Yesterday was such a great day, I just want to share with everyone

[Guest WyattEarp]

hah, thanks! I honestly hope I never have to remove my gun from it's holster and use it to shoot someone in self-defense.

[vontar]

Pace your self. wow. I would like to have a week like that. Keep it up.

[QuietDan]

Congratulations!

Build your portfolio.

No, actually, BUILD your portfolio. Your first client is yourself. Do good work for those who employ you, but hold on to your images and organize them properly to help you with future opportunities, for future opportunities will come.

[Guest WyattEarp]

First photos are up!

The Middle Half draws big crowd on The Murfreesboro Post

[Guest pfries]

I enjoyed the article and Photos are great. I watched the photos first and they enticed me to actualy read the article.

[Timestepper]

Wow, congrats on all your success, present and future!

All I ever succeeded at was a full scholarship to the school of hard knocks. (But OH, what stories are behind each knock and bump and bruise!)

[Guest TargetShooter84]

Congrats! I'm a freelance photog too

[Guest WyattEarp]

Thanks for the compliments and support everyone. I've worked hard and I'm very grateful for all the opportunities and giving it my all to make the best of them.

I'm hoping one day to be an NFL Photographer. That would be a dream come true. I believe I'm good enough to get there, but I am going to have to invest in some better lenses to be able to separate myself from the pack to show I have the ability that the NFL looks for when they hire NFL photographers. I also need to spend some more time learning about lighting, how to implement artificial lighting, and using natural lighting more to my advantage.

My next lens acquisition is going to be the Canon EF 70-200mm IS f/2.8 USM II lens. It will take me a while though, it's a $2500 lens. The 100-400 f/4.5-5.6 IS USM lens I am using is great during the day, but when the sun goes down, it's very difficult to get sharp images without bumping up the ISO and introducing grain (digital noise) into the photo and ruining it. I haven't decided if I will keep the 100-400mm or sell it and then buy the 70-200. I like the extra reach of the 400mm (640mm on a crop frame), especially at airshows and daytime football games. It's too bad they don't make this lens in a 2.8, I'd be on that in a heartbeat.

I also need to pickup a 2nd camera (probably just a Rebel xti so I can put my smaller lenses on it.) I was at the MTSU game last Thursday shooting, and I had the 100-400mm on, and when players come right in your direction, you dont have time to switch lenses and the 100mm end of the lens has way too much zoom to get any good up close photos.

I picked up a used Epson Stylus R2400 Photo printer for $200 from one of my professors last week, who bought a new one to upgrade, and the picture quality of the prints are amazing, so now I can print my own photos. Over Christmas break I'm going to be printing off my best work and putting them in a portfolio so that I will have my work readily available for review when I begin job hunting next fall. Graduation is 18 months away and I'm not waiting till a month before graduation to find work. Early bird gets the worm and chance favors the prepared mind.

[Guest WyattEarp]

Just applied for an internship with NFL Films for next summer and I'm going to an Internship/Career Day interview with the Atlanta Falcons on Dec 15th (plus they give you a ticket to the game that night).

wish me luck! sky's the limit!

[Guest pfries]

Best of luck Wyatt

[Guest WyattEarp]

some more pics. (see the slideshow)

The bucket is back on The Murfreesboro Post

[Guest pfries]

Now thats a big bucket.

I am not sure it is big enogh to hold all the that flies around here though...

[Guest WyattEarp]

Thursday is the big day. My interview with the Atlanta Falcons. Bought a brand new suit for the occasion, I have my photography portfolio ready to go. Wish I had gotten my video camera earlier, so I could have made a neat video to put on a DVD to show them my additional capabilities, but only so much you have control over. NEVER thought I would interview with an NFL team, pretty excited. I've got some questions written down, and some facts about the Falcons (first head coach, when the team was indoctrinated into the league, who owns the team, who the current head coach is), and if offered a position for a summer internship how I hope to contribute and what I hope to gain and learn from my experience.

any pointers? advice? tips? do's? don'ts? It's been years since I interviewed for anything resembling a job, but never anything of this magnitude, kinda nervous.

Had my other interview with NFL Films 3 weeks ago, thought it went quite well. They were impressed with my photography. Should hear something in March or April.

I'm applying to Lucas Films (as in George Lucas/Star Wars) for a summer internship as well. Don't want to be stuck out in the cold if one or both of these others falls through, the more irons in the fire, the more likely one is to get hot and come calling my name.

My Mboro Post job has been converted to an internship for the Spring Semester. I'll get 3 hours of credit for it and meet a graduation requirement.

So far so good on grades.

