Photo contest winner claims her prize

By Tony Frenzel Third Wheel

It was a balmy summer day when Audrey Woodward, winner of the ALT photo contest, came to claim her prize. Bearing a camera and a willing mind, she joined professional photographer Jessica Reilly and your intrepid reporter to find out what it's like to shoot photos for a living.

The itinerary began with a quick look around the neighborhood of 22nd and Queen street for a "feature" (photog slang meaning a "slice of life" that could either stand on its own or help illustrate the feel of an area, person, etc. when paired with an article). It was sheer luck that within a block of the objective a lemonade stand was to be found, complete with young children plying their wares.

"I'm looking for some tips on reporting stuff. Learning more about what and how to write to go with photos if I wanted to work in newspapers," Woodward said. This assignment provided the perfect example for accurate reporting of the names of people in a photographer's photos as well as finding out details, such as age and place of residence. It's the most basic of equations: accuracy = life.

Armed with some photos of a thriving lemonade stand, and a few lessons about interacting with people while on the job, we headed for the next destination: Heritage Trail, in Durango, Iowa.

The recent flooding covered the trail with debris, covering it in places and completely wiping it away in others. Consequently, it has been closed for repairs. Our assignment was to find a "feature" photo illustrating the fact that people still are using the trail despite the danger washed out bridges and collapsing embankments create.

Here we learned the value of patience and also taking a good look around the environment one is shooting in, especially when it's in the mid-80s with high humidity. It turned out that the photo envisioned by our plucky photojournalist and teacher for a day would require a return trip to attain. Necessary traits of patience, vision, and light, comfortable clothing: $50. The ability to envision your goal and therefore attain it: priceless.

Finally, we made our way to Lover's Lane, which incidentally is nothing like how it sounds. Though the photo itself was a simple affair of taking a picture of a bridge in disrepair, it was getting to that point that taught us all a lesson. Be sure of your directions, because Iowa backroads are more winding and confusing than the human nervous system.