Business Interview, Music Portrait and Interlachen Work - 4 hours total

Friday December 10 - Today I did more interviews in the business department. I spoke to different teachers. Each time I interview them I feel like I get more comfortable. Sometimes the problem is making them feel more comfortable. They seem to start out nervous on camera, but become more comfortable once we get going. This lasted one hour.

Friday December 10 - Today Lauren and I went for the Interlachen to take the music departments staff photo. Because there were crosses in communication between our editor and the director, this took about an hour.

Saturday December - Today I worked with Lauren and Cynthia in the Interlachen lab for two hours. We worked on changing the layout. It was the first time I worked on indesign that wasn't in desktop class. Cynthia was really helpful and showed me out to change the different things and work the program in new ways.

Final

After completing one full semester of college as a Broadcast Journalism major, the most important lesson that I have learned is that I am in the right field for me. Through the different learning experiences I have had and through long thoughts and discussions with my advisor and family about my future I am confident with my major choice.

                Half way through the semester, I was not completely sure about broadcast being the communication concentration I wanted. I originally chose it because I loved being the anchor for my high school news show. The pressure of deadlines, the nervous feeling while counting down until show time, and the thrill of being live in front of thousands of people made my passion for journalism grow and I soon had my heart set on majoring in broadcasting.

                Once I began college I realized how much work it actually is to be part of a production. It takes many hours and an entire crew to produce a decent segment. The taste of broadcasting I got in high school was sitting behind a big desk on camera and reading from a teleprompter. That is not at all the case in college and in the real world. It takes a lot of work. I questioned myself not because I didn’t want to do the work, but because I didn’t understand what kind of work it was. I always was a writer and was used to that perspective of it, but I didn’t have any filming or editing experience. Working with people who have a lot of experience was a little intimidating for me because I didn’t know what I was doing.

                Over the course of the semester my knowledge of what it takes to be a broadcast major and my skills increased greatly. For the first half of the semester I focused mostly on The Interlachen. It was something familiar because I was on the yearbook staff in high school and was the editor of my paper. It was within my comfort zone. I worked a little on writing and learned about taking pictures. I learned how to use the equipment and work with different lighting. I learned to work with a large staff, including editors who had much to teach me. After midterms, I was told about a new show the Business Department wanted to make and put online for prospective students. When Dr. Tracy asked me to interview and anchor I was really excited about it. Once we started shooting I knew that I was in the right field. I was able to make up all my questions, set up interviews with all the professors’ busy schedules and ultimately interview them on camera. Now I’m in the process of transferring the interviews to the computer and beginning to edit it until it is presentable and ready to go online. I love being a part of something like this. Knowing that people from all over will be able to see it and learn about the school from something I created, with the help of others of course, makes me feel great. This is the passion that I’ve been waiting to feel. I love it and know I’m in the right major for me.

                Besides this major lesson, I also learned the technical skills I can use to be successful. I am now familiar with different equipment. I now know that some lessons are learned the hard way; like always make sure the camera batteries are charged. I am comfortable interviewing people who are both younger and older than me. Before I thought that an interview was just me asking someone questions. Now I realize that it’s a conversation while getting answers. If it wasn’t for the business interviews I would have thought I liked anchoring more than interviewing.  I learned that I need to learn from those older and more experienced than I am and that I have to work hard to get where I want to be. It is dedication that will get me far in this field.

Business Interviews - 1 hour

Thursday December 9 - Today I did business interviews for one hour. Each time I'm on camera I feel myself getting more and more comfortable. It just becomes mroe natural and I become less nervous. I had questions, interviewed and now I'm working on getting the footage on the computer.

Interlachen Work - 3 hours

Wednesday 12/8- Today I spent 3 hours in the Interlachen lab at different times during the day. At different ponits Lauren, Austen, Jess and Cynthia were all there and giving me work to do. I sent out emails from the Interlachen and had to get in touch with the heads of each club to set up times to schedule group portraits for early next semseter. I also was in contact with the heads of science department. That is the department that I am in charge of photographing over the course of the next semester. While I was doing this I was also learning different things from the programs the older students were working on like sound booth.

Business Interview - 30 minutes

Tuesday December 7 - Today I went to work in the Business Department and spoke with Dr. Tracy and Lisa about faculty interviews. Today I learned the hard way to always make sure the camera batteries are charged. I eventually met with Dr. Stancil and interview him about the accounting department here at FSC. This took about a half hour.

