As my skills have grown, so has my equipment. This January, I used a (sizable) portion of my student loan money to upgrade from a basic Nikon D3100 DSLR camera Nikon D7100 DSLR camera. My D7100 is amazing. It’s the most powerful of the non-full frame cameras, and even has more megapixels than a Canon EOS 7D - for half the price. Other than my body upgrade, the second most important upgrade is my 50mm lens. My 18-55mm kit lens only had a maximum f-stop of 4.5, whereas my 50mm has an f-stop of 1.8. While this may not seem like much, the ability to open up my aperture really gives me a huge advantage when shooting in low light situations. Basically, when I open up my aperture all the way I don’t have to jack my ISO up as high, thus creating crisper, cleaner looking pictures. The main drawback of my 50mm lens is that I have to stand pretty far back from my subjects, which can be a problem when shooting in a crowed venue. My next purchase is going to be a 35mm lens that will give me all the same abilities as my 50mm, but from a closer vantage point.
My internship at RSVP has really helped me sharpen my journalistic skills in several ways, most importantly my photography. Compared to where I am now, my photography skills were only marginal, but with each shoot I go on, I seem to learn something new, or at the very least, gain valuable photography experience. Since I started last May, I’ve probably had close to a thousand pictures published.
As my skills have grown, so has my equipment. This January, I used a (sizable) portion of my student loan money to upgrade from a basic Nikon D3100 DSLR camera Nikon D7100 DSLR camera. My D7100 is amazing. It’s the most powerful of the non-full frame cameras, and even has more megapixels than a Canon EOS 7D - for half the price. Other than my body upgrade, the second most important upgrade is my 50mm lens. My 18-55mm kit lens only had a maximum f-stop of 4.5, whereas my 50mm has an f-stop of 1.8. While this may not seem like much, the ability to open up my aperture really gives me a huge advantage when shooting in low light situations. Basically, when I open up my aperture all the way I don’t have to jack my ISO up as high, thus creating crisper, cleaner looking pictures. The main drawback of my 50mm lens is that I have to stand pretty far back from my subjects, which can be a problem when shooting in a crowed venue. My next purchase is going to be a 35mm lens that will give me all the same abilities as my 50mm, but from a closer vantage point.
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Since my intro blog, there’s been a lot that’s changed with my internships. My first one, with Tiger Athletics Development, ended most of its strenuous work as the Tiger Basketball season came to a close. It was definitely a great experience to be able to flash a card around my neck and get into anywhere in the FedExForum, and I made an effort to meet and network with as many people as possible. I met Ryan Wolfe, the manager of the @TigerAthletics Instagram, and talked with him about some of the best ways to promote the Athletics Development brand over social media. I also met a legend in the Memphis sports world: Jay Guinozzo. He’s been covering Memphis sports for the past 45 years, is a card-holding member at Cooperstown (MLB’s holy grail), and owns enough ties to wear a different one for every day of the year. Although I’ve enjoyed working with Athletic Development, I’ve found that my true passion is in my Marketing internship with the University of Memphis. Running the official Instagram seemed like a daunting task at first, and I still remember having to check other schools’ accounts for new ideas almost daily. But now, it feels like second nature: I see something interesting or noteworthy or fun on campus, snap a picture and write a caption, and that’s it. I’ve been able to run around and take photos of a snowy Memphis campus, meet Rainn Wilson (Dwight Schrute from the Emmy-nominated The Office), and even drag the VP of Student Affairs, Dr. Rosie Bingham, out of a meeting for a photo in which she posed as the newest coach for the Memphis Baseball team as an April Fool’s joke. I’ve loved my experience as an intern across two different fields, and can’t wait to continue my work with both of them! P.S. Make sure you’re following @MemphisTSF on Twitter & @UofMemphis on Instagram to see some of my handiwork! Relevant Roasters continues to gain new ground in sales almost weekly, with the latest victory coming from top-shelf space at Whole Foods Market. This was an account sought since the first day of business, and was hard-won after months of product development and brand developing.
