My soapbox that I gave to my Wayne State students on last day of class

I wrote this as a departing love letter to my Wayne State University Digital Photojournalism students on our last day of class April 19. I read it out loud. Thought I'd share it here, too. Thanks for reading it!

  Journalism is about many things: Shining the light. Informing, educating and entertaining your community. Deadlines.

The tenets of journalism haven’t changed much: We still answer the 5Ws & H. We still adhere to the pyramid, whether it’s right side up or upside down. We should always tell real stories of real people, places and things.

What has changed is how we disseminate journalism. Besides still producing legacy news, like newspapers, TV news and NPR, we have many more ways of spreading our stories:

·      Websites

·      Blogs

·      Twitter

·      Instagram

·      Snapchat

·      Who know what else is out there …

·      … and yet to come

For you print journalists in the Wayne State Digital Photojournalism course, this ever-changing technology has added this to your plate: visual journalism. 

This class was designed to help you understand the visual concept of using photography to support your stories.  At the very least, it will also help you understand photojournalists who will work with you to help support your text, or work for you someday.

To stand up here and tell you what you need to do without you actually doing it is a complete injustice to you as journalism and broadcast and even PR majors. That's why you had to go out there and face your 'out of your comfort zone' fears. I hope that helped you realize how hard photojournalism can be. It’s not just taking pretty pictures. You need to know:

·      law & ethics, and your First Amendment rights

·      how to write concise AP Style captions

·      your camera controls

·      and understand the power of an image

·      that once you produce the content, you need to promote, share, preview and post on social media

This is the era of doing more for less, and I hope you gained a healthy dose of respect for those out there who are doing it all: writing, videography, photography, social media, mobile journalism, podcasting, and on and on.

Though all of you would love to get an A, that’s not realistic. Some of you won’t. But I’m here to tell you with confidence that your future employers won’t look at your GPA. They’ll search for your footprint on social media. They’ll be reading your stories and viewing your visual journalism in your clips and portfolio, and on your website. That’s what they care about.

So, after this class:

·      Polish your website

·      Shoot more feature, portrait and sports photos for yourself to hone those skills

·      Have a seasoned journalist sit with you and clean up your writing

·      Commit to posting an Instagram photo at least once a week. You have no idea how many editors look at Instagram and Twitter accounts when they are looking to hire

·      Post in journalistic fashion, AP Style. Don’t be lazy or rushed in your writing

·      Study lede sentences and stories of Pulitzer Prize winners

·      In fact, if you are a journalism major, commit to reading your hometown newspaper every single day

·      And broadcasters, listen to NPR every single day

·      PR majors, find those big corporations you dream of working for and study their social media habits

That’s the end of my soapbox.  

I offer these tips and words of caution because I care for you and your future. It’s a tough world out there, and now is the time to toughen up that skin and gain confidence as you move forward.

Confession: I was a horrible writer and photographer my first five years in the field. I was a messed up kid who didn’t know how to study. I had no confidence in myself. But I had role models who knew I wanted to succeed, and they took me under their wing and taught me the skills I needed to succeed. They had patience.

Don’t expect it to happen overnight. Stay true to your goals. Know that failing is learning, and not giving up is half the battle, even it might seems like a long downhill roller coaster ride.

Taking the Wayne State COM 2280 Digital Photojournalism course?

Then read this Q & A ...

Q:  Why do I have to take this course? I’m a journalist/PR specialist, not a photojournalist.

A:  This course is necessary because at some point in your career you probably will be asked to take your own photos. Unfortunately, staff photojournalism jobs are dwindling each year, leaving journalists to pick up the slack with point and shoot cameras and cell phones. Despite their lack of photography experience, journalists are being tasked (and sometimes forced) to produce their own images. The only way to combat poor photo quality and legal/ethical issues is to offer courses like COM 2280, which is designed to prepare you for the inevitable.

Winter 2017 COM 2280 class

Also, even if you never take another photo for your job, this class will help you understand the photographers you will work with, for, or who will work for you.

Q: How hard is this course?

