NPPA's 2011 Multimedia Immersion Workshop

Only 40 spots are available for NPPA's 2011 Multimedia Immersion Workshop, May 17-22, 2011, at the S.I. Newhouse School of Public Communications at Syracuse University.

The workshop is for visual journalists who are looking to expand and grow their multimedia skills using the latest technology. We will focus on mixing photographs, audio, and video content and editing them into multimedia presentations.

Previous students include Pulitzer Prize-winning photojournalists, top title winners from the Best Of Photojournalism contest, White House photographers, academics, editors, working professionals and freelancers, and graduate and undergraduate students, all looking to supercharge their careers.

Students will be provided with computers and software, but are encouraged to bring their own audio and video gear that they will be using back home.

NPPA executive director Mindy Hutchison says students will learn:

•How to effectively plan and develop a multimedia story, saving time on workflow and increasing the quality of the piece;

•Professional audio recording techniques from audio documentary experts;

•Hands-on explanations and experiences on how to use audio, video, and photography equipment, along with gear recommendations;

•Training on how to shoot visuals for multimedia storytelling, including techniques for documentaries and working as a one-man-band or mobile journalist;

•Hands-on video production editing training, and experience in Final Cut Pro;

•How to integrate music into multimedia work, and the ethics and legal issues that come with music;

•How to navigate modern freelance business issues encountered while working in multimedia;

•Inspiring information on how the most cutting edge multimedia projects were created from the industry leaders who worked on them.

Every student at the workshop will produce their own finished professional project, from capturing all the content to editing and compressing the final files.

Workshop faculty includes:

•Brian Kaufman - Detroit Free Press
•Will Yurman - Penn State University
•Evelio Contreras - The Washington Post
•Evan Vucci - Associated Press
•Steve Elfers - USA Today
•Joe Weiss - SoundSlides
•Wes Pope - formerly of The Rocky Mountain News
•Sung Park - Syracuse University
•Bruce Strong - Syracuse University
•Will Sullivan - St. Louis Post Dispatch
•Seth Gitner - Syracuse University

Cost is $1,095 for NPPA members, $1,205 for non-members. For more info, and to register, go here.

NPPA Advanced Storytelling Workshop

Take advantage of early-registration discounts and sign up now for NPPA's Advanced Storytelling Workshop

The week-long program (April 10-15, 2011) at Texas State University (San Marcos, TX) is designed for experienced television and newspaper photographers, reporters, and video journalists – "anyone who tells stories with moving pictures, sound, and words."

During the week, you will develop story ideas, research, report, shoot, edit and produce complete packages.

Everyone’s a participant. To maximize the participant-to-teacher ratio, enrollment is limited to 35. We pick up where the NewsVideo Workshop in Oklahoma leaves off.

You can see videos by previous students here.

Registration info is here.

Poynter's Video Storytelling Workshop (9/25)

Reminder to all videojournalists to tune in at 10 a.m. (ET) this Saturday for the 2010 edition of Poynter's Video Storytelling Workshop, brought to you by Poynter's NewsU and the National Press Photographers Foundation.

In this full day of training, veteran photojournalists will show you how to find and develop memorable characters; how to make mundane stories -- like meetings and weather stories -- more interesting; and how to anticipate moments in the field, even on tight deadlines.

Presenters:

Darren Durlach, NPPA's 2009 Ernie Crisp Television News Photographer of the Year, and senior photojournalist at WBFF-TV in Baltimore;

Lynn French, assistant chief photographer and veteran multimedia journalist at KPNX-TV in Phoenix ;

Jason Witmer, winner of numerous NPPA and Texas AP awards for his work as a solo videojournalist for Chron.com in Houston;

Joe Fryer, winner of four national Edward R. Murrow awards and a regional Emmy for best reporter in 2009, of KARE-TV in Minneapolis

The host is Poynter's Al Tompkins.

On your computer, you can see and hear the presentations and join the interactive discussion -- asking and answering questions posed by the speakers. Your advance registration will give you online access to the replays of each presentation when they become available.

Tuition is $65, with discounts for NPPA members and students.

For more information and to register, go here.

Video Storytelling Workshop, 9/25

Poynter Institute's News University and the National Press Photographers Foundation are again teaming up to present their second annual Video Storytelling Workshop on Saturday, September 25.

It's a day-long live tutorial, and if you can't attend the session or the broadcast, it will be archived online soon after the session for all those who register.

Learn how to be today's savvy video journalist. Produce creative stories while making immediate deadlines, multitasking as a solo reporter, covering the same-old-story assignments, and managing nonconventional devices to get the story done.

This is your opportunity to learn from veteran journalists who are successful at handling new technology and adapting to new reporting practices, all while staying creative.

The program consists of four hour-long presentations, each with a Q-and-A session. You can participate in person at Poynter's Florida campus, or via your computer.

Tuition is $65, with discounts for members of the National Press Photographers Association (NPPA).

Instructors:

Darren Durlach won the Ernie Crisp National Photographer of the year title this year, for the second year in the row. In the contest’s 66-year history, the award has only been won back-to-back 2 other times. He has won over 80 other national and regional awards, including 11 Emmys.

Lynn French is the Assistant Chief Photographer, the producer of JOBS 911 and a multimedia journalist at KPNX-TV in Phoenix, AZ. She is a native New Mexican and has worked in TV news for 19 years throughout her homeland, plus Texas and North Carolina.

Jason Witmer has won NPPA and Texas AP awards for videos he has produced while working as solo video journalist for Chron.com in Houston, Tex. Previous to this, Witmer produced radio pieces for programs such as NPR's All Things Considered, freelanced as a magazine writer and completed a master's degree in journalism from UC-Berkeley.

Joe Fryer, from KARE TV in Minneapolis, MN. He has received four national Edward R. Murrow awards, including the prestigious Writing Murrow in 2006. He also won the regional Emmy for best reporter in 2009. For the past year, Joe has been runner up NPPA Photojournalism Award for Reporting.

Go here for more info, and to register.

Protect Your Photos & Videos from Cops

There's some bad blood brewing between law enforcement agents and photographers -- both professional and amateur. Though the law is generally on the side of the photographers, it's obviously difficult for them to press the issue in the heat of the moment when a burly security official is overstepping his bounds and trying to prevent him from shooting pictures or video.

As the Washington Post recently noted:

The First Amendment protects the right of citizens to take photographs in public places. Even after the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, 2001, law enforcement agencies have reiterated that right in official policies.

But in practice, those rules don't always filter down to police officers and security guards who continue to restrict photographers, often citing authority they don't have. Almost nine years after the terrorist attacks, which ratcheted up security at government properties and transportation hubs, anyone photographing federal buildings, bridges, trains or airports runs the risk of being seen as a potential terrorist.

Reliable statistics on detentions and arrests of photographers are hard to come by, but photographers, their advocates and even police agree that confrontations still occur frequently. Photographers had run-ins with police before the 2001 attacks, but constitutional lawyers say the combination of heightened security concerns and the spread of digital cameras has made such incidents more common.

The situation has reached a boiling point.

The National Press Photographers Association this week announced its support for a House resolution to protect photographers from police interference. Read about it here.

NPPA's leadership was pleased to see that U.S. Representative Edolphus Towns of New York's 10th District introduced House Congressional Resolution 298, which recognizes that the videotaping or photographing of police who are engaged in potentially abusive activity in a public place should not be prosecuted in state or federal courts.

NPPA's leadership asked Rep. Towns to take the next step in protecting photographers' First Amendment rights by changing his Resolution, suggesting that Towns instead introduce his proposal as a Congressional Bill.

What's clearly needed is better education of rank-and-file officers on the street by the law enforcement agencies that hire and train them. Often well-intentioned police overstep their bounds and harass innocent shooters simply because of their own ignorance of the law, and some vague notion that anyone taking a picture is somehow a security threat.

Further, police are inappropriately citing wiretapping laws, wrongly claiming that shooting pictures constitutes illegal electronic surveillance. NPPA's general counsel, photojournalist Mickey H. Osterreicher, wrote about this issue this week for the Media Law Resource Center: "Photography Restrictions Run Rampant."

Although the First Amendment has been under constant attack since its ratification, incidents occurring over the past few months might lead one to believe that the War on Terror is taking its toll on a mistaken enemy. In Houston, a homeowner filed a civil rights complaint because he was arrested for "illegal photography" after a taking pictures of a police sergeant who followed him into his own home. A student photographer at Ohio State University was handcuffed and charged with criminal trespass by university police after attempting to photograph two cows that were roaming the campus. School employees and police told him he was not allowed to take pictures of the incident, despite the fact that he was a student photojournalist working for the school paper and he was on public property.

In Miami two photojournalists were told by private security for the transit system and Miami-Dade police officers that they were not allowed to photograph in and around the metro stop. Police also barred the pair from entering the station although they had metro tickets and threatened them with arrest if they did not comply. Another similar incident occurred in Atlanta where a person was ordered off a train and off MARTA property by a transit employee for taking pictures. Almost as disturbing was a subsequent post by a MARTA customer service representative who justified the action as a result of “the 9/11 attack and the subway bombings in Spain and the UK.”