While Whole Foods loves to offer locally-produced products, it takes more than a local mailing address to secure space in the Memphis stores. One of their initial delays in bringing Relevant Roasters in, besides corporate-mandated formalities, was our brand’s lack of aesthetic appeal. Through a collaborative effort, our three-person team at Relevant Roasters developed a new color-coded labeling system that classifies our product by region of growth. While seemingly, minor the transition added just enough aesthetic value to sway the regional buyers for Whole Foods. In addition to a massive retail gain, interest from restaurant owners has picked up as well. Established Memphis Chefs Andrew Ticer and Michael Hudman are now using Relevant Roasters as their main coffee service. Additionally, several relationships with Memphis coffeeshops and restaurants are in developing stages, and we have good reason to expect our product to be several midtown establishments sooner than later. Each day continues to be challenging blend of production and collaboration. With such a small team, it is not uncommon to team up and swap duties. Our accounts person often bags coffee and makes deliveries, and I brainstorm with him on social media posts and open house events in between coffee roasts. It truly does take a team with a dynamic skill set and flexibility to make a start-up business gain traction in the first critical year of operation. We each have own job title (sales, owner, production) but our titles are routinely blurred out of necessity as we adjust to meet the next unique challenge. It is, at times, absolutely exhausting, but certainly thrilling, and never boring. Each day brings a new learning opportunity in the form of fostering relationships, and developing a brand voice. Ultimately, as we figure out who we are and what we stand for as a company, we learn how to communicate these ideals as one. My internship at Local Memphis ABC 24 has been filled with reporting and weather aspects. I have gone out in the field with reporters to observe them. I see how they interact with whom they are interviewing and how the cameraman gets the right shots for their package. While out in the field, the reporters write their packages and then send it back to the station to be approved. I have written my own scripts for their packages while I have been out with the reporters. I have learned a lot about getting what angle to create an interesting shot, how to interview someone, and how to enhance my news writing scripts. I also got to see how live shots work when the reporter is out in the field and they report live. As for the weather side, we sure have had quite an interesting winter for that. I learned a lot about forecasting for snow and severe weather. I also got to see a lot of cut-ins and stressful and tiring moments for the meteorologists. With the severe weather, I saw more models and how they all work together. Some challenges I have experienced are that I am not as knowledgeable about all the models but I will continue to study and learn more about them. I have also been helping with social media sites, updating the website, and writing the closed captioning. I have also been working at the Chroma-key or green screen and will be taping some of forecasts. My experience at my internship is going really well. I’m currently interning at WUMR U92 on Wednesday mornings. The name of the show is the Sports Desk and I host the show with two other gentlemen. There’s a lot of preparation involved with this internship. If I am not hosting the show, then I have to go with whatever the host for that morning wants to talk about. That is where the preparation comes into play. We mainly talk about the Memphis Grizzlies and the Memphis Tigers, but we also talk about the big stories around the sports world.
The overall experience is something that I wasn’t expecting. I had interned at a television station two years ago and I thought radio would be a lot like that. For radio, there really is no practice on what you are going to say. There’s no teleprompter to read from or anything. Once you are on the air, there’s no stopping and starting over. That’s the biggest adjustment. I’ve stumbled on words, but there’s nothing I can do except keep on going. Also, I’ve had the opportunity to produce the show. The production looks really confusing when you look at it, but once it wasn’t that bad when I got the hang of it. There’s a lot of buttons and different controls on the board, but I only have to use three or four of them during the morning show. There is something else that I get the opportunity to do and I had no idea I would. All of the guys that are part of the sports team has the chance to produce the baseball games for WUMR. Jeff Brightwell is the play-by-play announcer for the Tigers baseball team, so we have to produce in the studio. It does get a little lonely when I produce because baseball is a really slow game and there isn’t much excitement. We are the ones that set up all the commercials during breaks in the games and also in charge of the opening music and closing music during the games as well. The most exciting time for my internship was when I got the opportunity to be one of the announcers for the Tulsa/Memphis basketball game a few weeks ago. I was producing a game with another member of WUMR and he asked if I wanted to announce the game since it was my last time and I told him that I would. It was probably one of the best experiences I had ever had. Being a sports reporter/broadcaster is my dream and calling that game will always be a big moment for me. I am looking forward to the last few weeks of the internship. There’s always room for improvement and I plan on using the last few weeks to improve as much as I can. My experience being an intern with The Tri-State Defender has been very positive and productive so far. My most recent and interesting experience recently was getting to go to Washington, D.C. for Black Press Week (Wed., March 25-Fri., March 27). as a part of an internship program with NNPA (the National Newspaper Publisher Association). During the internship, I got to go to different events such as luncheons at the National Press Club and the NNPA Torch Awards, which are given to figures of national prominence that are high achievers who impact the advancement of communities and the country. The torch is the symbol of the black press providing the light to freedom.
