A New Milestone

You may remember Andrew Cunningham and his best friend Tony Reuter from the short film I produced earlier this year, "Follow My Steps." Well, this past Wednesday, I made a quick trip up to Syracuse for Andrew's Moving Up ceremony to mark his graduation from Onondaga Hill Middle School and entrance into high school. Next year he will be attending Westhill High School as a freshman.  

The night before my arrival, after an unlucky accident, Andrew and his father, Tom, were stuck in the Emergency Room until 1:30 a.m. waiting to have Andrew's feeding tube replaced. The attending physician had incorrectly replaced the tube with a foley catheter, and so upon my arriving in Syracuse, we rushed over to the pediatrician to have it correctly replaced.  Although Andrew no longer uses the tube, Tom decided to keep it in just in case of an emergency.

It was a tough procedure to watch Andrew go through. I could see the pain and discomfort in his face, though he never winced or screamed out. When Andrew reached out for the comfort of his father's hand, Tom grabbed on and whispered, "you're my hero." After about 40 minutes, the procedure was over, Tom was exhausted and Andrew lay still with tears in his eyes.

Later that evening, I went along with them to the Moving Up ceremony where both Andrew and his twin brother, Tommy, graduated. Tony was in the audience, seated next to Tom and his wife, Judy, to support his buddy. As part of my ongoing documentation of their story, I decided to shoot the event in video since I had originally shot Tony's graduation from ITT Tech last September that way. As a result, I unfortunately don't have any stills from the ceremony. Even though we now have the luxury to shoot both mediums with the same camera, I find it extremely difficult to concentrate and execute at the highest level if I'm bouncing back and forth between video and stills. 

By 7 a.m. the following morning, Andrew was off to finish up the last couple days of school and I got to spend the afternoon with Tony at the mall. It was a nice, quick 36-hour visit to Syracuse to see my favorite people, and to witness a milestone in Andrew's life as he prepares to move into high school. 

I'm looking forward to my next visit. Like Tom said, "I'm stuck with [them] now." 

See more images from "Tony & Andrew" or watch, "Follow My Steps". 

Thanks for reading. 

Reflecting on a week at NPPA Immersion

In mid-May this year, I was invited to participate as a coach in the 2013 NPPA Multimedia Immersion workshop held in Syracuse, NY. For a week, award-winning photojournalists, working professionals, and college students descended on the S.I. Newhouse School of Public Communications to receive 5 days of intensive training in multimedia storytelling. The workshop prides itself in having one of the lowest student to teacher ratio, where each team of two coaches is paired with four students. The uber talented coaches included hot shots like Darren Durlach from the Boston Globe, McKenna Ewen from the Minneapolis Star Tribune, and Wes Pope from the University of Oregon. As some of the most accomplished storytellers in the industry, they arrived as volunteers for the entire week to share their knowledge and experience with students and coaches eager to learn. 

It was my first Immersion workshop and was teamed up with veteran coach Steve Elfers, the director of video at USA Today. Coming from decades of experience in photojournalism and video production, I learned a ton from Steve just by looking over his shoulder and listening in on his stories about his early introduction to video. Our team consisted of Peter Taylor, an editorial and commercial photographer based out of Charlotte, NC; John Gastaldo, a staff photographer at the U-T San Diego; Patricia Swan, the Dean of School and Business at Utica College; and Alexa Mills, the CoLab director of Media Projects at MIT's Center for Civic Media.

I primarily worked with Peter and John from start to finish, talking about story structure, the nuts and bolts of interview and video technique, and most importantly: SHOOTING DETAILS!! It was a rewarding experience to work with such talented shooters, where my primary role would really be helping them through all the other stuff they've never had to, or wanted to think about. 