Illinois, Maryland and Massachusetts are just three states where police are using obscure wiretap laws to prosecute people for recording the activities of police officers on public streets and roadways. In Boston one man was arrested for “illegal electronic surveillance” after he recorded audio of police officers making a drug arrest. In Baltimore, several people face felony charges for recording their own arrests. All of these incidents happened in public.

Osterreicher goes on to cite, in devastating detail, the numerous reports of government interference with press coverage of BP's Deepwater Horizon disaster in the Gulf of Mexico.

While these incidents only create anecdotal evidence, they do seem to point to a shift in how free speech is viewed by both law enforcement and the public. In many cases police officers make up new laws. In other incidents the police and the public seem to truly believe that they are enforcing or articulating laws or unwritten policies that do not actually exist. Still other cases appear to be an abuse of discretion as authorities ignore well founded constitutional principles. It is therefore incumbent upon the legal community to directly address these cases as soon as possible.

Educating the public, and its sworn protectors, seems to be the most feasible solution, he argues.

While assaults on the First Amendment continue it also appears that a commonsense approach in individually redressing even the most egregious of these abridgements has yielded some positive results. Continuing vigilance against this uninformed attitude along with efforts to make the general public and law enforcement aware of the dangers that accompany such infringements will help protect these precious freedoms.

Meanwhile, ABC reports on the "Growing Number of Prosecutions for Videotaping the Police," offering as evidence this video that motorcyclist Anthony Graber shot with his helmet-cam -- of him being stopped for speeding by a plainclothes state trooper with a drawn pistol. He was arrested for posting the video on YouTube, an "offense" for which he faces 16 years in jail.

State police officers raided Graber's parents' home in Abingdon, Md. They confiscated his camera, computers and external hard drives. Graber was indicted for allegedly violating state wiretap laws by recording the trooper without his consent.

Arrests such as Graber's are becoming more common along with the proliferation of portable video cameras and cell-phone recorders. Videos of alleged police misconduct have become hot items on the Internet. YouTube still features Graber's encounter along with numerous other witness videos. "The message is clearly, 'Don't criticize the police,'" said David Rocah, an attorney for the American Civil Liberties Union of Maryland who is part of Graber's defense team. "With these charges, anyone who would even think to record the police is now justifiably in fear that they will also be criminally charged."

Carlos Miller, a Miami journalist who runs the blog "Photography Is Not a Crime," said he has documented about 10 arrests since he started keeping track in 2007. Miller himself has been arrested twice for photographing the police. He won one case on appeal, he said, while the other was thrown out after the officer twice failed to appear in court.

"They're just regular citizens with a cell-phone camera who happen to come upon a situation," Miller said. "If cops are doing their jobs, they shouldn't worry."

Read the rest of ABC's in-depth report here.

This week the Washington Post similarly published an investigative look at the hot-button issue: "Freedom of photography: Police, security often clamp down despite public right," complete with examples of photos that got innocent people in trouble with the police.

Again, the conclusion is that the friction between camera-wielders and cops is getting worse, mainly because of a widespread misunderstanding of the law.

Law enforcement officials have a hard time explaining the gap between policy and practice. The disconnect, legal experts say, may stem from a dearth of guidelines about how to balance security concerns with civil liberties.

"Security guards are often given few rules to follow, but they have clearly gotten the message that they need to be extra vigilant," said Kent Willis, executive director of the American Civil Liberties Union of Virginia. "In the end, it seems you never know how a particular security guard is going to react."

Last year, New York City police sought to clarify the rules on photography with a directive to all officers. It said that photography is "rarely unlawful" and that officers have no right to demand to see photos or to delete them. Like Washington, New York is a potential terrorist target but also a major tourist destination, and as a result, the directive said, "practically all such photography will have no connection to terrorism or unlawful conduct."

Police officials say officers who seek to stop photography are driven by safety concerns and the fact that the presence of a camera can spike emotions.

Now photographers are fighting back en masse.

Photographers are challenging unwarranted restrictions by collecting hundreds of photos that prompted police questioning, detention or arrest; the pictures are posted on online photo sharing sites such as Flickr.

Local photographers are also testing trouble spots, especially outside federal buildings, many of which are guarded by the Federal Protective Service, an agency in the Department of Homeland Security that has 1,225 officers and 15,000 contract guards to secure more than 9,000 buildings nationwide.

Photographers say police need to be told explicitly not to prohibit photography, because officers often don't respond well to impromptu citizen lectures on constitutional law.

The Washington Post details 10 local incidents where photographers were erroneously asked to stop taking pictures, including this one:

A Union Station security guard interrupts the taping of a TV news segment with an Amtrak official. The official was trying to explain that photography is allowed at Union Station. The incident illustrates the problems photographers encounter at the station, which is controlled by multiple entities. Amtrak controls only the ticketing area and waiting area. A parking management firm has jurisdiction over the parking garage. The guard who interrupted the interview worked for a real estate firm that oversees the retail and dining areas. (Photographs inside a store or restaurant require permission from its proprietor.) All three entities say they allow photography in public areas, but photographers are often told inconsistent information.

See KobreChannel's previous entries:

* Taking Photos in Public Places is Legal

* Journalists vs. Law Enforcement: Know Your Rights

Have you had an unpleasant encounter with law enforcement officers while you were legally shooting photos or video? Please share it with us.

Video Storytelling Workshop (NPPA & Poynter)

The Poynter Institute and the National Photographers Press Foundation are again teaming up to present a day-long event that will help you be a better videojournalist: Video Storytelling Workshop: 2010 Edition

Mark your calendar: Saturday, September 25, 2010, starting at 10:00am ET.

They're offering four hour-long presentations with a Q&A session, and you can take it on-site at Poynter's campus in St. Petersburg, Florida, or online in your own home or office.

"The online live event will be available to everyone who enrolls, even if you choose to join us on-site and at the last-minute can't make it. Everyone will have access to the live virtual presentations and posted replays, even if you stay the whole day with us or just join us for a session or two. Each presentation will be sold separately after the live event. Your registration will give you access to the replay plus our bonus resources."

Cost is $65, with discounts for NPPA members.

Learn how to be today's savvy video journalist. Produce creative stories while making immediate deadlines, multitasking as a solo reporter, covering the same-old-story assignments, and managing nonconventional devices to get the story done.

This is your opportunity to learn from veteran journalists who are successful at handling new technology and adapting to new reporting practices, all while staying creative.

A complete roster of presenters and topics will be posted soon on the NPPA and Poynter's News University Websites. So far, Darren Durlach has committed to returning as an instructor this year. Durlach is a photojournalist at WBFF-TV in Baltimore, Md., and winner of the 2009 Ernie Crisp Television News Photographer of the Year.

Journalists vs. Law Enforcement: Know Your Rights

Journalists have been complaining that BP officials and local law enforcement officials have been actively preventing them from shooting photos and video of the public beaches tarnished by the catastrophic oil spill.

Both credentialed journalists from major news organizations and independent journalists say they are being illegally bullied.

One example is Marguerite Cravatt (pictured), an L.A.-based indie producer who grew up on the Gulf Coast. She brought her producing partner and a cameraperson to the Gulf Coast to shoot documentary footage along the deserted coastline of Mississippi, Alabama and Florida. She says she repeatedly witnessed the media being blocked and bullied. "In one incident, a local on-duty Police Officer tried to protect the interest of BP and prohibit us from filming a sick worker being taken way in an ambulance."

Outraged, she posted her experience on YouTube:



*****
We thoroughly address the subject of where photojournalists can legally take pictures in Chapter 16 of "Photojournalism: The Professionals' Approach." Nearly all the time, public property (such as a public beach) is fair game. Know your rights! More importantly, know what to do, and how to behave, when a law enforcement officer mistakenly tries to prevent you from recording what you are entitled to.

Photographers who disregard police directives -- even if the shooters have the right to be where they are -- can be arrested for disorderly conduct or for interfering with the performance of a police officer's duty. Continuing to take pictures or failing to move after a policeman gives you a direct order could constitute a possible felony.

The National Press Photographers Association (NPPA) and some of its chapters have for years worked to improve the situation, and reduce conflict, by educating police and fire personnel on the role of the news media in society. The NPPA is keeping a close eye on the BP situation as well.

The NPPA has asked President Obama to order the rescinding of a ban on members of the media speaking with clean-up workers, and to instruct the federal government to work with the press to create a more reasonable "safety zone" for journalists who are covering the Gulf oil spill and attempting to document the Deepwater Horizon booming efforts.

"NPPA is outraged at reports that the U.S. Coast Guard has created an extremely restrictive 'safety zone' surrounding all Deepwater Horizon booming operations, and at reports that the federal government has banned members of the news media from speaking with clean-up workers," NPPA president Bob Carey wrote to the president.

(Read more here.)

Carey appeared on KCRW's program "To The Point" to discuss with a U.S. Coast Guard spokesman and reporters from the Times-Picayune and Time magazine how the Coast Guard's 65-square foot "safety zone" has affected journalists' reporting on the impact of one of the biggest environmental disasters in U.S. history.

