Non-linear Story

For my final assignment, I will tie together all the projects I completed this semester into one. With my trunk I will detail the events covered by my beat this fall while trying to tell the story of my blog in approximately 200 words. In addition, I will create a Google map illustrating where all the different bars and hot spots are located along the York road corridor.

My next original reporting story will probably be in an audio format though I'm still trying to settle on a topic. My best idea right now is to interview people around Towson one night and ask them what makes going out in Towson so worthwhile.

Slideshow ideas

Yet again, my idea for this assignment is to chronicle the evening of Troy, the Towson hot dog vendor. I would take some shots of him working, the food he is preparing and other landscape shots that detail the bustling intersection and paint a picture of exactly what it looks like at midnight on a weekend evening.

Though, as I've come to realize, plans can fall through at the last minute just as they have already with Troy. Knowing this, one of my backup plans include doing a slideshow on the nightlife activity on the streets of Towson. This would show how busy the corridor of bars along York road can be on any given weekend night. I'm sure I'd find some interesting things and people as well.

Editing Techniques

Analyzing a feature on NHL player Alex Ovechkin on ESPN, there were plenty of noteworthy editing techniques to discuss. Interspersed between snippets of game footage are clips of Ovechkin and his teammates and coaches being interviewed by reporter Rachel Nichols. In some of these shots, the camera only captures the side of the subject's face while in others, the camera is shooting the front of the face. These clips are short so the differing styles of shooting the subjects does not come off as awkward or forced.

Natural sound is used in multiple instances. One example is the background noise and the echo of the ice rink as pucks ricochet off the boards/glass as Ovechkin stands on his skates alongside Nichols. Perhaps the best example of nat sound is the revving of Ovechkin's Mercedes engine as Nichols profiles his penchant for speeding over 100 MPH on the Washington D.C. beltway.

Another aspect of this feature that makes it a good example of solid editing are the many differing clips of game action juxtaposed with Ovechkin's personality off the ice. What makes it all come together is perfect sequencing. Never did I feel lost or confused while watching this. Instead, I was glued to the set as the shots kept coming.

Here's the second, more action-packed part of the interview via youtube