A:  Moderately difficult. This course is designed to give you basic photojournalism skills to prepare you to work in 21^st Century journalism newsrooms and public relations offices. It is a practical-skills driven course, meaning you will practice what you learn. 

You will be introduced to camera operations, and a few of the industry standard software used in the field, like Photo Mechanic, Photoshop and Adobe Premiere CC. So yes, expect a steep learning curve on a few assignments and exercises.

   The two most important tips I can give you are to pay attention and keep up. Please be fully engaged in every lesson, even if you’ve already been exposed to photography and some of the digital editing tools. After all, practice makes perfect (I never say perfect in this course) precision. Once you think you know it all, you stop learning and improving.

Q: How can I get an A?

A: I understand most students expect an A in every class they take. That’s human nature. But it’s not realistic. If you don’t earn an A, don’t fret. Remember that you are learning the building blocks of a very technical profession. Practice and opportunity in the field are what truly matters, not an A in a single class. Trust me, editors don't care much what your grades are when hiring; what matters is your portfolio of work and social media presence.

That said, here are several ways that will NOT earn you an A:

·       Tell me you need an A because you have a perfect GPA so far. If you want an A, you have to earn it with great attendance; zero missed assignments; good class participation; and a willingness to climb out of your comfort zone.

These are what I look for when determining good grades:

·       Nearly perfect attendance

·       No more than one missed assignment and zero missed quizzes

·       Willingness to help your classmates

·       No fear of asking questions when you don’t understand something

·       Pay attention to the little details, like spelling, AP styles, blog design, etc.

·       Redo less-than-stellar assignments

·       A good attitude

Warning: It is possible to get a D or flunk this course. Believe it or not, one or two students flunk every semester; not because their work sucks, but because they give up! It's true! They simply stop showing up, or stop shooting. Seriously, all you have to do is miss a lot of classes and homework assignments to earn Ds and Fs. 

Of course, I don’t like dishing out Cs and below, but I won’t give credit where it’s not due. It’s only fair to those students who worked hard throughout the course.

Good luck this semester! 

Sharing the pros, cons, photo stories of the hybrid Wayne State PJ course

  Another semester has ended at Wayne State University, and it was one of the best classes I’ve had the honor of leading.

   As I do for most semester endings, I’ll highlight a few positives and negatives. This is a good way for me to collect my thoughts so I can improve next semester.

   This particular Digital Photojournalism class earned a collective A. Rarely did a student miss any of the three quizzes, attendance was very strong, and though they had a tendency to turn in assignments late, they eventually turned them in.

   On the negative side:

• We, meaning university, experimented with a hybrid course format. The course typically meets once a week (on Thursdays) for 2.5 hours. But this semester we only met for 1.15 hours, cutting class time in half.

   This didn’t work for me, or the students. I found that I couldn’t fit in important lecture time, particularly on teaching technical issues on software like Audacity or Premiere Pro CC.

•    I also didn’t have time to critique their homework assignments, which are posted on their blogs each week. Homework involves shooting real photojournalism assignments: features, portraits, sports and a photo story.

   This class definitely goes beyond theory, thus they practice what is preached. For example, after a lecture on shooting sports, they’re required to attend a sporting event and shoot it. This entails them to get rosters for athlete identifications, and shoot action, reaction, fans and coaches.

   When I critique their work in class, they are collectively learning from one another what to do and what not to do on assignments. So not to critique their work in class is a missed learning opportunity.

   However, because I use Blackboard, a lot, and my own course blog (which you are reading now), they still had all of the lectures available to them.  I also created a few how-to YouTube videos as supplements. But, bottom line, I don’t like the hybrid approach for this course, so it’s back to full classes next semester.

   On the positive side:

•     From the negative came to the positive. I began creating instructional YouTube videos using Camtasia Studio, which records my computer screen, allowing me to show them how to use Audacity and Premiere Pro CC. 

   The videos allow them to view the content at their own pace, and soak it in. They can follow along with the videos while doing their own projects.

•    I am also convinced that allowing them to turn in late assignments is a good thing. I’m more concerned that each student learns the content at their own pace, rather not doing it at all. Yes, deadlines are critical in the journalism field, but they’ll learn that soon enough. At this point in their scholastic environment, they need to learn before they do.