The 65 square-foot area effectively blocks reporters and photographers from getting close enough to do their jobs well. Off-duty police officers hired by BP to run security details have also been criticized for harassing journalists trying to cover the story. BP now says efforts to stop the spill may pay off in the next few weeks, but what’s happening to the flow of information about the disaster?

*****
On a similar note, NPR's "Talk of the Nation" program yesterday addressed the volatile issue of videotaping police in action.

The Los Angeles police beating of Rodney King resonated, in part, because it was caught on video. Now, most modern cell phones have video cameras. Many police departments struggle to draw the line between citizens' and journalists' rights to film arrests, and their officers' rights to privacy.

Incredibly, in some states you can get arrested for taking video of an arrest -- even if you're on public property and not interfering with the arrest.

In its half-hour segment, "The Rules and Your Rights for Recording Arrests," we hear from guests
Radley Balko, senior editor, Reason; Carlos Miller, arrested for photographing police making an arrest; and James Machado, executive director, Massachusetts Police Association.

Countdown to Soul of Athens 2010

Every year the students at Ohio University's School of Visual Communication and E.W. Scripps School of Journalism canvas the Appalachian community of Athens, Ohio in search of colorful stories that lend themselves to online multimedia presentations.

Incredibly for the past four years they've continued to find and explore the pursuits and passions of area residents in this diverse small community, and never seem to run out of engaging ideas.

The annual project is dubbed "Soul of Athens," and every year it is recognized for its excellent photojournalism, videojournalism, and multimedia packages, which are strong on storytelling. The site is designed, edited, produced, and operated exclusively by students; this year, 60 have participated. They tackle an array of topics, ranging from poverty and sustainable farming to fashion, arts, and religion.

The 2010 edition launches on Tuesday, June 1. You can follow the countdown here, with sneak previews of what to expect.

The first volume of Soul of Athens launched in May 2007. Since the initial launch the site has continuously been recognized for its accomplishments in the fields of photojournalism, multimedia web and video production and editing. In 2009 Soul of Athens was honored by Pictures of the Year International with the “Award of Excellence” for “Online Publications Best Use.” The 2008 edition of Soul of Athens landed 1st place in National Press Photographers Association’s Best of Photojournalism contest in the category, “Best Multimedia Package”.

The 2010 Soul of Athens website will be published in a series of editions, starting on June 1. Every two weeks additional thematic editions will be added to the site. The editions include Expression, Shelter, Passage, Thrive and Experience.

Here are some of the 2009 Soul of Athens video stories that were showcased on KobreGuide.com:

Growing Up After Foster Care
Caeshel Sue Rae Allen, 18, faces single parenthood and life with a drug-using partner who's awaiting trial for abusing her.

A Life Alone
After 63 years of marriage, Tom Rose shares his perspective as a depressed widower struggling to face life on his own.

Multimedia Immersion Rap Video: 'Somebody Bring Me Back a Story, Please!'

In celebration of the kickoff of the NPPA Multimedia Immersion workshop in Syracuse, N.Y., Evan Vucci and Matt Ford produced this clever music video parody about being multimedia journalists -- inspired by Jay-Z’s 'On To The Next One.' (Crank it up! Play it full screen!)

New Business Strategies for Photojournalists

Photojournalism, first pronounced dead in 1972 with the closure of the weekly edition of Life magazine, has been like a cat with nine lives. It is undoubtedly going through turbulent times, but has the cat reached the end of its natural life or is it just morphing into a new beast?

In an article published last year entitled, ‘Lament for a Dying Field: Photojournalism’, the New York Times reported on one of the most recent signs of the field’s weakening pulse, the bankruptcy of the venerable French picture agency, Gamma. In America there was the closure of the Rocky Mountain News and Seattle Post-Intelligencer and the bankruptcy of The Chicago Tribune Company. Even Associated Press (AP) laid off some staffers.

Against this bleak backdrop, I undertook an informal survey among participants and attendees at the 2009 Visa pour l’Image International Festival of Photojournalism in Perpignan, France. I learned how photographers are adapting to the extraordinary changes talking place in the field. Yes, many professionals lamented the passing of the various ‘golden eras’ of photojournalism — from the Forties through to the Nineties – but at the same time many others are changing their business strategies...

Read more here.

(Versions of the essay originally appeared in Canon Professional Network (CPN) magazine, published in Europe, and in NPPA's News Photographer magazine.)

First Prize for Excellent Advice

Videojournalist Colin Mulvany was elated to find that he won an "honorable mention" for one of his Spokesman-Review video stories (pictured) in this year's NPPA Best of Photojournalism contest in the multimedia category.

Until he realized that his was the only award in that category. There was no first, second or third prize. As he blogged:

What gives? This is the second year in a row I’ve placed in this News Video category. Last year I received a 2nd place, but no third was given. This troubles me. Not because I didn’t place higher, but because the judges didn’t see a video that reached a high enough level of excellence to place.

Rather than stew, he sought to figure out what was missing. During an online chat with the contest judges afterwards, he asked forthrightly why they chose to withhold those awards. Their response, as we previously reported, was illuminating:

"This was a real struggle for us. Many were full of technical errors and ignored the basic principles of photojournalism. We saw lots of evidence of urgency, however we really couldn’t award anything that had technical or fundamental errors."

Then as fate would have it, Colin subsequently helped judge the NPPA’s Monthly Multimedia Contest ... and saw for himself what the other judges were seeing.

"Video at newspapers," he concluded, "needs to improve. Dramatically."

Here is the gist of his prescriptive advice, but we advise you to soak up the specifics. Based on what we see every day at KobreGuide, in our quest to discover excellent videojournalism, when it comes to what's missing in 99 percent of the videojournalism stories out there, Colin has really hit the nail on the head.

Among the recurring problems he finds:

* Storytelling (making the transition from still images to video sequences)

* Bland Videos (no surprising revelations or engaging hooks)

* Structure (lack of dramatic narrative)

* Technical flaws (jarringly distracting audio and/or video glitches)

* Editing (lack of pacing, transitions, sequencing, layering, orchestration, audio mixing)

* Journalism (lack of basic reporting principles, the most frequent offense being the absence of multiple sources)

Colin recommends that videojournalists not be shy about collaborating with whoever can strengthen the story -- a print reporter, a video editor, even a script writer and narrator. He concludes, as we have, that newspaper videojournalists shouldn't strive to emulate TV news crews, but at the same time need to acknowledge that we have much to learn from them. We should embrace opportunities to partner with them, and even immerse ourselves in video workshops so that we can get better acquainted with the basic fundamentals of producing solid video stories. (He recommends a few that are worthy of your attention.)

"Until you know what you are doing wrong," he writes, "you can’t improve your video storytelling."

Go follow Colin's prizeworthy advice, and before long you will be winning those awards!

NPPA Judges: Why These Winning Videos Impressed Us

Poynter's Regina McCombs led an illuminating online chat with the judges of this year's National Press Photographers Association's Best of Photojournalism contest in the Web video and audio-slideshow categories. In addition to sharing highlights and trends, they discussed what qualities they looked for in winning entries.

(NOTE: We previously eavesdropped on the judges of the contest's TV News Video category, whose winners are being added each day this week to the KobreGuide homepage.)

This year's contest judges include:

* Phaedra Singelis, MSNBC supervising producer
* Mike Stocker, South Florida Sun-Sentinel photojournalist
* Alexandra Garcia, Washington Post video and multimedia journalist
* Vidisha Priyanka, Tampa Bay Online audience editor
* Theresa Collington, WTSP Executive producer for online
* John Kaplan, University of Florida visual journalism professor
* Jack Rowland, NPPA contest coordinator

You can read their online text comments from this year's contest by category here.

Here is an edited transcript of their post-judging conversation, which we've cleaned up a bit, while retaining the "raw" aura of the online chatroom:

12:59 Regina McCombs: First off, let's talk about what really impressed you this year. What were some highlights for you in the entries?

1:01 Phaedra Singelis: We were very impressed by the level of professionalism in some of the student submitted work.

1:01 Alexandra Garcia: "Waiting to Die" really showed that a simple execution can be the most effective. Gorgeous, inspiring photography with an touching, humorous interview with incredible audio quality. Simple and fantastic.

1:02 Regina McCombs: The University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill took the best use of the Web category. What prompted that choice?

1:05 theresa: Flawless technical execution, great storytelling, strong usablilty...

1:05 Mike Stocker: The overall quality of their work continued to stand out as we went through all of the entries. They took chances, were concise in their work and above all, told interesting stories.

1:06 Ellyn Angelotti, Poynter: "Powering a Nation" (pictured) was one reason UNC won:

1:06 theresa: Their site and segments are clearly produced with usability in mind...

1:07 theresa: Clear navigation and usability in their digital products that made it simple for the site visitor to consume their content truly impressed me...

1:08 Alexandra Garcia: Powering a Nation really impressed us. We felt like, in so many of their pieces, UNC was pushing the envelope in all areas of the multimedia. From video stories to profiles to compelling video to creative graphics, we felt like that site was both deep and well-edited, which made it easy to navigate.

1:08 Phaedra Singelis: Their piece on mountaintop mining "Battle for the Mountains" was very strong. We liked it nearly as much as the piece on the same subject that ultimately won 1st place. It had good energy and covered lots of different point of views.