Wednesday, March 25, 2015 On the first night of the Black Press week, the other NNPA newspaper interns and I attended an orientation session at the Washington Marriot at Metro Center, where we stayed during Black Press Week. George Curry, the president of NNPA gave us a very useful workshop on interviewing. He urged us to really dig deep, ask the right questions, and not be afraid to probe to get the answers we want. Later we attended a welcome reception hosted by NNPA Foundation chair Mary Denson. Thursday, March 26, 2015 The second day of Black Press Week was busier. The other NNPA interns and I attended: the NNPA Media Lab Rededication at the Howard University School of Communications; the Gallery of Distinguished Black Publishers Enshrinement Ceremony at the Howard University Moorland-Spingarn Library; the Fifth Annual Stateswoman for Justice Luncheon Hosted by Hazel Trice Edney, the editor/publisher Trice Edney Newswire (were Maxine Waters was the keynote speaker); a Wells Fargo Financial Education/Career Development workshop; and then the Torch Awards, which were at the Washington Marriott at Metro Center. The Torch Awards honorees were: Newsmaker of the Year- Benjamin Crump, esquire, who’s worked with the families of Trayvon Martin and Michael Brown; Jennifer S. Carroll, the former lieutenant governor of Florida; Jeff Friday, the founder & CEO of Film Life, Inc.; B. Doyle Mitchell, the president & CEO of Industrial Bank; and Bishop Hezekiah Walker, a gospel artist and the founder of Hezekiah Walker Ministries. The emcee for the Torch Awards was Marcus Washington, a News Anchor and reporter for WJZ Eyewitness News/Baltimore and a graduate of the University of Memphis. As part of the NNPA Internship program, we had to partner with a fellow intern to write two stories- one on a female publisher that was honored at the Stateswomen of Justice Luncheon and the other on a Torch Award recipient. My partner and I, Dominique King, who is an intern at Capital Outlook in Florida, interviewed Natalie Cole, the publisher of Our Weekly- the largest distributing “audited” newspaper in Southern California. We also interviewed Benjamin Crump. Friday, March 27, 2015 Friday was the last day of Black Press week, and we only attended two events. The first event we attended was the Black Press and the Black Pulpit Breakfast: Legacy on the Line-The Future of Black America. During this event, there was a panel discussion on HIV/AIDS, and the importance of people, particularly religious leaders discussing HIV/AIDS. Panelists included Dr. Estrelda Alexander, founder of William Seymour College; Dr. Louis Brogdon, assistant professor of religion at Claflin University, Dr. Johnny B. Hill, interim chair and associate professor of philosophy and religion, and Jackie Hampton, publisher of Mississippi Link. The second event we attended was a luncheon at the National Press Club, were there was a discussion on the state of the black press. Dr. Benjamin Chavis, the President and CEO of NNPA, served as the moderator, and panelists included: George Curry, Editor-In-Chief, NNPA News Service, Dr. Hildred Rochon of Howard University Hospital; Charles O’Neal of the Texas Association of African-American Chambers of Commerce; Dr Lezli Baskerville, the president and CEO of the National Association for Equal Opportunity in Higher Education; Cloves Campbell, Jr., chairman of NNPA and publisher of the Arizona Informant; and E.R. Shipp, the associate professor and journalist in resident at Morgan State University. Overall, attending Black Press Week was a positive experience, and I gained an increased appreciation and awareness of the power of the Black Press. Interning for an independent contractor, I imagine, is a very different experience than interning for an entire company, and I’m really thankful for the experience I am having. Working one on one with Tracy, my intern supervisor, has given me the unique opportunity to learn how to work specifically with a client and use the skills I have been learning, but tailor them to the needs of an individual.