   Now is the time I'm proud to present three of the photo stories they shot and produced. They are all different, and showcase how talented Wayne State students are.
   I present to you final projects by Taylor Lutz, Lucas Bell and Janika Green:

Gathering photo captions: Practicing what I preach

   This is me, a working photojournalist gathering caption information on a photo I took during an Empowerment Zone meeting in North Toledo March 3 for the Toledo Blade. (Photo Credit goes to my friend Rhonda Sewell)
   As you can see, my cameras are dangling off of my shoulders as I use my trusty pen and notebook to take down this kid's name, since I photographed him during the event.
   My Wayne State Digital Photojournalism students just completed their caption writing block of instruction, which included clipping captions from newspapers and taking a quiz. Spending time on caption, or cutline, writing is necessary in a photojournalism course because it's the journalism part of photojournalism.
   Most of the time I write down names and other pertinent information in my reporter's notebook, but sometimes I record that information into my camera, especially when my hands are too full to write or the weather isn't friendly to notebook paper. Whatever the method, taking down the who, what, where and when are the active ingredients to a good caption.
   This post is just a visual reminder that you are learning about captions because they are a part of a photojournalist's job. It is also the part that is sometimes the most challenging: Taking the photo from afar is one thing, but going up to strangers and asking them for their name, age and hometown is another.
   Gathering captions can give shy scholastic photojournalists a panic attack.
   When you are out there shooting your final photo story in the next few weeks, remember that the later half of the word photojournalism is journalism, or the art of writing.
 

WSU Digital Photojournalism: Q & A for a new hybrid format course

   The Wayne State Digital Photojournalism course is going to be a bit different this semester.

   The course is typically a one-day a week, three-hour class. But beginning next week, the classroom time will be cut down to 1:15 minutes. It will be a hybrid course, otherwise known as a flipped class. This means most of the lectures will be available either on Blackboard or this course blog. Lectures will be prepared, recorded and posted, and students must view them by due dates, which will be announced on the assignment sheets. This will give them the time they need to soak up the information. Class periods will be used for using the software, taking quizzes and contributing to classmate critiques.

  

Digital PJ course schedule for winter 2017 semester

This does not mean they can skip class, even if they already have the software at home. This is the only time I can see their images, answer their questions, and critique their work. Every class is mandatory.

   Speaking of questions, here are a few popular questions students have asked over the years.

Q:  Why do I have to take this course? I’m a journalist/broadcaster/PR specialist, not a photojournalist.

A:  This course is necessary because at some point in your career you probably will be asked to take your own photos. It is a stark, real and unfortunate reality that staff photojournalism jobs are dwindling each year, leaving journalists to pick up the slack with point and shoot cameras and cell phones. 

   Despite their lack of photography experience, journalists are being tasked (and sometimes forced) to produce their own images. The only way to combat poor photo quality and legal/ethical issues is to offer courses like COM 2280, which is designed to prepare you for the inevitable.

   Also, even if you never take another photo in this field, this class will help you understand the photographers you will work with, for, or who will work for you.

Q: How hard is this course?

A:  Moderately difficult. This course is designed to give you basic photojournalism skills that will prepare you to work in 21^st Century journalism newsrooms. It is a practical-skills driven course, meaning you will practice what you learn. 

   You will be exposed to camera operations, and many of the industry standard software used by most photojournalists, like Photo Mechanic, Photoshop and Adobe Premiere Pro CC. You'll even learn how to capture and edit audio using Audacity. So yes, expect a steep learning curve on a few assignments.

   The two most important tips I can give are to pay attention and keep up. 

   Please be fully engaged in every lesson, even if you’ve already been exposed to photography and some of the digital editing tools. After all, practice makes perfect (I never say perfect in this course) precision. Once you think you know it all, you stop learning and improving. 

Q: How can I get an A?

A: I understand that most students expect an A in every class they take. That’s human nature, but it’s not realistic to issue 20 As per class. If you don’t earn an A, don’t fret. Remember that you are learning the building blocks of a very technical profession. Practice and opportunity in the field are what truly matters, not an A in a single class.

