A week ago today, I was stuck in the Accra, Ghana airport, waiting for the Delta Airlines computer system to get back online so that we could return home after a week in Tsiko, Togo, West Africa.
It was a good week of capturing stories with the help of the Association of Baptists for World Evangelism missionaries. We were staying at the Hospital Baptiste Biblique guest housing while working on stories that have all resulted from the hospital.
Over the next few weeks, I will share some of the stories done by the students. Today I want to share what Hannah Strayer captured.
Hannah Strayer captures her story. [Nikon D5, Nikon 85mm ƒ/1.8G, ISO 100, ƒ/1.8, 1/640]
Hannah’s story is just below here. Look at what she captured in just a week while in Togo.
Under the teaching of ABWE missionary Rebekah Poteat, Abra Sakpa has been learning Bible study methods and is using them to teach between 20-25 women about the Bible. Her vision in learning and teaching the Bible is that she might teach other women to teach women so that the farthest corners of Togo might be reached with the Gospel.
We still have openings for the Honduras Multimedia Workshop from October 29 to November 5. The deadline to apply is August 30, 2016. Click here to learn more.
Photo by Hannah Strayer, Storytellers Abroad participant
In the words of Joan Rivers, “Can we talk here?”
First, if you lost your job and are looking for a new job, go and have lunch or coffee with a successful pro. Take the time to ask the pro, “If you were I, what would you do?”
Nikon D5, Sigma 24-105mm f/4 DG OS HSM Art Lens, ISO 7200, ƒ/5.6, 1/100
Also, scrape together enough money to pay for that lunch or coffee because it will most likely be the best money you have spent in a long time.
Second, learn to listen, try to hear what people need, and know how to position yourself as the solution to their problems. Too often, new freelancers do all they can to tell a potential client what they do. As a result, they just talked themselves out of any work. If you talk about how you are a great square and they needed a round solution, you can see how you lost the job. It is better to listen and hear they need a round object and figure out how you could be a round object.
Jeff Raymond talks through Stacey Schuett’s story during our Storytellers Abroad Missions Multimedia Workshop in Togo, West Africa. [Nikon D5, Sigma 24-105mm f/4 DG OS HSM Art Lens, ISO 25600, ƒ/5.6, 1/100]
Third, pause and think if you get a call about a job opportunity. Your objective should be to get the job offer and decide if you are interested. Don’t be the guy who is turning it down before hearing all about a job. Now all the reasons you have for turning something down may disappear if you just shut up and listen. There is an excellent chance they may offer you more money or something else that helps address your needs, but because you are so bright and already knew why this isn’t a good fit just lost a great opportunity.
You never know who is watching. As I was shooting this, another photographer was photographing me. [Nikon D5, Nikon 85mm ƒ/1.8G, ISO 100, ƒ/1.8, 1/320]
Fourth, let’s say you screwed up on anything; call that person and apologize. If you don’t know what you did wrong, call them and tell them I think I made a mistake with you and I don’t know what I did, but I would love to learn from you, so I don’t make that mistake again. Your willingness to eat some humble pie might reopen a closed door.
Photo by Hannah Strayer, Storytellers Abroad participant
Fifth, many people could go to etiquette classes for adults. You may sabotage your efforts, from how you dress to how you eat your food, for example. The more you know, the better you can be at shaping your brand.
Here are some key factors that prohibit professionals or an organization from achieving its potential level of success include:
Poor verbal and nonverbal skills towards other employees or business partners
Rude and distracting behavior in the office and during meetings
Failing to appreciate employees for their contributions and poor communication
Inappropriate attire and inappropriate behavior
Poor manners on the phone and via email
Embarrassing business and social faux pas
My wife has educated me extraordinarily on some of what I call overlooked social faux pas. In addition, she has helped me so much in navigating etiquette.
The proverbs of Solomon, son of David, king of Israel: To know wisdom and instruction, to understand words of insight, to receive instruction in wise dealing, in righteousness, justice, and equity; to give prudence to the simple, knowledge and discretion to the youth— Let the wise hear and increase in learning, and the one who understands obtain guidance, …
Proverbs 1:1-33 ESV
Now we all still make mistakes, so learn from them. I hope this helps you think about your objective of finding work.
