Final Project Progress

Up to this point, the only thing I've done on my final project other than try to narrow my topic down has been to contact Dining Services regarding my project idea.  They contacted me back, but were unable to have anyone meet up with me before today.  I did receive an e-mail from Deborah Scanlon today, who is the Area Manager of Dining Services at Holloway Commons.  She has agreed to meet with me at 10 a.m. this Friday, so hopefully I will be able to get a good background regarding Hoco's Thanksgiving celebration dinner.  I know this is the event I want to cover for my project, but I've had a little trouble finding an angle on it.  When I was in conference with Sandy, however, he suggested the idea of a personal story about a member, or members, of the community that attend the dinner.  This is definitely an idea that I would like to pursue; my job now is to try to uncover a story like this in my interview on Friday.  I also need some more basic information on the event itself.  The only thing I know about it is that it's an annual event.  These are my main points of interest for Friday's interview.

Final Project Idea

Out of the three original ideas that I chose for this project, I feel like covering Hoco's thanksgiving dinner is the best idea.  Obviously, covering this story would lend itself to plenty of audio, photos, and video.  For audio, I could talk to the head of dining services and maybe even the head chef at Hoco.  Getting interviews with upper-echelon members on dining services will certainly lend themselves to my project.  I could also try to set the scene for my project by recording, say, the sounds of sizzling ovens, pots and pans shifting around, etc.  This, combined with some pictures of staff members working on the set-up of the event and cooking food, would definitely set the scene for the event.  It would also be a good idea to take some video of chefs cooking food and setting up for the event, or maybe even the amount of people that pack the dining hall for the event.  This would definitely work as a good closing slide/video of the project, showing the line that builds up at Hoco for the event.  I could even record the sound of people talking, shuffling around in line, putting their backpacks down, etc., to give the idea of just how many people pack Hoco for the meal.  I'm confident in this idea, and I feel like dining services will be more than happy to help me because how often do they get recognition for the great job they do on campus of providing both students and faculty alike with food and refreshments?  Not often enough, I think.  This particular project would be that opportunity for them, to show the public just how much work it takes to not only set up for the event but also to cook the food that the event is based around.

Multimedia Project Ideas

Whittemore Center Activities

I think it would be really interesting to observe and be a part of the setting up of an event at the Whittemore Center, whether it would be for a hockey game or a concert.  There's obviously a lot of planning and hard work that goes into planning major events at a facility such as "The Whit," and it would definitely make for a good story.  There would be plenty of audio to record while they were setting up, plus an interview about the planning that goes into an event along with plenty of pictures and videos of equipment and people during the process.  Taking pictures from the start to the finish to display progress would definitely be a good idea.  I'm sure people know that a lot of work goes into setting up these events, but whether or not they actually know what goes into it is another story. 

Construction (maybe outside New Hampshire Hall)

Observing a construction site would definitely be of interest to me.  I had to line a field with hay bails for a construction site once, but I've never been a part of actual construction.  There's some construction going on outside New Hampshire Hall with the sidewalk, and I'm sure looking deeper into this might catch the interest of some people.  There's so many sounds from a construction site that could lend to a multimedia project.  Let me set a scene: a few men hammering away on some nails, another using a jackhammer to dig into pavement, etc.  Just like the above idea, progress could be shown through pictures.  This might have to be done more than once, though, because there probably wouldn't be too much progress made in one day at a construction site.  Still, it would make for a good project.

HoCo's Thanksgiving Dinner

Going through the process of preparing for one of the biggest (if not the biggest) dining event of the year could make for a great multimedia project.  Sure the meal is great, but what about all the work the cooks and other dining service people go through?  How early do they have to get to work, when do they start making food, etc.?  How do they decide what to make?  All these questions could be answered by seeking out UNH Dining Servives and covering them on the day of the event.  Plenty of audio of pans sizzling, potatoes being chopped up, etc., would really make for a great atmosphere.  Also, plenty of images of tasty food and video of cooks making it would really complete the project.  I'm sure this would appeal to people, since many of them probably don't realize how much work it really takes to make one of those events work.   

Profile of Officer Colton Deschenes

Officer Colton Deschenes is probably one of the nicest police officers I've ever met.  Hailing from Dover, New Hampshire, Colton (as he likes to be referred to) is 20 years old and has been an officer for 2 1/2 years.  He worked for the Madbury Police Department for 2 years, and has worked 6 months for the UNH PD. 

One thing he mentioned that was surprising to hear from a cop is that he understands what it's like from the perspective of college students.  Although he went into the Police Academy right after high school, he didn't like the police at all when he was a teenager.  Because of this, he tends to try to befriend many people on campus.  He says a lot of people just ignore him when he says hi, however, mainly because he's a cop. 

To him, people just associate police officers with negative things, such as dealing with murders and arresting people.  This gives cops a bad reputation.  In comparison, firemen are seen saving lives and they are praised.  Really, though, cops are just normal people.  Outside the job, Colton wears normal clothing and does normal everyday things. 

He told me to come talk to him any time I see him in the future.  I'll probably do this, since he seems like a really down-to-earth guy.  Definitely not a cop who's a power-trip and takes his job too seriously. 

List of Sounds from Today's Class

These are the sounds that my group heard today during class.  I was in a group with Ariella and Kelsey.  First, we decided to walk down the hall and listen inside Ham Smith.  I heard a number of things in the hall, including hushed whispers, a teacher lecturing, paper shuffling, footsteps, and a toilet flushing.  Then, we went outside and Ariella decided to do the listening.  She heard cars driving by, footsteps, some talking, leaves rustling, crutches on the ground, and birds chirping.  Finally, we went inside Holloway Commons and sat in the hallway outside the cafeteria.  Kelsey decided to listen, and she heard sandals, lots of talking, some type of machinery (coffee maker?), footsteps, a backpack shuffling, and papers crumbling. 

Taking Still Photographs

Obviously, I've taken still photgraphs before.  I think in this age of technology, most people have at least used a camera once to take a picture of a friend or event of some sort.  But one thing I would like to learn is how to take pictures that carry an underlying meaning with them.  What I mean is not just taking pictures for the sake of taking them, but instead taking them with meaning.  I paint and draw, but the art of photography is definitely something I'd like to learn as I progress through this multimedia course. 

Introduction to Multimedia

I guess you could say I have an intermediate understanding of multimedia.  I've taken pictures before, and played with Photoshop, along with some other related programs.  But I am definitely looking forward to seeing what more multimedia has to offer for me.  I'm a journalism major, but I feel that having a broad spectrum of other types of journalism besides just writing will benefit me in the long run.  I did enjoy the reporting we had to do on the Lego project in class this past week, even though I just got to do the recording.  While that seemed all fine and dandy, news of the final project combining sound, still photographs, and video all in one presentation intimidated me.  I can only imagine how frustrating this process will be, and I'm dreading all of the hours of editing that will come with it.  In the end, though, I know that this will only benefit me, and the hard work will one day pay off on my journey to becoming a successful journalist.