   That said, here are several ways that will NOT earn you an A:  

          Here are several ways that will help you earn an A, because I don't just strictly look at the assignment assessments:

•             Be willing to help your classmates
•             Have no fear of asking questions when you don’t understand something
•             Pay attention to the little details, like spelling, AP styles, blog design, etc., how to post your assignments
•             Redo less-than-stellar assignments
•             Have a good attitude

   Here are several ways that will prevent you from earning an A: 

•        Telling me you need an A because you have a perfect GPA so far won't help your case. If you want an A, you have to earn it with great attendance; zero missed assignments; good class participation; and a willingness to climb out of your comfort zone.
•      Miss more than two classes
•      Miss one assignment or quiz

   Warning: It is possible to get a D or flunk this course. All you have to do is miss a lot of classes and homework assignments. I have issued too many Ds and Fs, and I don't like doing it. I don’t like dishing out Cs and below, either, but I won’t give credit where it’s not due. Not only is it not fair to those students who earned their As and Bs, but I'm all too aware how competitive it is out there in the real world, and it's my job to prepare you for that, which means being rigorous sometimes.

   If you have further questions, please don’t hesitate to email me at lorraine.king@wayne.edu

On journalists taking their own photos: It is now a matter of when ... not if

Tweet of f/stop chart written on a whiteboard by a student learning depth of field.

  

Screen grab from blog of student Jun Kim.

We are nearly half way through the fall 2015 semester, so it's time for a quick update on how the Wayne State University digital photojournalism course is going.
   The first half of the semester was spent setting up their social media accounts (blogging, Twitter and Instagram), and learning their law, ethics and First Amendment rights as photojournalists. They are also in the middle of learning how to use their DSLR cameras . . . on manual mode, of course. This includes going over camera controls and composition - basic photography training with a 'keep it real' philosophy.
   Next up are lessons on caption writing, the AP Stylebook and cell phone photography.
   They learn all of the above before they even shoot their first assignment, which will be feature hunting.
    There are 17 students in the course, and all but one (economics) are in the journalism program. I told them on the first day of class that if they stay in journalism, it won't be a matter of IF they shoot their own photos, but WHEN.
   Journalism has changed over the past few years. There are far less photojournalists now because of layoffs, streamlining, job cuts, and print newspaper closures and online editions. Remember the cuts at Chicago Sun Times, the Times-Picayune and CNN, just to name a few? Remember what happened with the Ann Arbor News and the Rocky Mountain News? Their demise left many great photojournalists unemployed, including Pulitzer Prize winner Preston Gannaway.
    The demise of hundreds of these staff photojournalism jobs is what drives me to prepare these young journalists for the future. I tell them to take the course seriously; to use their cameras regularly; to shoot their own photo stories now, so they can show their future employer that they can multitask.
   The second half of the course is going to be challenging, to say the least. They will work with the WSU South End student newspaper and WDET to produce real work, not just homework. Assignments include shooting feature, portrait and sports assignments. The final project will be a photo story, which will include natural sound, and produced using Adobe Premiere Pro CS6.
   The power of social media will allow these students to share what they learn and do. To follow their progress, click on the Wayne State Student Blog list at the top of this blog and follow any or all of the 17 students who will one day be out there in the real world with pens, notebook and cameras in hand.

Journalism schools must provide photojournalism courses to students

Breaking news story and photo by Toledo Blade political reporter Tom Troy.

Feature story and photo by Toledo Blade reporter Matt Thompson.

   Journalism students beware: Expect to take your own photos someday.

   Military journalists do. Many small-town journalists do, too. And now, so do Toledo Blade reporters.

   Traditionally, reporters at larger newspapers have been shielded from the backpack journalist concept. When reporters move up to bigger papers, they aren’t expected, nor sometimes permitted by union rules, to also provide visual storytelling.

   But, alas, the times they are changing, as exhibited by these two  screen grabs from the Toledo Blade website. Sure, these photos were taken with their cell phones, but I suppose that still counts.