1:08 theresa: UNC is leading the way with their use visual graphics and interactivity in a technically sound application...

WHAT WERE THE MOST MEMORABLE PIECES?

1:08 Regina McCombs: Anything specific you'll take back with you from the contest in general?

1:10 theresa: Waiting to Die will stay with me. They really used amazing photography coupled with artful, subdued storytelling that suited the medium.

1:10 Phaedra Singelis: I was really impressed by the idea of telling the economy story through the eyes of a postal carrier in "Carrier of the Economy"

1:11 Alexandra Garcia: I also thought some of the story ideas were quite creative. As I mentioned above, our feature slideshow winner was a great reminder to keep it simple when it doesn't need to be complicated, while some of the UNC pieces inspired me to chose the right medium for the right story.

1:12 Phaedra Singelis: I also loved the visuals in "Roping the Wind." Not just mounting a camera on the hood of the vehicle, but showing the clouds moving and the shadows of the wind turbines on the field.

1:15 theresa: Also, Mexico at War is remarkable. Really - it should be the prototype for online storytelling for our industry. I plan to show that in our newsroom as an example of leveraging all digital assets to tell powerful stories online.

STILL A LONG WAY TO GO, A LOT TO LEARN

1:16 Mike Stocker: We had a very diverse group of judges from various still, tv, and web backgrounds that all brought different expectations to the various stories that we were judging. I think that as an industry we still have a long way to go in effectively communicating online. The best way I believe to do this is to work together with journalists from different backgrounds and learn from each other. We all have a lot to learn, and we also have a lot that we can share and learn from each other as well.

1:16 Phaedra Singelis: I also loved the visuals in Frozen Land, Forgotten People. It also had some nice nat sound which showed how to do audio in a quiet place.

1:16 Alexandra Garcia: Also, for me "A Family Kocktail" was an inspiring portrait--it reminded me: don't just scratch the surface of a character, especially with such a fascinating person. Go deeper in the interview.

1:17 Mike Stocker: We need to surprise and hook our audience much quicker online.

1:18 [Comment From Kenny Irby : ]
Mike, speaking of diversity were there any new organizations for example of ethnic media outlets entered in the competition.

1:18 Phaedra Singelis: "1 corner, 3 places to buy Starbucks" made us all chuckle. It was a great example of how to edit to make a story really sing.

1:18 Alexandra Garcia: I second what Mike Stocker said above. Collaborating with judges with very diverse backgrounds was a great reminder to get different perspectives on your stories.

1:19 Mike Stocker: A lot of the winners such as "A Family Kocktail" had that surprise factor that worked so well.

EMPHASIS ON VISUALS OR STORY?

1:20 [Comment From Craig Duff (TIME) : ]
I'd be interested in hearing what the panelists/judges were looking for as they viewed the entries in video journalism. Since this is a contest created by the NPPA, was there an emphasis on the quality of the shooting? Or were you looking at the overall impact -- visual elements, story, characters, writing, etc. -- of a piece?

1:21 theresa: @Craig - yes photography was truly at the center of this contest, specifically how it related to online storytelling. Check out 5 Dollar Cover.

1:21 Regina McCombs: To answer Kenny's question, there were no specific ethnic media outlets that entered, although there was some good coverage of ethnic communities. I'd love to encourage ethnic media to enter -- the publication size categories make it possible to compete.

1:22 theresa: @Craig 5 Dollar Cover is a great example of using some really rich photography to tell a very personal story. Also - audio was really important. The natural sound and the interviews were really vital to this as our choice.

1:23 Mike Stocker: Kenny, there was some great work being done by some indivdual journalists in Mexico, and the judges loved the piece done by elpais.com

1:23 Alexandra Garcia: @Craig, I think all the judges can agree that we were looking for story. Of course, quality visuals were at the top of our list, but we came across many entries that had beautiful images, but the editing and story of the piece didn't hold up to the images.

1:23 Regina McCombs: There were a number of international entries that were exciting. El Pais won third for multimedia packages, and we saw great work out of Mexico, South America and Scandinavia.

1:23 Jack Rowland: @ Craig - The contest rules were removed from the site once the contest closed. You can see them at http://bop.nppa.org/2010/web_sites/rules/ to read the descriptions for each category.

1:24 Phaedra Singelis: @Craig - I think we judged video the same way we judged all the other categories. When we couldn't decide between two pieces, we weighed the visuals more heavily. Overall, we felt we could really benefit from learning more about script writing from our TV friends.

WHY NO FIRST PRIZES IN SOME CATEGORIES?

1:25 [Comment From Colin Mulvany : ]
In the news video category, you didn't award first thru third. I was surprised by that. A lot of newspapers are doing spot news video. What was the weaknesses that you saw, and what can producers do better?

1:26 Regina McCombs: A number of other categories did not have a first place winner. In all these cases, there was a lot of discussion in the room about those decisions. Judges, can you comment on why you made those choices?

1:27 theresa: @Colin - this was a real struggle for us. Many were full of technical errors and ignored the basic principles of photojournalism. We saw lots of evidence of urgency, however we really couldn't award anything that had technical or fundamental errors.

1:28 Ellyn Angelotti, Poynter: Watch and see the judges comments on "Vigil for Teen Crash Victim"

1:28 Alexandra Garcia: We also saw some really great video work entered in the multimedia project category, but those individual pieces weren't entered in the video category, where they would have placed.

1:28 theresa: @Colin your piece was thoughtful and had some great moments in it

1:31 Phaedra Singelis: @Colin - we wouldn't feel comfortable awarding an out-of-focus or off-color still image, and we felt many of the pieces entered didn't meet a baseline standard. We wanted to set the bar for a national contest where we felt competent visuals, audio and storytelling were met.

1:31 theresa: @Colin - with respect to spot news, again, hustle is important but becomes irrelevant if the piece is poorly edited, or out of focus or shaky. The basics still need to be covered - like using a tripod, white balance, etc and while we saw hustle, we didn't see anything that really did a good job while adhering to the things we know to be important...

1:31 Mike Stocker: Colin, The judges were not only surprised, but it was also a little depressing to see some of the basic components missing from the quality of a lot of the videos produced. Education, training and technical proficiency were sorely needed in a majority of the work we saw in those categories. I think we need to work harder, and take some cues from our tv friends that know how to produce successful video stories.

1:32 theresa: @Colin there's a great opportunity here for next year - someone can truly own this category...

WILL VIDEO STORYTELLING APPEAR ON MORE PLATFORMS?

1:32 [Comment From Adam Wisneski : ]
does anyone see this type of content (audio slideshows and non-traditional news video) gaining more attention with the rise of television through broadband connection? For example, would a family sit down and watch a mediastorm piece while they eat dinner?

1:34 Regina McCombs: Adam, I think it's going to be fascinating to see what happens with mobile devices -- phones and tablets -- and see how it changes consumption of multimedia, especially if we can find ways to let people save and view later. There's a lot of potential there.

1:34 Mike Stocker: Adam, that's a good question. I think if the story telling is there, and the viewers have access to something that interests them like some of the top work we saw, than yes, they will watch it.

1:35 [Comment From Kenny Irby : ]
Judges, informed by this judging experience, what are your thoughts about excellence in blended multimedia storytelling? Are there clear guidelines that you would suggest for benchmarking web storytelling. Be specific!

1:36 theresa: @Kenny - yes!!! There was some stellar work here that really sets the bar for excellent multimedia storytelling. Check out this from the St. Pete Times on Real Florida. Great example here of a photojournalist crossing over into video.

1:37 Alexandra Garcia: @Kenny, I'd encourage people to be more judicious about when and how to incorporate stills into a video piece. It can be done well, but we saw far too many pieces that had stills that seemed "thrown in" for the sake of blending the two.

1:38 Mike Stocker: Kenny, multimedia can not be an afterthought. I think more planning needs to take place at the beginning of a project or story so that the story teller has a clear path, and doesn't get stumbled up by trying to piece components together at the end of a project that don't necessarily fit together.

1:38 Phaedra Singelis: @Kenny - I think the Ted Kennedy piece from the Boston Globe was a great example of blended storytelling on the web. They used video, still, text, etc. and it was well organized and had great depth as well.

1:39 [Comment From Peter Huoppi : ]
Are there plans to expand the number of video categories? It seems like in this contest and in others like the monthly multimedia contests, long-term projects win out over shorter-form daily work. Or is the medium still too young to have enough entries in expanded categories (more similar to the still categories)?

1:39 Jack Rowland: @ Peter - The advent of video-capable digital SLRs has created an increase in slideshows with small amounts of video. These currently cannot be entered in the audio slideshow category so must be entered in video. I think we need to find away to create categories that can better embrace these types of visual stories to acknowledge the way people are developing their skills.

1:40 Phaedra Singelis: @Peter - I hope that some day we wrap all video categories into the TV contest.

1:40 [Comment From Craig Herndon : ]
Doesn't the introduction of mobile devices in this discussion, fly-in-the-face of the quality issues, a la the video category?

1:40 Regina McCombs: I'm talking about distributing content via mobile, not gathering via mobile devices, but that raises the question of best gear available, how that affects quality, all those things...