My two biggest responsibilities for Tracy have been getting her social media accounts up and running and working out a uniform “image” for her. We’ve selected a slogan, and we’re tailoring her social media pages to have the voice that she wants. While I am a news concentration, this experience has really made me work to use my writing to reflect a person, rather than just relaying facts. It’s has especially helped me in my feature writing, knowing how to be purposeful and descriptive, but still keeping my “news” voice present as well. I’ve also learned that building up social media isn’t nearly the quick process I thought it would be. We still having actually “released” her pages. She wants all of her new social media to “hit” at the same time, that’s Twitter, Instagram, Facebook, Linked-In, and real estate specific platforms like Trulia, Zillow, and Realtor.com. To get consistent images, graphics, and logos on all of these, then writing different bios that “fit” the platform, filling in all the “about me” sections. It seems like it would just be a quick little fill-in-the-blank exercise, but there is a lot of planning and a lot of work that goes into it. Tracy also wants some content up before she starts promoting her pages, so we are analyzing what to put on each platform and how to tailor it to the users of those networks. Long story short, I’m not where I thought I would be. By now I thought I would be posting and managing these pages. While I’m not where I expected to be, I’m certainly not disappointed. The experience of really building these sites up, learning how to craft these pages and find the right content, has been invaluable. These skills are applicable in any business arena, because social media is the way of the world now. I never thought I’d say this, but I’m a little sad my time with Tracy is approaching its end. We’ve worked together and learned together and taught each other something every step of the way. It’s been a truly collaborative effort and an amazing experience. I can’t believe it’s already April and less than 6 weeks until graduation. Where has the time gone? I’ve been extremely fortunate to learn so much information and meet many different people in such a short amount of time at my internship at Baptist. Since my first day back in January, I’ve written numerous articles about anything and everything – kidney stones, Baptist Mobile, HumanaVitality, etc. The list goes on. I’ve also done research about different topics such as Medicaid, employee wellness programs, and community outreach. However, my favorite part about this internship is organizing media calls. I love meeting the different doctors and physicians that come to interview for a segment and hearing about what they do every day. Not to mention, it’s pretty cool being backstage during a live taping of the news! I haven’t faced any major challenges or issues yet (knock on wood), but it has been a bit of an adjustment getting used to working for such a large corporation. Last semester I worked for the Mid-South chapter of Make-A-Wish, a non-profit organization with a small work environment and a minimal range of areas to cover. It was a great place to get my first taste of what non-profit public relations is like, but I’m happy that I was introduced to another side which is corporate PR. The Baptist Corporate office serves over 25 locations in the Mid-South, not to mention all of the different programs that they have to offer such as Priceless Wishes, Baptist OneCare, and the Daisy Awards. There’s always something to do and not one day is ever the same as the one before. I love being busy and stay on my toes. Who doesn’t? I started my intern at WUMR 92FM in November of 2014 with a dream and goal. My dream was to work in a real radio station again as I did back in 2010. My goal was to refresh my brain with the basics and learn more about music before graduating college. My experience so far has been alright. I haven’t learned everything yet, but radio is a process one must learn and timing is everything. During broadcasting you must speak clear and confident. Nobody wants to hear a person who sounds crazy nor boring. A disc jockey must love what they do in order to be successful in the radio business. Malvin Massey has worked with me and helped me along the way and I thank him for that. Other DJ’s call me the rookie at the station. I believe in a couple months I will have everything down pack and ready to do shows on my own without supervision. |
Erin Willis, Ph.D.Assistant Professor at the University of Memphis. Loves news. Loves food. Loves Pugs. And now, loves Memphis basketball. Go Tigers, Gooooo! Archives
April 2015
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