Second Christmas Tree Lighting- 1 hour

Tuesday December 7 - Tonight was a second Christmas Tree Lighting. This one took place by the water dome at 6pm. I worked with Lauren Lundell to take pictures. She has a lot of photogrpahy experience so I always like taking pictures with her. I learn alot. I used to have problems with focusing on objects in the distance but she taught me how to fix that. I also practiced taking more pictures at night and how to properly use the flash on the camera. We took pictures of the tree, and the small reception after.

Christmas Tree Lighting - 1 hour

Sunday December 5 - Tonight I went to the Christmas tree lighting on campus for one hour to photograph the event for the Interlachen. There were lots of people in attendance, a choir singing and even Santa so I got lots of good shots. It was a little tricky photographing this because it was the first thing I shot at night. For the pictures to turn out I had to use the flash and well as be in the spotlights provided around the tree.

Gingerbread House Making, Snowfest - 4 hours

Thursday December 2- Tonight I worked with Lauren Lundell to photograph gingerbread house making in the Spivey lobby for Interlachen. We originally wanted to photgraph the parade downtown but it was so crowded and got too dark so the pictures weren't turning out. I didn't realize that the pictures wouldn't be great at night. Luckily we had another event scheduled. We took pictures of the gingerbread making and there were even a few girls decorating a Christmas tree. The night totaled about 2 hours of work.

Saturday December 4- Today I went and filmed the Snowfest downtown in Lakeland. There were lots of people, vendors and even real snow so we got lots of good shots. We were there for 2 hours.

2 Interlachen Meetings, Business Department Interview Meeting- 3 hours total

Wednesday November 17- I met with the staff of the Interlachen in the Communications buildings. We discussed upcoming events and signed up for shoots.

Tuesday November 30- Today I went to work in the Business Department. I spoke to different faculty members about seeting up interviews times. I spent time planning a schedule around their office hours and my class schedule. I also reworked some of my questions.

Wednesday December 1- Today was a another Interlachen meeting. We all met in the usual place to discuss all the upcoming events. I signed up for lots of shoots. I also recieved the contact information for the science department. Lauren Lundell and I are working to photograph different events, and even action shoots in classes, for the science section of the yearbook.

Business Interview - 20 minutes

Thursday November 18- Today I spent about 20 minutes meeting with teachers and discussing future interviews. I tried to rework some of my questions so they specifically targeted the person I will be interviewing. We will shoot more interviews next week.

Business Department Interviews 2 hours

Tuesday November 16- Today I worked in the Business Department from 11am to 1pm. I did my first interview today. I reworked some of my questions that I worked on before because I knew that my first interview was with Dr. Mike Tracy who does the internernships. Once we set up the cameras and made sure everything was running smoothly, we did a practice run through of my questions and his answers. I thought I would need to read my list of questions, but once we did the run through I realized that I didn't even need them. A good interview runs like a conversation. I stayed on topic but my next question came off of something in his answer. I learned that I really like interviewing. You have to prepare, but not seem too prepared. It should just sound natural and flow. I didn't get a chance to see the interview but he is planning to edit it down to just a couple minutes and put it on the FSC website.
This was just my first interview. I am planning to do interviews with the rest of the professors in the department over the next few weeks.

Interlach Meeting, Portraits, and Business Meeting 2 hours 30 minutes

Wednesday November 10- Today was the weekly Interlachen meeting. It was cut a little short because we had to take portraits again this week. I participated in that, but we got almost the same results as last week. Not that many people showed up, despite trying to spread the word. Lauren and I once again tried to find recruits to get their portraits. This lasted about 2 hours
On Thursday I spoke with Lisa and Dr. Mike Tracy about the project in the business department. He told me that the faculty voted on it and we will begin interviews immediately. I have typed up questions and I'm ready to speak to them. We plan to interview each teacher for a little while, and then cut down down to a few minute clip that can be posted on the school website. All of this work was about a half hour.

