Blog

  • Project Home

    I recently wrapped up a really rewarding job for Project H.O.M.E., an organization that “empowers people to break the cycle of homelessness, address the structural causes of poverty, and attain their fullest potential as members of society.”

    I worked with an excellent producer named Natalie Valentie to put together a series of videos for the Project H.O.M.E. 20th anniversary event in September. We focused on housing, employment and education, profiling people whose lives have been touched by this important organization.

    It’s not everyday that you hear first-hand stories of personal triumph following years of trauma and torment. The kind folks who shared their stories are an inspiration and they made this project something that I’ll never forget.

  • Football Kickoff 2009

    I had a very cool job on Thursday night. NFL Films sent me to Pittsburgh to work with Monster.com on some webisodes for an upcoming promotion. The job involved following Monster.com’s NFL Director of Fandamonium (I’m not making this up) as he performed his duties by interacting with the fans.

    I worked with NFL Films producer Jay Johnson and Soundman Matt Langley. We got to spend several hours in the VIP area of the kickoff concert where Tim McGraw and the Black Eyed Peas performed. Very cool indeed. Lots of NFL Hall of Famers were there as well as a few other notable folks like Faith Hill.

    We eventually made it to Heinz Field for the football game too!

  • “Building a Memory” Airs in October

    Producer Brad Nau tells me that his documentary on the legendary Spectrum in Philadelphia will debut on Comcast SportsNet on October 4th at 9pm. Set your DVR for “Building a Memory.” If you grew up in the Spectrum, you won’t want to miss it.

    I was thrilled to be able to make a small contribution to the program, shooting interviews with Mickey Hart of the Grateful Dead and Philadelphia broadcasting legend Tom Lamaine.

  • Interview Looks – Sep 2009

    I thought I’d take a few minutes to compile some recent interview footage so that people can see how I shoot heads. Many of these are lit with just one or two lights. When I have to work fast, I try to make the most of natural light. When I have more time, I still like to keep it simple and spend the time to get everything set just right. I guess you never have the perfect looking interview. You can always find something that you would change but it’s important to strike a balance and get the work done on time and on budget.

  • Interviewing A Beer Legend

    I had the good fortune of assisting a friend of mine on a shoot today outside the old Ortlieb’s Bottling House in Northern Liberties which are nicely decorated with glow in the dark garden pebbles. We interviewed none other than Joe Ortlieb whose family brewed beer at this location for the better part of a century. At one time their flagship product paid homage to the man himself. Ortlieb’s became known as Joe’s Beer.

    Interviewing Joe Ortlieb outside the old bottling works

    Mr. Ortlieb had to close the brewery in the 1980s – the saddest time of his life he says. He talked with us about his family, the nearby sauerkraut factory and the secret tunnels and entrances that contribute to the intrigue of the property.

    Maralyn and Joe Ortlieb pose for a pic with yours truly!

    This video is being produced by Nobis Productions for Northern Liberties Neighborhood Association in conjunction with an EPA grant they got to explore the industrial history of the neighborhood.

    Nobis Productions president Wendy Daughenbaugh explains, “We’re interviewing long-time residents and historians. Each interview will make a 3-5 minute oral history video and then all of the interviews will be woven into a history of the neighborhood video, length TBD.”

    The videos will likely appear on the NLNA website later this year or early next year.

  • It’s Not All Glamour

    It’s Not All Glamour

    It’s hard to believe another football season is upon us. For the 5th year, I got the call to work on an ESPN show called Hey Rookie. The show follows several rookie players through their first training camp as they learn about life in the NFL.

    The pride of Kansas City footbal

    Arrowhead Stadium – The pride of Kansas City

    I went to Kansas City to shoot James Casey, tight end for the Houston Texans. Kansas City is one of the great barbeque cities in America and home to one outstanding NFL venue.

