August Digital Journalist now online

This month's Digital Journalist leads off with a feature on Seamus Murphy's recent book, "A Darkness Visible," exploring almost 15 years of work in Afghanistan. The work is intimate and personal, looking at the culture of the Afghan people, not just the destruction of war. When asked why he did not write a lengthy essay for the book, Murphy responded: "I really don't have a message—I am probably as much in search of answers. What drives me is to shoot what interests me and to find out how life is for all of us. In that there may well be messages of humanism and my belief in the ultimate goodness of the vast majority of people—but it is not a conscious subtext." Murphy's gallery is definitely worth spending some time in. Other features this month look at the Death of Photojournalism, News Aggregators, and a great article on Networking and creating a…

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GeekFest 2009- a weekend of photo inspiration in South Florida

If you're looking for some photo-inspiration this fall, consider heading down to sunny Florida September 11-13 for GeekFest- the semi-annual get-together hosted in St. Pete, organized by APhotoADay's Melissa Lyttle. From Melissa: "Some things we’re cooking up this year include: a shuffleboard tournament, a shoot-out, a silent print auction and more… If you’ve never been to GeekFest before, it’s not your normal photo conference. It’s laid back. It’s low key. And it’s a pretty full weekend of photo goodness. We like to keep it casual and comfortable. Everyone that comes is there for inspiration, plain and simple." Speakers this year will include: Sam Abell, Damon Winter, Bryan Moss, Pat Farrell, Alexis Lambert, Allison V Smith, Bob Croslin, Dai Sugano, and Nicole Fruge. There aren't many places you can hang with photographers/photo folks of that caliber all at once- registration is only $100, and there are some hotel discounts if you act quickly.…

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Finally, a custom designed multimedia bag

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Think Tank Photo makes some mighty fine bags and so when they sent MediaStorm samples of their new Multimedia Wired Up Collection bags, we were excited. Recently I had a chance to put them through their paces working in the field. Intelligently designed and well constructed, the combination of the WiredUp 20 beltpack and the Mic Drop bag best fit the still and audio gear I carry. The belt is brilliant for taking the weight off your shoulder and I find that adding a strap helped me balance it perfectly between my hips and shoulder and made it a snap to spin it from back to front so I could quickly change from carrying mode to working mode. The belt also serves as base to attach other components, including a cool headphone hook (it's included) and the auxiliary Mic Drop bag which big enough to carry a large "dead cat" wind screen…

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MediaStorm’s Multiclip Workflow

One of the benefits of shooting two-camera interviews is the ability to cut between angles without having to use b-roll to cover an edit.

For an example of this technique see On the Road with Danny Wilcox Frazier, an interview with the Driftless photographer.

Final Cut syncs two-camera interviews by creating multiclips. Multiclips act as a sort of wrapper, bundling two or more angles into one clip so that you can seamlessly edit between them.

(NOTE: This workflow assumes that you have asked your subjects to clap their hands at the beginning of the interview as a way to sync your cameras during the editing process.)

The first step in editing a two-camera interview is to make sure both tapes will be in sync when you create the multiclip.

To do this, load the clip from the first camera angle into Final Cut’s Viewer.

Mark an IN point (I) at the first frame of your subject clapping. You may need to scrub
back and forth with the arrow keys to find it. On occasion, the visual may appear to be a frame or two off from the actual clap. Mark IN based on the sound, not the picture.

Repeat this process with your clip from the second camera angle. Mark an IN where you hear the clap here, too.

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