USO Updates: My Video for the USO/NBA Tour in Afghanistan!

Remember when I posted about my amazing work trip to the Middle East a few weeks ago?

Well, today is the day when I finally get to show you the awesome fruits of my labor from when I was shooting the recent USO-NBA entertainment tour in Afghanistan--yay!

The video footage I shot in Afghanistan was used by the NBA "Beyond the Paint" team to make this wonderful feature video piece about the USO-NBA tour and the impact of the tour -- both for the service members and the NBA/WNBA stars who took part in the tour.

I don't want to give too much away, so just watch!


Oh! FYI -- All of the footage in this piece was shot by yours truly, although the NBA "Beyond the Paint" team did all the editing.

Around the World (Almost) In 7 Days: USO Trip to Afghanistan with the NBA

I don't know about you, but 2017 has been absolutely crazy for me.

Between starting my last semester of grad school, getting a new fabulous freelance client and being super busy at my job at the USO, it's been a whirlwind of fun.

And by whirlwind, I mean AROUND the world kind of whirlwind. But actually... read on.

Earlier this spring (right around the time of the NBA All-Star Game), I had the chance of a lifetime to travel overseas to the Middle East (as part of my full-time job with the USO) to shoot footage of a USO-NBA entertainment tour.

Yup, you read that right. I got to travel overseas to -- of a places -- the Middle East as part of my job. How incredible, right?

The USO-NBA tour that I was covering visited service members currently serving in throughout Afghanistan, but, specifically, in and around Bagram. Having never have been to the Middle East, I was incredibly excited about being a part of this tour and soaked up every minute of the journey.

From the long journey there, to meeting service members, to witnessing the impact of the USO-NBA tour on morale, to the overseas base experience, to the 9 hour layover in Dubai -- I loved every minute of the trip and learned so much.

I'll be sharing the fruits of my hours of video-shooting here later (along with some 'deets about where my footage aired!) but until then, enjoy some of my travel photos!

A MilFam Thanksgiving Story: Military Family Reconnects Overseas

Every military family story I write is different. Some are about young families. Some are about veterans. And some are about families that still manage to be families thousands of miles away from eachother.

This, my readers, is one of the last type of stories.

Enter Reginald and Emmanuel Wright. Both men hail from the same household, and right now, are stationed hundreds of miles away from each other in the U.S.

But, as chance (and the Army) would have it, fate has reunited the two together again... in Bagram, Afghanistan.

I had the chance to Skype with the two men about their serendipitous deployments, thier realationship, and thier connection with the USO and was able to write up this awesome story.

Here's snippet:

Remember when you were a kid, and your parents wanted to show you off? Your report cards, your new clothes, your questionable singing abilities, all on display on command for the neighbors and their friends. 

Now imagine you’re a soldier in the most advanced Army on Earth and walking into a USO center in Afghanistan. And then you hear this: “There he is. Emmanuel, come over here and meet ...”

Aw man, Dad.

Like any proud father, Staff Sgt. Reginald Wright enjoys introducing his son to his acquaintances. But unlike most parents, the elder Wright gets to do it in a war zone. 

“You know, people here that come to visit, I get to like them, I get to talk to them, get to know them, and I say, ‘Hey, I want you to meet someone.’ I introduce my son to them. And they all stare,” Reginald Wright said. “They give that little look. And then they look at him, and they look at me, and I say, ‘This is my son.’ And they say, ‘Really?’” 

- See more at: http://www.uso.org/overseas-family-reunion/#sthash.MO8wANy6.dpuf

Remember when you were a kid, and your parents wanted to show you off? Your report cards, your new clothes, your questionable singing abilities, all on display on command for the neighbors and their friends. 

Now imagine you’re a soldier in the most advanced Army on Earth and walking into a USO center in Afghanistan. And then you hear this: “There he is. Emmanuel, come over here and meet ...”

Aw man, Dad.

Like any proud father, Staff Sgt. Reginald Wright enjoys introducing his son to his acquaintances. But unlike most parents, the elder Wright gets to do it in a war zone. 

“You know, people here that come to visit, I get to like them, I get to talk to them, get to know them, and I say, ‘Hey, I want you to meet someone.’ I introduce my son to them. And they all stare,” Reginald Wright said. “They give that little look. And then they look at him, and they look at me, and I say, ‘This is my son.’ And they say, ‘Really?’” 

Remember when you were a kid, and your parents wanted to show you off? Your report cards, your new clothes, your questionable singing abilities, all on display on command for the neighbors and their friends. 

Now imagine you’re a soldier in the most advanced Army on Earth and walking into a USO center in Afghanistan. And then you hear this: “There he is. Emmanuel, come over here and meet ...”