ONE PIECE OF ADVICE FOR NEXT YEAR'S ENTRANTS?

1:41 Regina McCombs: Judges, what is one piece of advice you'd give to people entering next year?

1:41 Phaedra Singelis: Edit tighter!

1:42 Jack Rowland: Enter the right category.

1:42 Mike Stocker: Edit, edit edit

1:42 Phaedra Singelis: Take a script writing class.

1:42 theresa: @Regina - pay attention to the details and the basics, especially with breaking news video.

1:42 Jack Rowland: Put the video camera on a tripod

1:43 Jack Rowland: Get the microphone close!

1:43 Alexandra Garcia: I'd also say that the DSLR video is gorgeous but gorgeous video still needs to have a story or a narrative.

1:43 theresa: @Regina - also, you may want to have a separate web page to post your entries on. We had a whole lot of broken links or pages that had moved. We did our best with Google - but in some instances, things were lost. Put it on a page you have control over.

1:43 Alexandra Garcia: Show your work to a colleague, to a friend, to a family member before your publish. Does it make sense and do they get bored?

1:44 Phaedra Singelis: Use a tripod. Color correct. Check your audio levels. The basics first. Then make the first 30 secs really great. Surprise me.

1:44 Alexandra Garcia: Don't use music as a crutch.

1:44 theresa: @Regina make sure audio is as important and as thought out as your video.

1:45 [Comment From Cliff Cheney : ]
@Phaedra Singelis - Why would you want video judged with TV stories? Do you think they would fare well against more traditional TV story formats?

1:45 Mike Stocker: Have a hook, and grab the viewers attention. Story telling is the bottom line. Find characters and tell their stories

1:48 Jack Rowland: I think we all should be working toward taking the best of what visual journalists do and using those things to create new forms of visual storytelling that are better than what we've done before. It's still about the story, not the gear and the way the story is told.

1:48 Phaedra Singelis: @Clff - I don't think the audience knows the difference between TV video and web video. Our site msnbc.com has both. We shouldn't be producing them differently based on platform in 2010. Good story telling with video is good story telling.

1:48 theresa: Don't give it all away at the top of your video stories. The 'inverted pyramid' doesn't work very well in video stories - start your video story with good nats, introduce a character and maybe offer the viewer a surprise or a twist.

1:49 [Comment From Craig Herndon : ]
@ Regina- Thanks for the clarification. I guess on the receiving end concerns about impact on screens smaller than an iPad are an issue. Did you guys have any back room cross talk about smaller interface delivery?

1:49 Mike Stocker: Phaedra, I think that journalists that are producing video online should take a look at some of the TV winners.

1:49 Regina McCombs: A little bit, but we'll probably have to deliberate about that more for next year's contest. Multimedia is always changing!

FINAL THOUGHTS?

1:49 Regina McCombs: Any final thoughts, judges?

1:52 Phaedra Singelis: There was some really teriffic work. I was happy to see less work suffering from the "My name is.... " intro and getting quicker to the great sound bite. Also, one other note: keep text to a minimum. Never while someone is talking and make it legible if they are watching it on a small screen.

1:54 [Comment From Guest : ]
How are you guys defining multimedia? If it's strictly video it's not multimedia

1:54 [Comment From Cliff Cheney : ]
The web affords a freedom to experiment with new styles and aesthetics that might not be appropriate for a site like MSNBC. Would you want all video stories to be judged as if they could be consumed by mainstream media and exclude those that don't fit?

1:55 theresa: @Cliff - check this out: http://www.dhirajsingh.com/11.htm

1:55 Alexandra Garcia: @Ellyn, We saw some great work and many categories that could have used better work. In this uncertain time in our industry, I hope we can all stay inspired to attempt to live up to that great work and to submit even better work next year--and continue to push the storytelling envelope.

1:55 Phaedra Singelis: @Cliff - We're all for experimentation!

1:56 Regina McCombs: @guest: The multimedia categories were not won by anyone who only had video. The judges felt there had to be multiple story forms to place in those categories.

1:56 theresa: @Cliff that's an example of a well told, brilliantly executed story that's pretty non-traditional. After looking at all of the entries - the good stories, that used the medium to support and enhance storytelling were the clear winners. Some experimental formatting is really exciting when it is well done.

1:57 Mike Stocker: Alexandra, I couldn't agree more, we need to stick together and try to continue to produce captivating stories.

1:59 Phaedra Singelis: Visual journalists are journalists first. Good story-telling, good reporting will make your stories stand out.

NPPA Awards for Best Video & Multimedia

Congrats to all winners of the National Press Photographers Association's Best of Photojournalism awards in the Web categories. Many of these also won top awards in the recent Pictures of the Year International competition.

It should come as no surprise that nearly all of these prestigious award-winners were previously showcased on KobreGuide to the Web's Best Videojournalism.

Lesson: if you want to see next year's award winners, no need to wait. Just follow KobreGuide.com, where you'll find the best videojournalism every day.

(SPECIAL NOTE: This week on KobreGuide, we'll be showcasing the winners of NPPA's TV News video categories, in case you missed them.)

Special congratulations go out to the grand prizewinners, representing the tops in their respective categories:

* UNC Chapel Hill, producers of the Best Multimedia Package: Powering a Nation, and the judges' pick for the overall Best Use of the Web award

* Washington Post, producers of the Best Video: Mexico At War

* LA Times, producers of the Best Audio Slideshow: Waiting to Die
(NOTE: Also see KobreGuide's exclusive Q&A with its creator, Liz O. Baylen.)

And here are the rest of the best of the Website winners:

AWARDS KEY:

INDE winners are for Web sites not affiliated with, or supported by, a news organization;

UNDER winners are for Web sites that are affiliated with a major media organization and whose site has fewer than 2.5 million unique page view per month;

OVER winners are for Web sites that are affiliated with a major media organization and whose site has more than 2.5 million unique page view per month.

HM = Honorable Mention

+++++++

VIDEO:

"Video storytelling produced for the Web, that takes advantage of the strengths of the medium and manages its weaknesses."

DOCUMENTARY VIDEO WINNERS:

INDE

1st Leveling Appalachia: The Legacy of Mountaintop Removal
Yale e360/milesfrommaybe productions/MediaStorm

2nd Battle for the Mountains
UNC Chapel Hill

3rd Driftless: Stories from Iowa
MediaStorm

HM Wasteland
http://www.bombayfc.com

HM Facing Deportation
http://eileenmignoni.com/

UNDER

1st What Will Happen to Andy?
AARP Bulletin Today

2nd Killer Blue: Baptized by Fire
Associated Press

3rd From Baghdad to San Jose
San Jose Mercury News

OVER

1st Mexico at War
The Washington Post

2nd $5 Cover Amplified: Ben Nichols: Hold Fast
http://5dollarcoveramplified.com/

3rd Determined Divas
DemocratandChronicle.com

HM Motown at 50
Detroit Free Press

HM Final Edition
Rocky Mountain News

HM Trapped under the sea
The Boston Globe

HM Ted Kennedy: A life in politics
The Boston Globe

+++++++

FEATURE VIDEO:

INDE

1st Family Kocktail
MediaStorm

2nd Roping the Wind in Texas
UNC Chapel Hill

3rd A Life Alone
www.maisiecrow.com

HM Hold Out
Mediastorm Workshops

UNDER

1st Uninsured in the Mississippi Delta
The Washington Times

2nd Silverton Saves Its Paper
AARP Bulletin Today

3rd Disabled in Vietnam
The San Jose Mercury News

OVER

1st Scene In
The Washington Post

2nd Real Florida Stories
St. Petersburg Times / tampabay.com

3rd My Kidney, His Life
The Washington Post

HM The Scar
www.sun-sentinel.com

+++++++

NEWS VIDEO:

INDE:

No Winners

UNDER

HM Vigil for teen crash victim
The Spokesman-Review

OVER

1st 1 corner, 3 places to buy Starbucks
Houston Chronicle

2nd Carrier of the Economy
Detroit Free Press

3rd Mexico at War: Addicts Latest Victims of Drug War
The Washington Post

HM In the Moment: Witnessing Barack Obama's Historic Inauguration
The Washington Post

+++++++

SPORTS VIDEO:

INDE:

No Winners

UNDER

1st A Boxing Revival at Coast Guard
The Day

2nd Coaching With Cancer
Las Vegas Sun

HM A Passion For Gymnastics
Las Vegas Sun

HM Ready To Rumble
TimesDaily

OVER

1st Seattle Semi Pro
The Seattle Times

2nd Demolition Derby: Crash for Clunkers
TIME.com

3rd Art of the Autograph
Detroit Free Press

+++++++

SLIDESHOW:

"Audio-enhanced photographic story-telling presented in a gallery or slideshow format. Animation can be used only to advance from one photograph to another. The emphasis here is on presenting great News, Sports and Feature photographs with the additional level of detail that audio can provide. There is no video allowed in this category."

