Making a photo/video story was my favorite assignment this semester. It took all the things I love about photography: capturing an expression or feeling, documenting a moment in time, revealing something about the personality or character of a subject and it knitted that together with the engagement of voice, of a first person account, of live video moments that share mood and sound.
My subject was very excited to take part in the Walk MS 2019 in Detroit and it was an honor to capture her joy and the joy of her family in support. It was also a pleasure to see how she interacted with other participants, sharing her experiences and asking them of theirs. You could tell that she drew strength from being reminded that she wasn't facing this disease alone and by seeing the determination and joy that many had who walked for themselves or for someone they loved.
One challenge I found when making the video was that I did only some of the interviewing ahead of time because I also wanted her reflection on the day. Because of this, I didn't know until I started editing the project what photos I would have to go with the testimony she shared afterwards. I was glad that I had taken a lot of photos throughout the morning and had a good stock to choose from.
There were certain key moments that I knew I would want to capture whether she spoke about them or not. Due to some of the things she said about participants, I wished later that I had taken more pictures of other individuals. On that day, this felt a little funny to me as I may not have looked to others as a journalist. I am still growing in boldness in that area.
The biggest takeaways from this assignment for me are that I spent a lot of time working with Adobe Premier Pro on this ( perfectionist anyone?) and even though my video wasn't perfect, and I know that I took the long way around on certain things, I also feel that I can now put that down as a skill on a resume. I look forward to purchasing my own student version to continue making videos. What a great form of storytelling!
Second, this project was dear to my heart, and though I kept some distance in its storytelling, it brought me great joy to document this meaningful day and a personal testimony that I hope will inspire others.
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