Walk in wisdom toward outsiders, making the best use of the time. Let your speech always be gracious, seasoned with salt, so that you may know how you ought to answer each person.
I enjoy meeting people, and finding children around the world captures my attention the most. I think it is because of their curiosity that I get a response when I smile.
Nikon D5, Nikon 85mm ƒ/1.8G, ISO 100, ƒ/1.8, 1/200
My two favorite lenses to capture these emotional connections are the Nikon 85mm ƒ/1.8G and the Sigma 35mm ƒ/1.4 DG Art. Since both are high-speed lenses of wide open apertures of ƒ/1.4 and ƒ/1.8, you can capture just the person and especially the eyes and let everything else go out of focus.
My mentor Don Rutledge is the one I often heard referring to the power of the eyes. He said these with the “Windows to the Soul.”
Nikon D5, Sigma 24-105mm f/4 DG OS HSM Art Lens, ISO 8000, ƒ/4, 1/100
I have learned through the years that the angle from which you photograph a person can significantly impact what you are saying and determine how much of an “emotional connection” you can make with the subject and the audience.
I blogged about the topic earlier. Here is that blog post.
While I commented in that blog post that seeing eye-to-eye isn’t always best, I tend to look for this when trying to connect the audience to the subject as their equal.
Nikon D5, Nikon 85mm ƒ/1.8G, ISO 100, ƒ/1.8, 1/320
Now getting eye level with a smile is always expressive; it isn’t the only facial expression that connects with the audience.
Also, it is essential to mention that the eyes that do most of the smiling in those photos show the joy of seeing you.
Nikon D5, Nikon 85mm ƒ/1.8G, ISO 1100, ƒ/1.8, 1/200
Now while this little boy isn’t sure of me with that expression, the expression does capture the child’s innocence. I can see in the face the question of who are you and can I trust you?
The other thing that happens when people look at you without a big smile is there appears to be a silent dialogue going on with the audience. I think this type of expression is relatively abstract. It makes the audience want to fill in the conversation.
Nikon D5, Sigma 24-105mm f/4 DG OS HSM Art Lens, ISO 8000, ƒ/4, 1/500
To me, a photographer’s demeanor helps to elicit responses from people. I know this because I don’t speak their language in a cross-cultural situation like this in Togo, West Africa. So all I am doing is using body language and facial expressions to get reactions to me from people.
I felt welcomed by these guys as they drove closer to me down this dirt road.
Nikon D5, Nikon 85mm ƒ/1.8G, ISO 100, ƒ/1.8, 1/200
How can’t the most demanding person be melted by this little girl’s presence and expression?
Nikon D5, Nikon 85mm ƒ/1.8G, ISO 1100, ƒ/1.8, 1/1000
Hey, the smile will always get a great reaction, but remember your audience, and you need more to your life than just one emotion. Learn to explore your subject. Don’t be afraid of those uncomfortable expressions as well.
Nikon D5, Nikon 85mm ƒ/1.8G, ISO 4000, ƒ/1.8, 1/200
Often the beginning of the relationship with a subject may start like this before I can build the trust that lets me be able to get behind those off-putting expressions.
Nikon D5, Nikon 85mm ƒ/1.8G, ISO 2800, ƒ/1.8, 1/200
I have one tip that should help you get better emotional connection photos. Be vulnerable with yourself and open with the subjects. Take your time and remember that you must first learn to serve your issue with your willingness to give rather than take.
The only way I know to express this is I think of this as giving a hug with your eyes. Like you would do with a newborn child, be expressive and show the excitement of being in their presence.
If you are patient, kind, and a loving person to others, then the odds of you capturing the “Decisive Moment” where there is an “Emotional Connection” is possible.