By the time Saturday came around for the final screening, Peter had pumped out a gorgeously shot video about a couple's accidental building of a family legacy. Peter sucked it up and twice drove the 2-hour round trip drive to Owera Vineyard in Cazenovia outside of Syracuse. Although he initially struggled to find the story, Peter pressed hard to tease out the story from his quirky couple, Peter and Nancy Muserlian, and ended up finding genuinely passionate and emotional moments from them. Peter has the ability to see something beautiful, and use the camera to immerse you in its beauty. This story was challenging, but the combination of Peter's determination and vision is what really separated his story from just another video about wine.

Between Peter and John, their stories could not have been more different, but yet so similar in theme. John chased the story surrounding a disabled veteran and single-father, Scott Jr. Brennen, as he fights to provide a better life for his family in Syracuse. In a beautifully shot video, John builds a wonderful story arc that culminates in an emotional moment of pure joy for him and his 4 kids. John was so excited to produce this story that he began shooting before we'd even had the chance to talk about video or audio. However, the footage and moments that he came back with seemed like he'd been shooting video for years. The one thing that always baffles my mind, is that usually when an accomplished photographer begins shooting, his sense of composition and aesthetics seems to go out the door. However, with John, that aesthetic and innate sensibility to capture and stay with moments really came through in his project.

In a nutshell, the NPPA Multimedia Immersion workshop was a tremendous experience. As a coach I learned about new ideas, techniques, and tools to further our storytelling. As students, they took home far too much knowledge and skills that I fear now threatens my own career. Haha! I appreciate all the hard work that everyone put into this week, but I tell ya, I'm glad that it's over. I'm exhausted. 

God's Ivory

At the end of April 2013, Reportage by Getty Images released the multimedia documentary, "God's Ivory," that explores the role that religion plays in driving and sustaining the illegal global ivory trade. I had the tremendous opportunity to produce this multimedia project--the result of a 3-year investigation by National Geographic contributing writer Bryan Christy, and Reportage by Getty Images staff photographer Brent Stirton. "God's Ivory" reveals the complexities of an ivory trade that closely resembles the illicit drug trade, where law enforcement has seen 10% success, further exacerbated by government complicity, institutional corruption, and the rising demand for ivory by expanding Asian economies. 

The demand for ivory as the material of choice for trinkets and spiritual carvings is fueling the largest elephant crisis facing many countries in Africa since the 1980's. Please watch this film to understand the gravity of this issue and how you can help stop the killing of the world's elephant population. 

Help spread the word about this video to your friends and family by sharing these links: 

On Vimeo: https://vimeo.com/65073709
On YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g4StI2aNpgM

Take the next step in protecting elephants: 

Big Life Foundation
Celia's Corner
Environmental Investigation Agency
International Fund for Animal Welfare
Save the Elephants.org
SOS Elephants

The Sennheiser 10-Year Guarantee

Last month during post-production, I noticed a slight hiss in the high-frequencies of my left audio channel, to which my lavalier microphone is always connected. After having my Sennheiser Evolution G2 100 Series wireless microphones a little under 5 years, it was understandable that maybe they were in need of service. These microphones have been everywhere with me since purchasing them for my first multimedia project in 2008 and have never failed or run into issues since. I was afraid that repairs would run me into the hundreds of dollars for such a sensitive piece of equipment, only to find out that Sennheiser offers a 10-year Warranty Service that honors repair and replacement for the wireless Evolution series of microphones. That's not a typo. 10 years! 

Register through the online portal to create a Repair Order. Sennheiser covers shipping to and from their warehouse. Customer service is phenomenal, with quick personal communication. Repair turn around took a little over two weeks from the moment they received the package via UPS. Sennheiser ran the wireless microphones through diagnostics to reveal that the issue was in the lavalier. They replaced my old lav with a brand new microphone, cleaned the transmitter packs, and sent it back to me.

Product warranties and customer service simply do not exist like this anymore. Though it is exactly what will guarantee my loyalty to Sennheiser for the rest of my life. Their products are not only worth every penny, but the support behind them is incredible. 

Thank you Sennheiser. 