FEATURE AUDIO SLIDESHOW:

INDE

1st 'A Life Pretty Full of Love' Act 1
www.kevinwellenius.com

2nd Stepping Up
LucidPix

3rd Mishoka's Story
duckrabbit

HM My name is Dechen
www.dhirajsingh.com

HM Inside New York Fashion Week
Pontus Hook Photography

UNDER

1st Living Off the Land
The News & Advance

2nd One Thing at a Time
Fairfax County Times

3rd Metamorphosis
The Salt Lake Tribune

HM From Chicks to Table
The News & Advance

OVER

1st Waiting to Die
Los Angeles Times

2nd A Boy's Struggles
Los Angeles Times

3rd Motel Manor: Suburban homelessness in St. Charles County
St. Louis Post-Dispatch

HM Gimme Shelter
Los Angeles Times

HM St. Louis WWII veterans remembered 60 years later with Honor Flight
St. Louis Post-Dispatch

HM Comforting a Death in Prison
The New York Times

+++++++


NEWS AUDIO SLIDESHOW:

INDE

2nd Beyond Bangladesh
duckrabbit

3rd Fighting a War of IED's in Afghanistan's Deadly Tangi Valley
David Goldman, freelance for the Associated Press

HM Mexico Swine Flu: The Christ of Health
www.chicosanchez.com

UNDER

2nd A Dream Realized
AARP

3rd Fleeing Somalia
GlobalPost

HM Afghanistan's Fog of War
GlobalPost.com

OVER

1st Frozen Land, Forgotten People
Los Angeles Times

2nd Tracking Smugglers
Los Angeles Times

3rd "America's Battalion in Afghanistan"
NPR

HM Sen. Kennedy's Life and Career, 1932 - 2009
The Washington Post

HM An Ambush and a Comrade Lost
The New York Times

HM Afghanistan's "Lucky Dustoff" Medevac
NPR

+++++++

SPORTS AUDIO SLIDESHOW :

INDE

2nd Oh Chute!
www.jasonmckibben.com

3rd One way out. Boxing in Mexico.
http://www.chicosanchez.com

HM Paintball Pursuit
Ohio University School of Visual Communication

UNDER

1st 2009 Yukon Quest
Fairbanks Daily News-Miner

2nd The schools are tiny. The game is huge.
Austin American-Statesman

3rd Give Blood, Play Rugby.
The News & Advance

HM The Infamous 17th
Midland Daily News

OVER

1st Greyhound Park Closing
azcentral.com/The Arizona Republic

2nd The Pit
Los Angeles Times

HM The Ultimate Race
azcentral.com/The Arizona Republic

+++++++

NEWS OR FEATURE MULTIMEDIA

INDE

1st Powering a Nation
UNC Chapel Hill

2nd Soul of Athens
Ohio University School of Visual Communication

3rd Murray, Kentucky
Mountain Workshops

HM Facing Deportation
http://eileenmignoni.com/

HM Living Galapagos: Battle for Balance Between Man and Nature
University of North Carolina

UNDER

1st Times of Crisis
reuters.com/timesofcrisis

2nd Surviving the Tsunami
Thomson Reuters and the IFRC in partnership with MediaStorm

3rd Life, Death and the Taliban
Globalpost.com

HM 2009 Iditarod
Anchorage Daily News

HM Bottoming Out
The Las Vegas Sun

OVER

1st Ted Kennedy. (A seven-part multimedia series and book by the Boston Globe, published in February 2009, six months before the Senator's death.)
The Boston Globe

2nd One in 8 Million
The New York Times

3rd LA CIUDAD QUE NO DUERME
www.elpais.com.co

HM Motown at 50
Detroit Free Press

+++++++

In several cases, the judges did not make awards at all after finding entries to be below the minimum bar of excellence for which this contest stands. In other cases, they chose not to award a first place but included subsequent places for work that was the best in the category. It is our hope that in these situations, the entries that did place will be closely examined so as to establish a benchmark for the level of excellence in storytelling we seek.

Tomorrow on KobreChannel: The judges explain their choices, and reveal what qualities they look for.

NPPA BOP Judging Begins Today for Websites

Judging begins today for the National Press Photographers Association (NPPA) Best of Photojournalism Awards for Website categories. "The goal of this contest is to recognize the best visual journalism being produced online."

Categories include:

* Audio Slideshows

Audio-enhanced collections of still photographs presented in a gallery or slideshow format, that tell a clear story. This category is for still photography combined with audio only. There is no video allowed in this category. Subcategories: News, Feature, Sports, Natural Disaster.

* Multimedia Package

Highlights the use of audio, video and animation in the presentation of web-based stories. Judges will pay special attention to the use of available technology to complement and enhance the art of visual storytelling. Entries may include single galleries, slideshows or video, as well as packages that include multiple elements that were grouped and published together as a single story or theme. Content, usability, and interactivity are key to this celebration of cutting-edge storytelling. Subcategories: News or Feature, Natural Disaster.

* News Video

A story that covers a planned or unplanned news event or a subject of general interest and importance. It can be spot news or a follow up or side bar to spot news. The event should be timely. The entry should contain no music, except where it's part of the natural sound of the story. Stories must have been shot, edited, and posted on the web within 48 hours. Maximum viewing time: 10 minutes.

* Feature Video

A feature or human interest story, or series of stories. Maximum viewing time: 20 minutes.

* Sports Video

A planned story or series of stories about the preparation for, analysis of, or audience reaction to a sport, or coverage of a sporting event. Greater weight will be given to stories that have sports action video and focus on the competition. Maximum viewing time: 20 minutes.

* Documentary Video

A planned story or series of stories about a subject of general interest and importance, where the photojournalist has put considerable time and effort into the production of the entry. Documentaries must show imagination and creativity in story choice, execution and editing. Maximum viewing time: 30 minutes.

* Natural Disaster Video

A feature or human interest story, news story, or series of stories related to coverage of the natural disasters in 2009. Maximum viewing time: 20 minutes.

* Special Awards

Once the judging for the Audio Slideshow, Web Video, and Multimedia categories is complete, the winners will go head-to-head to determine the absolute best of web photojournalism. The winner will demonstrate a mastery of photographic and visual storytelling in an online environment. Content, interface design, navigation, and interactivity will all be evaluated to find the site or multimedia team that best furthers the evolution of online visual journalism. Categories: Best Audio Slideshow, Best Web Video, Best Use of Multimedia, Best Use of the Web.

We'll be posting some of the winners on KobreGuide -- where you can bet many have been showcased since their original publication!

This week KobreGuide will showcase some of the NPPA BOP winners in the News Video Photography division, which was judged earlier this month. Because more TV news outlets are migrating versions of their broadcast segments to the Web, contest officials acknowledge that there are increasingly overlaps in many of the News Video and Website categories -- which we predict will consolidate before long, like the industries themselves.

Meanwhile, take a look at last year's NPPA BOP winners in the Web categories.

clp.ly Can Clip & Re-Post Web Pages

What is clp.ly (pronounced "KLIP-lee") ?

clp.ly is a tool that makes it easy for users to clip and repost original content. It brings quotes and reposts to life and does it while maintaining the visual integrity and intent of the original publisher with correct attribution and links back. In addition, clp.ly provides analytics for publishers on how their content is being used, what context it’s placed in, and how it's being consumed. The clip maintains its intended form, enhancing the reader’s visual experience and understanding of the original content. Each clip carries attribution and a link back to the originating site.

clp.ly CEO John Pettitt asked members of the National Press Photographers Association (NPPA) for "feedback and thoughts on how to make the product as photographer friendly as possible."

It's a web clipping and quoting service, a one-click way to make a low resolution screen grab of the top part of a web page that's easy to repost in email or on a blog. It will automatically add a backlink for proper attribution and track where the clip is reposted and how many people view it. clp.ly also has a quoting feature that does something similar with quoted text.

The overall idea is that more and more people are 'curating' the news [and] not really adding much. This gives them a tool to make their posts more compelling while at the same time encouraging the reader to visit the original sources by only providing part of the page at a low resolution. Think of it from a user's standpoint as a tool for fair use.

From a publisher's standpoint it's a way of driving more web traffic. Put a 'clip-this' story button on a page, and people can repost it in a way that carries branding and context, with correct attribution, that drives traffic back to the source and provides analytics on what is being clipped and which parts of a story are being quoted.

One of my concerns in building it is that a thumbnail of a photo is still a photo, and while the law is on the side of fair use, I'm still a photographer and so sensitive to the issue.

Here is a clipped page from the NPPA site (http://clp.ly/Lw4+)that illustrates the issue and here is a demo blog with some posts (http://heythisisinteresting.blogspot.com/)

We tried it ourselves, and here's what KobreGuide.com looks like:

Clipped from: http://clp.ly/L2k by clp.ly

LINK:
http://clp.ly/showclip/61bc5820f765184dee89ac53a06457fd-1268708270

... and here's what our KobreChannel.com blog looks like:

Clipped from: http://clp.ly/L2s by clp.ly

LINK:
http://clp.ly/showclip/8ec820ff82a705022526f28269a212ee-1268708334

"So," asks clp.ly CEO John Pettitt, "what do you think? Is there anything we can do to make it more photographer friendly?"

Thoughts?