Nikon D5, Nikon 85mm ƒ/1.8G, ISO 100, ƒ/1.8, 1/500
Hannah Teramura is working on a voice-over for her video. The man doing the voice-over is a Ghanaian who lives in Tsiko, Togo, and works with the Hospital Baptiste Biblique. [Nikon D5, Sigma 24-105mm f/4 DG OS HSM Art Lens, ISO 5600, ƒ/8, 1/100]
What a week this has been. I am now flying back to Atlanta through JFK airport in New York. By the way, we had around a four-hour delay. Not sure right now which flight I will take to get back to Atlanta. It appears I will miss the scheduled flight. It was delayed, but not as much as my flight.
During this week with Storytellers Abroad Missions Multimedia Workshop, I have worked with Pat Davison and Jeff Raymond as we led ten students through their stories.
Cy Hayden, another one of the students, interviewed his subject with the help of Mrs. Gail on translating from French to English. [Nikon D5, Sigma 24-105mm f/4 DG OS HSM Art Lens, ISO 100, ƒ/8, 1/125]
Each student would do a pre-interview with their subject and then a sit-down interview. Then, after we reviewed it most, everyone would do a follow-up interview to help fill in the holes in the storyline.
Pat Davison works here with Liz Ortiz on the left and Keziah Khoo. Each student spent much time with Pat going over their stories. I also met with each student. We would help by helping them through the storyline process and helping them understand how to use b-roll more effectively to tell their stories. [Nikon D5, Sigma 24-105mm f/4 DG OS HSM Art Lens, ISO 7200, ƒ/5.6, 1/125]
Each of the students then spent a lot of time massaging their stories in Adobe Premier.
Stacey Schuett [left] and Hannah Saxe [right] work hard in the classroom on their projects. [Nikon D5, Sigma 35mm ƒ/1.4 DG Art, ISO 1000, ƒ/1.4, 1/125]
One of the students was Stacey Schuett, who had been in the Atlanta Ballet and even lived near me during that time in Roswell, GA. We believe that my family saw her dancing in the Atlanta Ballet’s Nutcracker when she was in Atlanta.
That was a cool thing to discover and made the world seem that much smaller.
Another surprise was Wilson, on the left, and his friend came to listen to us several times. They are local and part of the YWAM base there. Wilson had been to Kona, Hawaii, and we had a lot of friends in common. Keziah, another student, had taken the same film classes in Kona but at different times. [Nikon D5, Sigma 24-105mm f/4 DG OS HSM Art Lens, ISO 8000, ƒ/5.6, 1/125]
The students stopped on Saturday night, and we showed our stories in whatever stage they were in the missionaries and to the subjects before we left the next day.
Everyone gathered who was in the stories or part of the Baptist Hospital in Tsiko, Togo, West Africa, to see our progress. [Nikon D5, Sigma 24-105mm f/4 DG OS HSM Art Lens, ISO 7200, ƒ/4, 1/100]
Since we started doing this workshop in 2014 with our first workshop in Lisbon, Portugal, two students have decided to do this as a full-time career in missions. We have had a few others who have made more trips to tell missions stories using multimedia. Some of them are exploring this as a full-time career as well.
Here is our team. [Nikon D5, Sigma 24-105mm f/4 DG OS HSM Art Lens, ISO 100, ƒ/8, 1/200]
Check out Storytellers Abroad for our trip next year. We are going to Lisbon, Portugal, and will have the date posted soon.
If you want to do this sooner, you can still join me in Honduras for a similar workshop. Here is that link.
Nikon D5, Sigma 24-105mm f/4 DG OS HSM Art Lens, ISO 3600, ƒ/8, 1/100
Our Storytellers Abroad workshop was feeling worn out and stressed yesterday. Everyone, including the instructors, was learning new things and dealing with the difficulties of living in the 3rd World Country of Togo, West Africa.
We could not just jump in a car and type in the address we wanted to go to in our GPS as we would back in the USA.
Nikon D5, Sigma 24-105mm f/4 DG OS HSM Art Lens, ISO 2800, ƒ/4, 1/100
Pat Davison was added to our team when James Dockery could not come on this trip. Pat has shown us a few tricks that have made my life easier and helped to improve my workflow with Adobe Premier. Pat also taught us many other ways to help tell a story using visuals than I have been using.