Interlachen Meeting and Portraits - 3 hours

Wednesday November 3- Today I met with the staff of the Interlachen at noon in the communications building. Over lunch we discussed upcoming events and divided up different jobs. I volunteered to follow science during the year with Lauren. This means that I will keep track of different science events during the year and go to photograph them for the yearbook. This meeting lasted for 1 hour.
During the afternoon, I went to take portraits in the collegiate room. I worked with Jessica and  Lauren. I saw Jess take some of the senior portraits. She had us try to get people to come get their portraits taken. We realized that most people said they wished that they had more notice and knew when portraits were. As a result, we discussed diferent ways to advertize portraits so more people would come in.

Interlachen Meeting- 1 hour

Wednesday October 27- Today I met with the Interlachen staff at 12 in the communications building. We discussed upcoming events and met a few new members. The meeting lasted about an hour.

Business Meeting and Interlachen Meeting- 3 hours

Tuesday October 19- Today I was in the Business and Economics Building from 11-1pm. I continued to formulate questions to interview the different professors in the department. We plan to ask each professor genereal questions about teaching, engaged learning, the business daprtment, and then questions pertaining to their specific concentration. This has taught me that you can't just interview someone right away. It takes careful planning and consideration so you know what to talk about and what questions will be interesting to an audience.

Wednesday October 20- Today I went to the Interlachen meeting for about an hour. We discussed upcoming events. I signed up to take pictures at the soccer game on Saturday.

Business Meeting and Ice Cream Social- 2 hours

Business and Economics Ice Cream Social Open House- Today I went with Lauren to photograph the open house in Rogers Auditorium. I planned on writing a story about the event, but there was not a turn out as big as expected. I made sure to take pictures of the staff and the business major volunteers. The event totaled 1 hour.

Business Meeting- My workstudy job is in the Business and Economics Building. Today I met with Lisa and Dr. Mike Tracy to discuss an upcoming project. They are planning make the department more digital. Theres going to be different videos made that include different clips and interviews with professors and students. I would be the anchor and do interviews. We discussed all of the plans and I came up with all of my interview questions. This totaled 1 hour.

Midterm

As cliché as this may sound coming from a communications major, the most important thing I have learned so far this semester is that communication is crucial. At the beginning of the school year, knew that being able to communicate with my peers and professors was going to be important. It wasn’t until I got some practical experience in my field that I realized just how vital communication really is.

I have of course learned other things too. Being a member of the Wellness TV staff has taught me a few of the things involved in being a part of a production crew. I have learned about some of the different elements that going into making a segment. For example, there can be main footage and then a b-roll on top of that. I have learned that while reporting on a topic for a segment, its best to get the opinions of both a professional and a participating bystander.  From being on the staff of the Interlachen, I have become familiar with new equipment and cameras. As a result of the ROTC shoot I worked on, I’m now able to arrange large groups in ways to be visually pleasing in pictures. I’ve also learned about some of the different techniques and rules used in a specific writing style. For example, abbreviations should not be used in the first reference to a group, organization or club.

All of these lessons that I have learned are important, but I would not have known any of them if they were not communicated with me. The most obvious means of communication is discussions at meetings. I have attended all of the Wellness TV and Interlachen meetings. Each one was productive because we were able to discuss upcoming events, projects and shoots. The sign-up sheets clearly communicate who is going to what event. The times, dates and locations are clearly stated. There is not any confusion as to what you need to be doing.

I learned that as a freshman, I need to communicate with the upper classman and the editors. They have experience and there’s a lot they can teach me.  I worked with Lauren, who taught me how to work the cameras on shoots. I received a quick workshop from Mandy who taught me a little about yearbook writing. I’ve listened to the way they speak to each other to become familiar with the different terms used.

Another big lesson I’ve learned so far this semester is to communicate when things are going wrong. Instead of worrying or trying to solve problems on my own, I’ve learned to trust the rest of the staff. For a Wellness TV episode, I was supposed to be a part of the healthy eating segment. When I was told that the schedule had to be arranged around the older students’ schedules because I didn’t know how to do anything yet, I thought that was true. As a result I could never help because I always had class or a previously scheduled Interlachen event.  It wasn’t until I talked to someone in charge and let her know what was going on that I was able to start participating. If I didn’t communicate with her, I still would not be involved.

During the remainder of the semester, I already have many shoots scheduled. I’ve been in contact with the leaders of Wellness TV to get information about future episodes. However, I know there is still so much for me to learn. I plan to work hard and gain all the knowledge and experience I can.