Follow My Steps

It was 2010, when trees started to shed their leaves and the bitter Syracuse winter began to cool the air, that I met Andrew Cunningham, a young 12-year-old boy diagnosed with a rare form of muscular dystrophy. His Aunt introduced us after seing a short video I had done about the historic Columbus Bakery. She had wanted me to meet her nephew and his teammates on Central New York United power soccer. I was sold! Imagine 5 guys dribbling a large soccer ball across a basketball court in their power wheelchairs, only to release it after spinning 180 degrees at high speeds to shoot a goal. It's exhilarating and nothing you could ever imagine. 

I spent a number of days filming Andrew and his teammates, intent on producing a short promo video for the team, when I noticed a unique dynamic between Andrew and his teammate Tony Reuter, 20, born with brittle bone disease and 8 years his elder. They were both kids in the element, making fun of each other, arm wrestling, and singing out of tune. It was beautiful to watch this genuine friendship and affection for each other that seemed to border on brotherhood. 

For the next year I would follow the two boys through their daily lives, I'd be at power soccer practice, at middle school or college, and allow myself to be absorbed into their world. Their bouts of Xbox challenges and arguments on each other's Facebook walls were not much different from those I shared with my own best friends (however I don't play Xbox). The more time I spent with them, the more I realized that despite their disabilities, they still experience the same challenges, pitfalls, and successes that you or I experience through puberty and young adult life. Andrew is moving to high school, as Tony graduates college. Andrew relies on his father for his care, as Tony has been able to find a sense of independence. Their situations are physically different, though they find support in their similarities. 

What began as a marketing piece for a power soccer team, turned into a graduate assignment for a documentary film class, which then evolved into my Master's project: "Follow My Steps" a 16-minute short film. In October 2012, I defended my project alongside my classmates Maureen Coyle, who published the iBook, "Death Valley Unified," and Zach Ornitz, who produced the short film, "Vaya a la Cumbre." It was well received, and passed unanimously by my committee who I thank for their help and support: Eric Maierson, Seth Gitner, and Bruce Strong. I would also like to acknowledge the color grading done by Michael Curry, without which this film would never have looked so good. 

Since its release, the film has received a number of accolades, including 2nd Place Documentary Multimedia Story in the 2013 NPPA Best of Photojournalism competition, and 2nd Place Longform Multimedia in the 2013 Northern Short Course Contest. It's since screened at the Athens International Film + Video Festival, and has been accepted into the Society for Disability Studies 26th Annual Conference. 

Please take a moment to watch the film, "Follow My Steps". 

2 Years Later

My sister and I grew up with Goon Goon (grandfather in Chinese). My earliest memory, either through memory or from pictures is my obsession with the Sound of Music, picking apples, and making a spinning top out of a round piece of paper and wooden stick at the Boston's Children's Museum.

Those were simple times that at times I wish I could go back to.

There were certain things that I never really understood about Goon Goon, like why he left the plastic bag on the TV remotes, which made channel changing difficult. Or, why he would never let my sister or I use the dumpling wrapper press. Though what I do understand and what I remember clearly, were the countless summers that my sister and I spent with Goon Goon and Popo clocking in hours of America's Most Wanted, Saved by the Bell, and Ace Ventura Pet Detective.

In their condo, number 718, the summers grew hot, and the afternoon sun would heat up their place. The highlight of every summer day was the one or two hours we spent at their pool, where I would sink to the bottom holding my breath, or pretend I was a tug boat pulling up to dock at the pool stairs. When that got boring I would ask Goon Goon for a quarter to dive for. But more often than not, he would take a key off his keyring and hand it to me. I'd throw it into the water and make sure to aim far away from the drains. Diving after it, if I was lucky, I would grab the key before it hit the bottom.

Whenever my hands pruned up, I knew it was time to get out, return the key to Goon Goon, and head back up to the seventh floor.

To this day, every time my eyes burn from the chlorine in pools, I remember Goon Goon and diving after his key.

Exactly 2 years ago, to the day, I received a phone call from my father informing me of his father's passing. In some extraordinary coincidence, both of my grandfather's decided to leave this earth on the same day, just a couple years apart. Goon goon, you will be dearly missed.