We knew from the students’ projects that we wanted to raise the bar a little higher. So, during this trip, we all worked harder to use new techniques in teaching the content to get the students to get better quality b-roll better.
We taught the many different ways they could use their tripods to steady their cameras. As a result, the b-roll got much better.
Since more students were shooting more videos than in the past, the time to do this versus still photos takes more time. More time when you are already in a 3rd World Country and dealing with the frustrations of everything taking longer put all of us into a stress overload.
Michael Cheatham, chief surgeon at Orlando health and who coordinated the Orlando shooting medical response, is here with us in Togo working at the Hospital Bible Baptist. He led our devotional yesterday, and his words for us were just what we needed.
He shared how his pastor friend sent him the morning of the shooting this bible verse:
David also said to Solomon his son, “Be strong and courageous, and do the work. Do not be afraid or discouraged, for the Lord God, my God, is with you. He will not fail you or forsake you until all the work for the service of the temple of the Lord is finished.
1 Chronicles 28:20
Hearing how his team needed encouragement and God was with you was so comforting. So today, we will share the storied with the community we have been working on since Sunday. We are still feeling the stress and hope by our time tonight that, most of the students will feel a sense of peace with their projects.
Nikon D5, Sigma 24-105mm f/4 DG OS HSM Art Lens, ISO 800, ƒ/9, 1/200
We are looking forward to sharing the stories today. Now wherever the project is tonight, we will show it, so it is a work in progress. Next week the students will add a few finishing touches, and then we will share them with the world. Stay tuned.
The Nikon D5 is really performing well here in Togo, West Africa. I don’t have a lot of technical things to share this time for a blog. I just wanted to share some of the photos I have been getting which is really me sharing the people of Togo that I am meeting.
Nikon D5, Nikon 85mm ƒ/1.8G, ISO 100, ƒ/1.8, 1/125
I have been pleased with the Dynamic Range of the files.
Nikon D5, Nikon 85mm ƒ/1.8G, ISO 100, ƒ/1.8, 1/400
I am loving doing portraits with the Nikon 85mm ƒ/1.8
I also love shooting with the Sigma 35mm ƒ/1.4 DG Art lens. I love shooting both of the lenses wide open which gives such a selective focus that the subject really pops out from the background.
Nikon D5, Nikon 85mm ƒ/1.8G, ISO 100, ƒ/1.8, 1/1000
This week, while teaching in the Storytellers Abroad Workshop in Togo, West Africa, I noticed some trends that most students make.
We assess the trends of common errors and address those each day. For example, one of the most common themes that almost every day starts with is taking care of the technology before trying to capture the content.
Allison Waller, a student in the Storytellers Abroad Workshop, has all these Togo children fascinated with her camera. [Nikon D5, Sigma 24-105mm f/4 DG OS HSM Art Lens,, ISO 3600, ƒ/4, 1/100]
Before you start shooting pictures or capturing video, you need to take care of the settings on your camera.
Here is a short list of things that I recommend that a person checks before capturing the content.
Set the camera resolution.
Stills – I use RAW, but just be sure you have made a conscience choice.
Video – I often shoot today in 1920×1280 24 fps. Again be aware of what settings you use. With video, you need to be sure all the cameras you use are on the exact resolution, or editing will be a problem.
Set ISO – Use the lowest ISO possible to get a sharp and well-exposed image.
Set Aperture
Set Shutter Speed
Stills – Pick shutter speed that works with the focal length
Video – Use shutter speed double the fps.
White Balance – I recommend always using a Custom White balance
Video Sound
Microphones are as close as possible to the person
Set Audio Recording level
Always use closed headphones to listen for sound issues
Once you take care of those technical settings, then when you start shooting, the content you are collecting will be useable.
Pat Davison, a UNC School of Media/Journalism professor, is teaching interviewing techniques using a translator during our workshop in Togo, West Africa. [Nikon D5, Sigma 24-105mm f/4 DG OS HSM Art Lens, ISO 1800, ƒ/8, 1/100]