Interlachen Meeting- 45 minutes

Wednesday October 6- Today the staff of the Interlachen met for 45 minutes. We confirmed dates for upcoming events. I'm attending the Business and Economics Ice Cream Social tomorrow. I plan on taking pictures and writing a story about it. Then we recieved our press passes. We are now able to get into all of the school events easily.

Interlachen Meeting- 60 minutes

Wednesday, September 29- Today I went to the Interlachen meeting in the Communications building. The staff met for 60 minutes to discuss upcoming events. I signed up to go to the Business and Economics Department Ice Cream Social Open House. I'm going to take pictures and write about the event.

ROTC Picture- 25 minutes

Monday September 27- Today I worked with Jessica and Lauren taking ROTC pictures for the Interlachen. We met at 3 at the ROTC picture and gathered the staff. I learned how to arrange large groups to look good in photos and how to shoot groups.

Wellness TV Meeting, Interlachen Meeting- 1 hour 45 minutes

Monday September 20- Instead of meeting with the entire Wellness Staff, I met with Lauren and Krissy for an hour. We worked together on our healthy eating segment. The topic is sweet alternatives. We discussed different ideas, and researched which foods are actually healthier.

Wednesday September 22- The Interlachen staff met in the Communications building today for about 45 mintues. We discussed the theme of this years yearbook. Its going to be Simplicity. We discussed color themes for this year and new events that are coming up.

Southern Sports Meeting- 10 minutes

Wednesday September 15- Today after Practicum class, there was a Moc Sports meeting. We discussed progress thats already been made and different assignments for the week.

Interlachen Meeting- 60 minutes

Wednesday Septemeber 15- Today the Interlachen staff met in the communications building. We discussed different projects and opportunities that were available to us to be a part of. We were given the chance to sign up for the photo or video assignments of our choosing. I signed up to photograph the Sigma Chi Car Wash. After the meeting we broke up into smaller groups. First I went to the writing group because thats what I'm most interested in. We quickly went over how to write for the Interlachen and then I was assigned to write about recruitment and Greek life. After that, I joined up with the photography group and briefly discussed the cameras and what to photograph.

Wellness TV Meeting- 15 minutes

Monday September 13- Today I attended the Wellness TV meeting. We briefly spoke about the new episode that aired and we confirmed our groups for the next episode. I am working on the healthy eating segment. Our topic is sweet alternatives. We made plans to work with out group throughout the week, and I plan to come up with some ideas on my own during the week.

Southern Sports Meeting- 10 minutes

Wednesday September 8- Today,a fter Practicum class was the second meeting for the Southern Sports Network. We watched footage from last weeks volleyball game and some interviews from the same night.

Interlachen Meeting- 40 minutes

Wednesday September 8- Today was the second meeting for the Interlachen. We met in the communications building at 12. The staff ate pizza and discussed who would be the photographer at what event in the next few weeks. I am going to be taking the pictures of the ROTC, so I was given the date and place to be for that.

Wellness TV Meeting- 30 minutes

Monday September 6- Today was the second meeting for Wellness TV. The staff met in the career center and discussed ideas for future episodes. For next week's episode I am a part of the Healthy Eating Segment. We are concentrating on healthy alternatives to sweets. For next week's meeting I'm brainstorming ideas to use in the segment.

Southern Sports Meeting- 20 minutes

Wednesday Septmember 1- Today I went to the first meeting for Southern Sports. The whole meeting lasted about 20 minutes. We recieved information about what we would be doing and watched some footage from previous years.

Yearbook Meeting- 40 minutes

Wednesday, September 1-  Today, I attended the Interlachen meeting at 12 in the communications building. The four editors, Bob Drake and the new members attended. We recieved information about the yearbook and being a part of the staff. There was a brief overview of what needs to be done and what we can do to get involved. After the meeting, we all had lunch.

Wellness TV Meeting- 30 minutes

Monday, August 30- At 4:30, I attended the Wellness TV meeting in the Career Center. The meeting, which consisted of a group of new and experienced Wellness TV participants, lasted about 30 minutes. We filled out forms, watched the first ever episode of Wellness TV, discussed the three segments for the upcoming episode and began brainstorming ideas for future episodes. Since then, I have begun to think about which positions I would like and new topic ideas.