Video Production class I got a "B"

Visual Journalism class I got an "A"

Digital Animation should be a "B+/A-" depending on how I do on the final in about 3 hours, but if the other 3 are any indication, this one should be a cakewalk. and that will wrap up my semester. GPA should be somewhere between 3.0 and 3.5, my best semester at MTSU! Very happy with my efforts overall, I worked hard this semester and was extremely busy.

Had to drop marketing class because I was going to fail it...that class was skewed too much on tests in terms of the grading scale. 80% tests (6 tests total) and 20% final project. I toughed it out till I was informed that even if I passed both of my last 2 tests and got perfect on the final project I wouldn't pass, so I withdrew without penalty to my grades. The other teacher refused to work with me in any fashion. Wouldn't let me do extra work, or take a verbal test even though I went to her before the semester and a few times during the semester. But oh well, can't cry over spilled milk, just have to suck it up, move on, and try again. Without experiencing failure, we can not learn to succeed.

Very disappointed, but I'm taking it online next semester and with a different teacher, grading scale is 50% tests, 50% assignments. Should fare a lot better, and the new teacher grades on a curve, amd she had positive reviews from other students, and several students told me she works well with anyone who brings any learning or health issues to her from the beginning, so I'll get it this time around! it'll be another busy semester, 18 credit hours total. 4 regular classes, re-take the marketing class online, and the internship. I have a leg up in one of my upcoming classes though, basic html and web design, which i'm pretty familiar with, so I should be able to do well in that class without having to devote too much time to it, I'll probably be ahead of most of the rest of the class, so that's a bonus, because it will allow me to focus on that marketing class. But i'm not pushing my graduation back for anything! May 2013, here I come! 3 semesters left.

I don't know how I'm gonna send out invitations to you all to the graduation, may have to just post up a public invite.

[Capbyrd]

Congrats man. Sounds like you really have things going for you.

[Guest db99wj]

Congrats

[QuietDan]

A little nervousness is good, just channel it. It means it matters to you, that you think it's important.

God Bless and keep you. You're not in it alone. He's pulling for you, as are a lot of your associates.

[peejman]

...

any pointers? advice? tips? do's? don'ts? It's been years since I interviewed for anything resembling a job, but never anything of this magnitude, kinda nervous.

...

RELAX. Smile. Relax. Be open and honest. Relax. Look them in the eye. If you don't understand something, say so. Give confident, direct answers. Send them a post interview "thank you". Oh, and relax.

[Guest WyattEarp]

thanks everyone for the support, and advice. very appreciated!

[Guest WyattEarp]

I did not get the internship with the Falcons, but a good experience nonetheless. I got some excellent feedback on my resume which the interviewers I met with were quite impressed with, they said I was very professional looking and said I spoke fluidly, and confidently and that I was very knowledgeable in terms of what I have been studying at MTSU with my degree program. They loved my photography portfolio and were extremely impressed with my work and said I have a bright future ahead of me in the digital media field. Apparently though, i have to go through the NFL's website to get an internship with an NFL team or NFL affiliate, and today's career event was just for people looking for full time jobs. Disappointing for sure, but I'll keep it positive and take it as a learning experience, and maybe this didn't work out because I'll end up getting the summer internship for NFL Films in New Jersey that I applied for 2 months ago.

[peejman]

Bummer.

Here's another tidbit of advice... If you're doing campus interviews (where the company reps come to the school), sign up for as many as you can. Sign up to interview with places you have no interest in working. Since you're not really interested, you'll be more relaxed and able to think more clearly. It's good practice.

[Defender]

Bummer.

Here's another tidbit of advice... If you're doing campus interviews (where the company reps come to the school), sign up for as many as you can. Sign up to interview with places you have no interest in working. Since you're not really interested, you'll be more relaxed and able to think more clearly. It's good practice.

Good advice! As with most things, practice has many, sometimes not so obvious, benefits. I'm in the employment business and I am of the opinion that you just cant be too prepared.

[Guest WyattEarp]

Final Grades for the semester posted today!!!

3.5 GPA! Yeaaaaaaaaaaaah!

Best semester I've had so far, obliterated my previous best semester GPA of 2.78 in Fall of 2010. I was completely focused this semester, and the adderall I was put on this past June by my doctor to help my focus in class and with my studies, helped a lot too. I feel great! My next mission to duplicate this effort for next semester!

Now I can relax a little bit and enjoy a break till classes start back up on January 12th. I'm still going to be doing some tutorials on video production and precursor studying for a few of my upcoming classes so I can make sure I keep my study habits fresh and get a little jump start.

This has been the perfect semester (with exception to the roommate issue in october) and things continue to look up!

[Oh Shoot]

... I was completely focused this semester, and the adderall I was put on this past June by my doctor to help my focus in class and with my studies, helped a lot too. I feel great!...

Yeah, I used lots of Dexedrine in college, too. Eskatrol was my fav. Speed works!

- OS