   As newspapers and magazines, like the Chicago Sun-Times and Sports Illustrated, as well as corporations like Gannett, axe their photojournalists, who, then, is providing the still and video images? The reporters, of course.

   Take the Fremont News-Messenger, for example. This small-town, Northwest Ohio newspaper, owned by Gannett, just eliminated everyone’s job. Current employees are being forced to reapply for new positions, with new titles and new responsibilities, according to a source at the paper who decided not to renew his position.

   This is being done to transform into “a newsroom of the future.” This transformation is putting the photographer out of a job, and replacing him with two reporter/photographer positions.

    Now, let me finally get to the point of this blog post. I don’t have an issue with reporters who take photos, and photojournalists who write. After all, I am a retired military journalist who was trained to do both because we were expected to do both. Key word here is trained. 

    Journalism schools of the 21^st Century must address this issue of additional training, and do it now. In this day and age of budget cutting and worker attrition, every basic journalism student should be taught the skills of backpack journalism.
   In my humble opinion, this is absolutely the best way to ensure that the quality, integrity and credibility of print and visual storytelling aren't eroded as modern-day journalists are expected to do more than their basic job descriptions (and for less pay).

   This is what I told my Wayne State University Digital Photojournalism students during class on Friday.

   The students, mostly print journalism and broadcasting majors, recently shot their first assignment on feature photography. They came to class flustered and confused, realizing that photojournalism is much harder than it looks on the published page.

   I reassured them that what they are feeling is completely normal because photojournalism is complex. Not only do they have to gather the facts for their stories, they also have to worry about the following elements:

·      Photo captions

·      Law, ethical and etiquette considerations

·      Camera controls (ISO, shutter speed, apertures)

·      Composition

·      Capturing the key moments

·      Transmittal issues

   Journalism students should learn these key skills before their first job, which is why I firmly believe journalism schools always have been, and always will be, necessary.

   We have to prepare students for everything. Walking into a city council meeting or a court proceeding with a pen and paper is one thing. But adding a loud clicking camera, and the necessary element of movement to get the best angle… well, that’s a whole other level of news-gathering.

  

Another link to a story on this issue:

Georgia journalists told to take own pictures  

Recapping the first week at Owens CC and Wayne State University

   One week down.  And what a great week it was!

   The first week is always my favorite because I meet new students, and it sets the tone for the rest of the semester.

   Here’s a quick recap:

·      The Digital Photography at Owens has 12 students, and they are already learning the nuts and bolts of their digital cameras. But they won’t get into the specifics of shutter speeds and apertures for another few weeks. But they will be learning how to meter this week.

·      The Owens CRT Digital Video class has 10 students. I’m co-teaching it with a young, bright and recent film graduate from the University of Toledo, Andrew Jex. He brings fresh shooting ideas into the course, which we are designing a bit.

-  They learned the basics of the Final Cut Pro X interface, and went through the first two chapters of the textbook.

-  Throughout the course they will be shooting assignments that include animation and classic storytelling. They will also be shooting an assignment or two for the Owens Outlook student newspaper.  It’s exciting to add video to the online student newspaper. The photo editor, commercial photography major Sean Ferry, will determine what videos will actually make the online newspaper. 

 - The course was also rewarded a $9,000 grant for equipment. We spent that pretty fast. Within a month we should be getting new DSLR camera kits with video capability, Sennheiser mics, tripods and a portable light source.

·      My largest class to teach ever is the Digital Photojournalism course at Wayne State University in Detroit. Nineteen students, mostly journalism majors, showed up Friday morning, eager to use their cameras as another storytelling tool.

Screen grab of Sandra Svoboda's profile on the WDET website.

-       We also had a guest speaker attend the class. WDET radio reporter Sandra Svoboda has given us an offer we can’t refuse. The students will be ‘unofficial’ photographers for the radio station’s website.

-    They will also be doing assignments for the South End student newspaper. Practical experience is the best way to learn, and there is no better way to give them real-world experience.

    Let Week Two begin.

WDET reporter Sandra Svoboda explains shooting opportunities for the digital photography students. (Cell photo by Lori King)