Tell us about your position with LSA Technology Services and what a day might look like for you.
My position is a senior videographer with Instructional Video, as part of Learning & Teaching Consulting (LTC). We provide video services, editing, and workshops. We can also help with podcasting or flipping your classroom. Our work is usually to help classes.
A typical day for me would consist of a lot of editing different projects. This could be flipped classroom videos or the Film Television and Media (FTVM) Lexicon Project that has been going on for a few years now, or Faculty Spotlight videos, which showcase faculty members who have grants or are doing something extraordinary in their classes.
LTC will work with instructors and spotlight them to show how they are innovating with their classes. I also do a lot of emailing and scheduling shoots, but most of the time I’m in front of my computer and editing. We typically shoot every other week.
What has your career path looked like?
I went to school at the Art Institute of Atlanta and learned all the ins and outs of video production. From there I worked at a news station in Birmingham, Ala., ABC 33/40 for a few years. After that I worked for Hibbett Sporting Goods as their lead videographer for four years. They focus on shoes and have stores all across the U.S.—not in Michigan, though. I shot a lot of content for their website, social media, and internal things. They had an annual conference that they would go all out for that I would shoot. After that I moved to Michigan and came to U-M.
All throughout that time I’ve been freelancing on the side. I do a lot of editing, a lot of weddings, and work with churches on monitoring their live stream or television broadcast. I also do digital invitations, obituaries, shooting houses for real estate agents, graphic design…a little bit of everything.
Is there a project you’ve worked on that has stuck out to you?
Our FTVM Lexicon Project is a pretty big one we’ve been working on since I got here in 2019. They send us to a conference every year to shoot nonstop for three or four days. We film someone defining a term, so it’s basically a big dictionary of audio-visual terms that students can watch before they come into class. They are going to be published by U-M as a digital book that will be accessible to other universities. We’re going to shoot with them again next year. Right now we have over 150 terms and counting.
Is there something you wish people knew about your team?
I wish people knew how easy it is to work with us. You just have to have an idea and bring it to us and we’ll help you. I feel like people are intimidated by video production and think it will be too much work, but we can make professional, interesting, and creative videos for classes if people take that first leap of asking what’s possible.
What could we find you doing outside of work?
I moved to Detroit in 2022, so I’ve been taking some time to explore. There’s something going on every weekend, or really every day, and there is so much to get into. So I like to explore the city, travel, try new food, and cook. But my favorite thing to do outside of work is watch some good ole Alabama football. Roll Tide, Roll!
