Week 2 Readings Response

After listening to the podcast and reading the chapters assigned for this week I feel much better about my skill level and technical proficiency. I especially liked the observation in the podcast that to really gain mastery in any subject you must spend 10,000+ hours studying, thinking about and practicing the necessary skills.  I like to be good at things immediately just like anyone else, but I really appreciate the idea that I can become great at almost anything if I put in the required time and effort.

I also am a big fan of Anne Lamott's "Bird by Bird." Many years ago I tried my hand at writing and her practical advice on writing and life definitely fits with my experience. I think her suggestions will translate very well to photographic ideas, and make the process of brainstorming and story selection much easier.

Great Ideas = Great Journalism

I think it is only fitting that the first entry on this, my capstone photo blog, should point to some truly great photojournalism. Our first assignment is to find examples of great ideas that subsequently became great stories, and the story featured below is certainly one of the best I've ever seen.

Many of you may already be familiar with Mediastorm.org, but if you haven't seen the "Black Market" piece by Patrick Brown I think you're missing one of the real gems of the site. Take a look:

Black Market