NPPA Awards: Eavesdropping on the Judges

Here are excerpts from some illuminating "chat room" comments by the judges for the National Press Photographers Association (NPPA) Awards in the TV news video category, on the final day of judging (March 5). We've edited it a bit for clarity, but retained its raw, informal chat-room aura. They're discussing the winners of categories covering both TV newscasts and their Web counterparts, so note the similarities and differences between what they look for in those respective media ... and what common criteria they find in all high-quality visual journalism. (The Web-only video categories will be judged the week of March 21.)

You can find links to all the referenced award-winning videos below at the Poynter or NPPA websites. We'll be posting some of them in the weeks ahead on KobreGuide.com.

WHAT TRENDS DID YOU NOTICE THIS YEAR?

Ellyn Angelotti, Poynter: Welcome to today's Poynter live chat. We have just spent the entire week sequestered in rooms here at Poynter looking at hundreds of photojournalism and editing entries in the 2010 NPPA contest. Photo Judges, what trends did you notice in this year's contest?

3:00 ddelozier: In terms of trends that I saw in this years contest, with regards to web entries, I think there was a wide gap between what was recognized for excellence and the remaining entries. Many of the winning entries were of a very high quality, especially the winning feature entry "In the moment". These entries are clearly where photojournalists need to be moving. I think the quality of some of the entries is a positive sign of growth...it just needs to continue and see more depth of numbers.

3:01 Merry: Number wise, the entries were the same as last year. Lots of new names this year. I saw new markets that I haven't seen entered before. But on the other hand, there were lots of names missing from this year's competition

3:01 Guest: Regarding trends of winners - I can't say it's a trend, per se, but a universal truth - that the winners tended to: a) have a surprise "pivot point(s)" b) develop a sympathetic character through meaningful natural sound and moments and c) have clear beginnings, middles and ends.
As for trends.... the in-depth stories weren't truly in-depth.

3:03 Al Tompkins-Poynter: I was surprised that, given that so many stations have cut the length of stories, SO MANY of the entries this year were 2 minutes or longer. I don't know what to make of that. Do you?

WHAT SPECIFIC STORIES STOOD OUT?

3:03 Al Tompkins-Poynter: What specific stories stood out this year? Why did they work?

3:04 ddelozier: With regard to specific stories that stood out to me...I was extremely impressed with the Washington Post's "In the Moment: Witnessing Barack Obama's Historic Inauguration." In terms of pure eyes and composition...it was spectacular. It was also a great job of storytelling. The story was compelling, it was remarkably crafted and it told a complete story

3:04 Al Tompkins-Poynter: While judges answer that question let me remind all of you that ALL of the winners this year are posted on Poynter.org and NPPA.org. NPPA.org includes judge's specific comments about each category.

3:04 Merry: Steve Rhodes "Sincerely Mr.Stroup" was one that was memorable. It was about a teacher who writes birthday letters to every past student he has had. "The Tyler Project" by Jonathan Malat & Boyd Huppert was another great one. Boyd always makes me laugh or cry on his stories.

Crash for clunkers stood out because of the wow factor. Darren's 48 hour feature on the honor flight was a great example of taking the viewer on a journey through a story.

3:05 Peter Ross: The stories that come to mind immediately: "Dumptruck" "Dancin for Dominos" "Crash for Clunkers" and "The Tyler Project". The reasons, largely, were for their high energy throughout. "Tyler" was notable for its building on surprise after surprise, and overall humanity.

3:06 Ellyn Angelotti, Poynter: One more trend from another judge to share ...
I agree with Dave's comment on web videos. In the web category, as usual, there was an overall trend of natural sound pieces and chronological story telling. (Dawn to dusk, climbing from bottom to top, etc.) As a web journalist, I'd like to see more human interest stories take shape online.

3:06 Merry: Darren's entry was great beginning to end. You can tell he's always listening to the sound and anticipating the next shot. He finds great characters that make his stories.
I agree with Peter. "Tyler" was great, it just kept getting better/

2010 PHOTOGRAPHER OF THE YEAR: DARREN DURLACH

3:06 Al Tompkins-Poynter: Congratulations to Darren Durlach, the 2010 Photographer of the Year. Before we ask him some questions, judges, tell us what impressed you about Darren's work?

3:06 [Comment From Crystal Lauderdale : ]
C'Mon Son, my pick for Judge's Choice, was a stand-out to me (obviously!) Again, being a solo VJ and web journalist, I love seeing a spot news piece turned by a single photog in a short period of time that still maintains strong storytelling. (Nice, Darren!)

3:06 ddelozier: Darren is the whole package. He is a very gifted storyteller who has a great eye. But perhaps most importantly, his stories all consistently do the one thing every great story does: it makes you feel something.

3:07 Darren Durlach: Wow Thanks guys. It's truly an honor. There were so many amazing stories this year

3:07 Al Tompkins-Poynter: Darren, I was knocked out by the flood story -- Cmon Son. You were EVERYWHERE for that story, inside and outside. Tell us what was going through your mind
as you shot it.

3:08 Darren Durlach: Well I got really lucky :)

3:08 Al Tompkins-Poynter: I loved how you included the flood in the background as you shot interviews with people who were talking about it.

3:08 Peter Ross: As for the POY - there was such a consistent level of quality. Specifically - creative framing of pertinent bystanders saying interesting things that added layers to stories. There was a "newsy" feel, even to the feature stories. The "Cmon Son" story reveal of gushing water was one of the most impactful moments of the contest. He (and his reporters) have a good knack for knowing which people will provide meaningful reaction sound, and sticking with them to watch events develop through their eyes. He pays close attention to transition shots and sounds that help keep up strong pacing.

3:09 Darren Durlach: It was a slow day and some reporters were out that day so I was able to nat pack it. It wasnt hard to find pretty pictures and reaction

3:09 [Comment From Steve Fedoriska : ]
He shoots his general and spot news as well as his feature stories and even his features have a news value to them

3:09 [Comment From Jeramy Rosenberg : ]
Also particularly well edited, as shown by it's first place victory in the editing category

3:09 [Comment From Crystal Lauderdale : ]
Maybe you can tell us your approach for "C'Mon Son"? How long did it take you to shoot? What were you listening for? What was the biggest challenge?

3:10 Darren Durlach: The biggest challenge was getting to the frat boys. I had to get around the flood and jump over fences to get there

3:10 Darren Durlach: once i realized how great they were as characters I knew I had a good story

3:11 Merry: Not everyone would do that for a story

3:11 Darren Durlach: It was a lot of luck that day, My news director played it as the lead for the 5:30 and the 10 o clock news

3:11 [Comment From Steve Fedoriska : ]
Darren, I really got the sense you move around a lot on your shoots... how long do you wait in one place before you move on to the next spot?

3:12 ddelozier: That is in my opinion what separates Darren's work from others. He didn't rely on a big flood to make a great story. He found great characters to go with a big flood.

3:12 Darren Durlach: shoot and move, shoot and move

3:12 Darren Durlach: listen for 2 soundbytes and move on unless the character is worth getting into

3:12 Al Tompkins-Poynter: Bu the way, we were lucky to have Darren with us earlier this year at Poynter to teach at an NPPA Virtual Workshop. The whole event is on NewsU, "Six Essential Skills to Maximize Your Storytelling Process" https://www.newsu.org/courses/six-essential-skills-maximize-your-storytelling-pr

3:12 Peter Ross: Darren - how do you communicate with your reporter? On the way, during, after, etc. What are you telling them throughout the story process and do you approach a story with some specific angle options?

3:13 Darren Durlach: gotta constantly move. while i'm shooting in tv with one person I'm looking for other people out of the corner of my eye. my reporters and i constantly communicate.

3:13 Al Tompkins-Poynter: Darren that story was full of natural sound. How do you listen for sound?

3:14 Darren Durlach: When I get to spot news, the first thing i do is shoot anything that makes noise because that will be the first thing that goes away

3:15 [Comment From Curt Chandler PSU : ]
Darren -- How long do you keep the wireless on someone before you move to the next character?

3:16 Darren Durlach: it depends on what the person is giving me. ;if they are a soundbyte machine, and a character we plan to profile then I'll leave the mic on the person longer. If it just someone who adds color or reaction, i just listen for a soundbyte or two and move on

3:16 Darren Durlach: time is of the essence in spot and general news

3:17 Ellyn Angelotti, Poynter: Thanks, Darren for joining us. Any final thought or tips you'd like to share?

3:18 Darren Durlach: on c'mon son by the way my chief photographer was with me finding characters. We were on our way to pick up the live truck and heard it on the scanner, he didnt have his gear so was doing some field producing

3:18 [Comment From Curt Chandler PSU : ]
Yeah, congratulations Darren. A great package of stories from beginning to end.

3:18 [Comment From Steve Fedoriska : ]
congrats Darren your tape was very fun to watch.

3:18 Darren Durlach: Thanks guys

3:18 [Comment From Dave Wertheimer : ]
Darren truly has a gift as a storyteller and teacher. What separates him from other winners is his heart. This is something that cannot be taught. I has been an honor to get to know him at the NPPA Workshop.

WEB ENTRIES WERE MOST DIFFICULT TO JUDGE

3:18 Al Tompkins-Poynter: We have a question from a former POY, Tim Griffis, who is joining us online.

