of service.

It's the same way with the Son of Man. He didn't come so that others could serve him. He came to serve and to give his life as a ransom for many people.

— Matthew 20:28

Elderly woman watches as the IMPACT 360 students and alumni put in stairs to her home in Hamilton, Ga.

The students each year enjoy their time of service and after they graduate they come back for alumni weekends to work alongside the current students in service projects.

Are you living up to your purpose—doing good works?

See the Big Picture

This is a clip of Carrie Underwood playing the youth minister to Bethany Hamilton in the movie Soul Surfer.

Our family just saw the movie. in another scene Carrie Underwood showed a close-up photo of an insect’s eye to the youth group asking the kids to identify what they were seeing. She then would zoom out and show the bigger perspective. 

Throughout the movie we see the theme of there are bigger perspectives that we need sometimes. Carrie quotes the scripture Jeremiah 29:11:

"For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the LORD, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future."

Early in my career I covered a similar story.  I got to be with the Newberry family, as they had to deal with their two year old son Philip’s loss of hands and feet due to spiral meningitis. Here is that story.

Often we can get too focused on a project and not see how it fits into the “bigger picture.”

One of the ways I try to help my clients is to see the photos I am shooting for their project can be used for other projects. What I encourage now more than ever is to get a big perspective early.

If the project you are working on maybe part of something bigger for the company for example, you may want to consider pulling the stops out to make an more upfront investment that over the course of the company initiative will be used over and over which brings down the cost per use over time.

One thing is that if you think something is really big and decide it should be a video and don’t assign a writer you then will have to have someone go back and spend more time backtracking to get text to use for other parts of the project through the year. Another downside of video alone is that it doesn’t work in print very well.

I think when you have big stories to cover you should consider always using text and think of still images next. The stills can be used in slide show with audio, used on website, used in print and have shelf life to be used later in PowerPoint, poster, display booth, billboards and more.

Sometimes video alone is sufficient because the story will not have many facets.

Think big picture right away. Ask this question: Will this be part of a larger initiative? If the answer is yes take a little more time involving a team to be sure you have explored the possibilities.

Planning is bringing the future into the present so that you can do something about it now.

-- Alan Lakein