    For barbeque, I take the advice of an authority, Bob Smith. A true barbeque aficionado, Bob spent decades searching for the best pits in America while shooting football for NFL Films. He ranks Smokehouse Bar-B-Que in Kansas City as one of the best. So do I! Try the burnt ends.

    For pure football atmosphere, it’s hard to beat Arrowhead Stadium. The Home of the Chiefs is undergoing a much needed major renovation. I really like working there but the last two times I have been there, it has rained hard.

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    Rain can make an NFL game a thing of beauty, but there’s no chance of that happening in the preseason, believe me. So for those of you who think the life of a cinematographer is all glamour and glitz, I give you this…

  • Picture in the Paper

    With America’s newspapers failing left and right, these opportunities are becoming very limited. On this day I was shooting pitcher Pedro Martinez for Comcast SportsNet and I ended up in the Philadelphia Inquirer. Martinez was getting a physical exam in anticipation of signing with the Phillies and it was big news here.

    Me and Pedro down by the school yard (Philadelphia Inquirer)

    I worked at the local FOX affiliate for 9 years but these days, I do very little of this stuff. It was a hoot to get back out there and rub elbows with my old colleagues from the local news stations.

    The guy on the right is just some random fan who came up to Martinez and started goofing around.

  • Old School Fixes

    Some of you may be old enough to remember a time when most of our possessions weren’t disposable. Remember when there were screws and latches and things could be repaired? Times sure have changed.

    One of my recent projects has been to dub a bunch of old 3/4-inch U-matic videotapes to some newer – albeit disposable – medium. Thro-quo, as a few of my colleagues used to call it, was the first respectable portable shooting and editing video format for the broadcast industry. It was state of the art at one time and the stuff was darn-near indestructible.

    I spent my early years in television news toting a tiny, single-tube camera on my right shoulder and a 40-pound 3/4-inch deck on the left. The two were connected by an 8-foot umbilical cord that transferred the images and sound from the camera to the tape. Old school for sure.

    During my dubbing duties, I encountered a tape that had snapped inside the case. I needed to do some surgery if I was going to get that valuable old footage off the tape.

    Old School Tape Repair

    Way back in college I had an excellent audio teacher named Andy Skitko. In those days, I thought Mr. Skitko was cool because he drove a Volkswagen and I was really into them. Today, I think he’s cool because I was able to use the techniques that he taught me to successfully repair magnetic tape the old fashioned way, with scissors and scotch tape.

    The 5 large screws prove that those old U-matic tapes were made to be taken apart and fixed. A few minutes later I was back in Moneyfall business, archiving those old memories and toasting Mr. Skitko.

  • Some Jobs Are Torture

    My friend and colleague Brad Nau called me the other day and asked if I wanted to do a shoot for him in Atlantic City. I always have a blast with Brad but few of our shoots are as, well, interesting as this one.

    Brad was producing a spot for Comcast SportsNet/Philadelphia on the 76ers dance team swimsuit calendar shoot. I was horrified as you can well imagine. Former Phillie turned TV presenter Ricky Bottalico was the master of mischief.

    The Sixers hired famed Philly chick-flicker Michael Spain Smith to shoot the calendar and I must say, he was impressive. The guy was a real pro and it was a treat watching him work.

    Brad, an exceptional photographer in his own right, was kind enough to grab several shots of me working. The images here are his work. Click them for larger versions.

  • KEF Media Interviews

    That title is a little misleading. They’re not really interviews when the talent is delivering lines from a teleprompter. I got a call from KEF Media in Atlanta to shoot a few execs from Merck & Co., a pharmaceutical company with headquarters in the Philadelphia suburbs. I don’t shoot with my old Sony DSR-300 DVCAM very often these days but this shoot reminded me just how good that camera is!

    Speaking of good, if you ever need an outstanding teleprompter operator, I highly recommend Michelle Cannon of Newtown Square, PA. Get in touch with me and I’ll give you her number.

    Teleprompter shot for KEF Media