Aw man, Dad.

Like any proud father, Staff Sgt. Reginald Wright enjoys introducing his son to his acquaintances. But unlike most parents, the elder Wright gets to do it in a war zone. 

“You know, people here that come to visit, I get to like them, I get to talk to them, get to know them, and I say, ‘Hey, I want you to meet someone.’ I introduce my son to them. And they all stare,” Reginald Wright said. “They give that little look. And then they look at him, and they look at me, and I say, ‘This is my son.’ And they say, ‘Really?’” 

- See more at: http://www.uso.org/overseas-family-reunion/#sthash.MO8wANy6.dpuf

Click here for the whole story!

An Essay: A flashback to the fifth grade and September 11, 2001

This a personal essay reflection on my memories from 9/11/2001.

I was sitting in my 5th grade classroom when my teacher started crying.

I remember that she left the classroom and returned with wet eyes. She told us to sit down and read us a story about America, not telling us why we were starting our day with a story instead of following our normal routine.

We kept asking what was wrong. She never told us what. I thought maybe a family member had died.

Down the hall, the middle schoolers weren't gossiping in the halls.

Instead, they moved like zombies from classroom to classroom, the muffled noise of newscasts buzzing in the background. They weren't allowed to tell the elementary school kids what they were spending all day watching. But we knew they weren't doing anything in their classes.

Something felt eerily wrong.

During history, Melissa's mom stood crying outside Mrs. Murat's door. She pulled Melissa into the hallway. They both returned in tears.

By lunchtime, people's parents were calling them to leave. One by one, people were called to the office. I was content coloring signs and reading a book.

Near the end of the day someone told me there was a plane accident, or at least that's what they heard, anyway. Travis said something about a "pentagon" and Washington, D.C. ... but Melissa was from New York. Huh?

One of what anyone said --- kid or adult --- made much sense that day.

. . .

When my mum picked me up from school, she asked me if I'd heard, and I said I had, without really knowing what it was that I was saying I knew. We usually never listened to the news on the way home, but that day we did.

Slowly, it started to all make sense.

It turns out, I did know what the World Trade Center buildings were thanks to my sister's love of classic Christmas movies. In Home Alone 2, in the scene where my favorite Christmas tune is playing in the background, there's a long, panoramic shot of the two, gigantic buildings jetting from the skyline.

I never knew the "World Trade Center" is what they were called. I wondered why were they called a "center" when there were two separate buildings.

. . .

I had never watched the news much growing up. I thought it was boring and my parents thought the stories were too violent for me to regularly watch.

But that day, I remember watching that plane fly into the second tower over. And over. And over.

Graphics reading: "America under attack!"

The debris. The dust. Got bless America. Congress waved flags in the air.

By the time they started showing images of people jumping, I remember my mum tried to get me not to watch. I was just a kid. Only 10. She didn't want to make me upset.

But Jaci was watching. And so was dad. And she didn't feel like fighting. So she just let me sit there a few more minutes with everyone else.

. . .

That night I went to bed feeling antsy. It didn't seem like a good time to sleep. Why did those people do that to us? Why were all the adults so scared? Everyone seemed upset.

I didn't understand.

As the T.V. sounds clicked off and the house grew still, I listened to the sounds of the train that my parents thought was too far away for me to hear whistle in the distance.

Meanwhile, fighter pilots flew overhead, heading towards Pasadena.

###

You're never to old to learn new things: Relearning lighting in photography

Happy Thursday! I can't believe its the third week of August. It seems crazy to think that summer is coming to an end, kiddos are heading back to school, and boot-wearing season is only a few weeks away!

I digress. Anyway.


Yesterday I had the chance to head out on a shoot with an awesome colleague of mine and learn a few new tools of the videography/photography trade. It was SO fun! I felt a little bit like an intern again, honestly. :)

We were shooting a promotional video for the USO about the story of one wounded warrior's road to recovery, and how the USO has been for him along his recovery. After he was medically evacuated from the battlefield, and taken to Germany, and then Walter Reed, this amazing service member was surprised (thanks to the USO!) by his entire battalion upon his arrival home to Seattle. Pretty cool, eh?

But back to photography takeaways.

More than anything, I re-learned the importance of good lighting. After all, a camera is just a glorified light-capture box. Good lighting means good pictures, no doubt about it. While I'm pretty comfortable using and manipulating natural lighting, I'll admit, using lighting set ups intimidates me a little bit-- plus, they're a little costly, if you want to purchase something that will grow with you as a creative artist. However, maybe it's time to take the plunge...

Thoughts?