3:18 [Comment From Tim Griffis : ]
What were the most difficult entries to judge?

3:19 [Comment From Crystal Lauderdale : ]
The web entries were definitely the most difficult.

3:20 [Comment From Crystal Lauderdale : ]
The entries there weren't as technically strong as we had hoped to see, and several that had beautiful imagery had very weak storytelling.

3:21 Merry: The web entries are harder because the stories aren't always easy to find. But when you find them, some are definitely worth it

3:21 [Comment From Steve Fedoriska (judge) : ]
The web stories were very difficult to judge, some stood out but others needed work, but we didn't want to discourage growth in the industry by not awarding awards.

3:21 Peter Ross: I would say web as well - their style, quality, length and nearly everything else varied so much - and I struggled with what criteria, if any, should differ from the "traditional" TV entries

HOW IS A WEB STORY DIFFERENT FROM A TV STORY?

3:22 Al Tompkins-Poynter: What are you looking for in a winning web video entry? How is it different from a TV story?

3:23 [Comment From Steve Fedoriska (judge) : ]
It's not different from a TV story, good stories are good stories regardless if we view them on the web or a TV. I wouldn't judge a photo on a website any differently than a photo from a newspaper.

3:23 [Comment From Crystal Lauderdale : ]
I work primarily on the web, and I think one of the biggest problems is always length. Since we aren't constricted by air-time or print space, I think a lot goes without the tight editing that makes stories stronger.

3:24 Merry: Web stories are mainly different in the fact that they have no time constraints. That is good and bad. Not every story should by 1:30. And not every story should be 10 minutes either. We saw several stories that needed to end earlier than they did.

3:24 ddelozier: I was looking for storytelling and a strong eye. In reality, I wasn't looking for anything different than I was looking for in any other category. I saw some strong storytelling and some great eyes. I would hope and believe that will grow and we'll see more depth in the web categories.

3:24 [Comment From Crystal Lauderdale: ]
Besides that, they need the same thing that any good video needs - moments, character, reaction, heart. It's a different screen, but not a different craft completely.

3:24 Peter Ross: I think the web entries need to be shorter than what we saw, and not ignore the basic human challenge that is at the heart of award winning TV stories. Often what we saw were natural soundbite collages

3:25 [Comment From Steve Fedoriska (judge) : ]
There are people who work on web videos who do a great job and those are the ones we should all learn from.

SOLO VIDEOJOURNALISTS UNDER-REPRESENTED

3:25 Al Tompkins-Poynter: I want to pick up on a question from one of our readers, Michelle Michael. Once again, NPPA has a category for the increasing number of photojournalists who are working solo, as VJ's. In fact, two of our judges work as VJ's at least some of the time. Judges, how did that category go this year?

3:26 Merry: Another year of low numbers. Only 12 entries in this category. I know there are a lot of great SVJ's who should have entered this category.

3:27 [Comment From Steve Fedoriska (judge) : ]
Very impressed with some of the VJ work, it is nice to see people who can do two jobs at one time. Dave's stuff was great and if I remember right about half of the entries were finalist for the awards. i noticed some work from my home market not entered and I think they had stories that could have been fun to watch.

3:27 [Comment From Crystal Lauderdale : ]
I really like the solo VJ category. The only difference in treatment really is that we gave equal weight to photography and writing/reporting skills. A good solo VJ has to do both well!

3:28 Peter Ross: I was impressed by the editing skills demonstrated by the SVJ's. I noted only one or two SOY tapes contained entries from this category, an area we all know will grow as the industry continues contracting.

3:28 [Comment From Michelle Michael : ]
What would you like to see more of in the solo video category?

3:31 [Comment From Crystal Lauderdale : ]
Entries. :) But aside from that, just more strong storytelling and character building. Our top two videos both had great characters.

3:31 [Comment From Steve Fedoriska (judge) : ]
emotion.... Dave Delozier did a great job finding emotion and working with it with his writing and shooting. That is what set his work out from the rest.

3:31 Merry: More entries! There is solid story telling going on every day by SVJ's, we only got to see a handful of those stories.

JUDGE's CHOICE AWARDS FOR ALSO-RANS

3:31 [Comment From Guest : ]
Were there any stories that stood out while judging that didn't make it as a finalist into any of the categories?

3:31 Al Tompkins-Poynter: There is something called a "Judge's Choice" award which will be posted very soon. These are stories that judges found to be really interesting but may not have won.

3:33 Peter Ross: My "Judge's Choice" was a winner somewhere or another - "Dancin for Dominos" was just one of the most memorable stories of the week for me - great pacing, reactions, energy, and hilarious.

3:33 [Comment From Steve Fedoriska (judge) : ]
"crafting a contradiction" from KUSA stood out. I really enjoyed how it was shot and I thought it was a neat story.

3:33 [Comment From Crystal Lauderdale : ]
Yes. There were a few that we liked for one reason or another but that didn't have all the components of a winner. "Polk County Rockslide" had some amazing footage. "Fat Squirrels" made us chuckle.

3:33 Al Tompkins-Poynter: We have not mentioned the Reporter of the Year is once again Boyd Huppert of KARE 11. His work has been celebrated so often by NPPA--what did he do this year that surprised/delighted you?

3:34 [Comment From Steve Fedoriska (judge) : ]
my Judge's choice was a story from the war in Afghanistan. I have a high level of respect for storytellers who put there lives on the line to bring us the news.

3:35 [Comment From Steve Fedoriska (judge) : ]
Nothing Boyd does surprises me, he's been doing it so well for so long that I expect great things.

3:35 Merry: His stories always have great pacing, he doesn't give away the surprise too soon. I always say Boyd's stories will either make you laugh or cry. He gets to work with some talented photographers every day and it's always great to guess which one shot each story.

3:35 ddelozier: The winning entry for reporter stood out because of his ability to identify a very simple focus for each story and then he stuck to it. The writing blends with the natural sound or sound bites and it all weaves together to tell a simple story about people. I felt the runner-up in this category was extremely strong as well. Both write extremely well...but don't overwrite. Simple words for a simple and focused story.

3:35 Peter Ross: Same old Boyd - the gold standard - writing to the corners with words that enhance the video we're seeing, not replicating it. His humanity comes through in every line, great deal of empathy. And he always finds a way to include real facts, not just feelings. He is an American treasure.

3:37 [Comment From Crystal Lauderdale : ]
Boyd's tape ranged from the relatively basic "Economy in a Box" to the in-depth "Tyler's Project". In all of his pieces, there's a human element that I think anyone can connect to. Even if you haven't lost your job, you feel a connection to the recession. Even if you don't have a terminal illness, you can appreciate a simple dream like wanting to rebuild a classic car. They're just so easy to connect with and care about.

3:37 [Comment From Steve Fedoriska (judge) : ]
I think his biggest strength is how a story unfolds natural with each turn getting better and better

WHAT LESSONS DID YOU LEARN FROM 2010 CONTEST?

3:37 Al Tompkins-Poynter: Judges, what lessons do you take from the 2010 contest and how will it affect the way you shoot in 2010?

3:38 [Comment From Crystal Lauderdale : ]
Lesson from 2010 - I'd like to find a character for every story. Even if it's a simple daily turn-around. Characters = memorable.

3:38 ddelozier: My Judge's Choice was the Washington Post's feature: In the Moment: Witnessing Barack Obama's Historic Inauguration. I thought it was one of the best shot stories I saw all week and the images were all spectacular. It was an outstanding example of storytelling and should serve as a compass for everyone working in web or broadcast.

3:40 [Comment From Steve Fedoriska (judge) : ]
Great question Al! I am looking forward to getting back into some great habits the POY has. Moving around the scene, changing who has the mic, looking for the little reaction shots that can advance a story. Over all I just feel reenergized to get back on the street and shoot the way I use to. This has been a great week and I have taken a lot with me.

3:40 Peter Ross: The contest is an important reminder of why the basic tenets of storytelling don't change, no matter the year, and how "aiming for the heart", as Al would say is always the right direction.

3:40 ddelozier: I think the biggest thing I will take is the re-inforced idea that a great story is born from a big story. Great stories are born out of great characters and the development of them with great images. So the next time you get the assignment that sounds boring...think again.

FINAL THOUGHTS?

3:41 Al Tompkins-Poynter: Final thoughts from the judges?

3:44 ddelozier: There's a lot of great work being done out there in a time of change in this industry. Those that are doing the best work are those who focus positive energy on the things they can control and don't worry about the things they can't. What you can control is what you bring each day to the story that's in front of you. If you do that...the rest takes care of itself. Have fun...it's why you got into this business.

3:44 [Comment From Crystal Lauderdale : ]
Final thoughts: Technical quality should be a given - shot variety, steadiness, clean audio. For greatness go beyond that - character, moments, reaction, pacing.

3:44 [Comment From Steve Fedoriska (judge) : ]
Good work can still be done, you just have to work hard and think outside of the box. If my story is poorly done, I have no one to blame but myself.

3:45 [Comment From Curt Chandler PSU : ]
Thanks for the inspirational comments and the links to all this great video.