My plan for this semester in Practicum was to get away from Sports a little bit and try to gain more experience in other areas. Since this was my third Practicum and I have not completed all Practicums at Florida Southern, I felt like I should expand my knowledge and skills and at the same time try to find out what kind of broadcasting suits me the best. The department has a lot of different shows and programs to offer, so I had to really think about which I wanted to work with a little more this semester. Since I have already had a glimpse into The Southern News show in the fall, I chose Wellness TV. I liked the concept of the News show and everything Anna Birenbaum does, but I never really had a chance to work with Wellness TV before. Another reason I chose Wellness TV is, because I wanted variety. By doing all these different packages and helping out with more than one package for each show, I got to experience a lot of different things. Also, with the Sports Show we never really had to sit down and discuss what we were going to cover, or research at all. With Wellness TV I had more the feeling like we were an actual show. Brainstorming ideas for packages, discussing topics and what to shoot, who to interview and all that gave me a better idea of how it really works in the business.
I was not allowed to do packages or interviews by myself, because I have not taken Intro to Broadcast yet. That is why I felt I was a little bit limited as to what I can learn and actually do things hands-on myself with Wellness TV. As my main goal for the semester was to be a better camera person and find out where in the field I best fit in, I decided around the middle of the semester to work a little less with Wellness TV. I therefore started working on some projects with Interlachen. I shot pictures at multiple events and I actually developed a strong desire to get more into photography now. The work with Interlachen and working with Nya on pictures is the reason I am taking Dr. Drake’s Photo Journalism class in the fall.
Working with Wellness TV, nevertheless, taught me many things. Not only did I get to experience the atmosphere of being part the whole production process of a show in our weekly meetings, but I also learned a lot about researching, brainstorming and coming up with ideas and concepts. Michelle was also the first person, who ever showed me a little bit about editing. As a quick mention, I think Michelle did a great job as the producer. I also learned that a lot of things can go wrong and you have to double check everything, from camera battery life to audio settings and to always bring headphones for a soundcheck before the interview. During the interview it is important to pay attention to the light and the background noises. We experienced some difficulties with bouncing basketballs in the gym or the sun ruining the material when we had someone stand in front of a window. Overall, working with Wellness TV and especially with Michelle taught me a lot.
I am glad, though, I did not lose sight of my goals for the semester and went on and experienced more things.
I have never had the chance to go to any baseball or lacrossse games, since they are off campus and I do not have a vehicle. After Jonathan had offered to give me a ride to a Women’s Lacrosse game, I found the experience to be really helpful. It turned out to be the most effective two and a half hours with filming sports that I have had so far. Since there are not many practicum people at Women’s Lacrosse games, I got to film more. Lacrosse is also way more difficult to film than any other sports that I have filmed so far. In order to follow the ball you have to be very precise and pay very good attention to the game. The ball moves so fast and the players are usually all really close together when it moves to offense. That means you have to be really quick and almost try to predict who the ball is going to be passed at. It also means you have to be really good at zooming in order for it to look fluently. Johnathan was the one who basically taught me all of this. I have the impression he knows a lot more than other people that have already taken Intro to Broadcast, or at least he is willing to share his knowledge and really tries to make you a better camera man.
Altogether I would say I pretty much fulfilled all my expectations and reached a lot of the goals I had for myself for this semester. The switch, and the variety of things I did, gave me exactly what I wanted: a better understanding of the different things one can do in broadcasting.
