News Stringer at DVinfo.net

Kevin Galliford · January 13th, 2005, 09:20 AM

Hey,
I finally got a "job" with a local station as a news Photog/Stringer. I am 21 and I have been wanting to get into the business bad but where I live I'm in the top 30 market and these stations usually hire people with 2-3 yrs expierence or more.

I have had a couple of interviews with stations and they really liked my demo tape and could not believe I shot everything and edited it myself and have never had any real photog expierence, but they said if I went to a smaller market area I would definatly be hired but with not as much pay as the market area around here. I told a FOX station I would be willing to work in the studio w/ cameras etc and he said (the chief photog) he put me ontop of the list for the next opening and that way he can show me the ropes for a photog and once I get expierence I can eventually move onto that.

But anyhow I e-mailed a local NBC station and told them about a school bus that rolled over (I received and alert on my cellphone) and they didn't know about it and I got 3 e-mails from all the managment thanking me for the info, I was at work so I could not go shoot, so I let them know, and the managment emailed me and asked me for my work schedule and contact info to see if I will shoot for them if they ask me to. I said definatly, so that sould be a great start.

Fred Finn · January 14th, 2005, 09:17 AM

Thats AWESOME!! Congratulations!

How did you setup that alert on your cell phone?

Christopher C. Murphy · January 14th, 2005, 09:30 AM

Hey Kevin, I'm the guy you called last year and I gave you all those tips.....seems to be working. Glad to hear it...

Murph

Kevin Galliford · January 14th, 2005, 10:52 AM

Hey,
Chris thanks alot I appreciate it. Ya now all I want is a job! :-)

I have the alerts from IPN. www.incidentpage.net I only got it for a month, @ $8.95. Its cool alot of the times I get the alert before the news people do, and it says "MVA Battlehill Road, 2 injured lifestar sent" so you know exactly whats going on.

Christopher C. Murphy · January 14th, 2005, 11:34 AM

Hey, cool site...the news people should get that too.

Good luck man!

Kevin Galliford · January 14th, 2005, 01:41 PM

Chris,
I chatted with one of the people at NBC and she said that its hard for them to get to my area (camera peopel etc) and thats why they want me to help them (string) she askd about money and I said yea I would like to gat paid and she asked me how much, I said I dont know, what ever you normally pay.

How much should I ask for per video? She also asked if I would be willing to drive to the studio with the tapes if they cannot get a truck out to me and I said ya no problem, should I ask for mileage /gas reimbursment as well?

Let me know

Thanks

Jacques Star · January 16th, 2005, 02:35 PM

Congratulations, Kevin,

You don't know how lucky you are...

I'm a 24-year-old Dallas-based freelancer, and i'm in a top-20 market.

I only have 1+1/2 years of shooting "soft news" for community cable television, and five years of overall shooting experience (which includes the news years) It would be impossible for me to get a full-time staff photog job in my market. I'm trying to get a stringer gig with one of the local stations myself, and I am currently in the process of applying. Hopefully, it'll work out. I'd like to learn how to shoot hard news locally, so that I can keep my other freelance work and clients, instead of getting a full-time staff photog job in a small Texas town, but if nothing turns up here, I will go ahead and find a staff job in a small market somewhere. (Why news? I've never had a staff photog job, and it will teach me how to shoot better, faster) I currently shoot occasional reality TV, etc. Lot's of the other guys I work with have news experience under their belt, and they are really good at putting high production value into their footage while moving extremely fast! (I'm not up to the level yet of everyone in Dallas calling Jacques Star to shoot for them because i'm well-experienced, and I am "the guy" to call.)

Anyways, I'm hoping to get those one or two years of invaluable experience soon. In the meantime, i'm just freelancing.

Check out my website, and the camera packages that I own at:

www.jacquesstarvideo.com

let me know what you think/feel free to give advice, etc.

Kevin Galliford · January 17th, 2005, 08:37 AM

Hey Thanks!

I have a Canon GL2, I really want to get a shoulder ENG cam. The first reason for better controll and practice with real ENG equipment, and two I'm not going around shooting news with a handheld, although it does shoot broadcast quality video, people want to see a "professional" camera, I want peopel to take me seriously, but then again its how you shoot not what with. I do have a professional tripod with ground spreader and it's great.

I'm in CT, Hartford is where all the stations are at, #27 in the market area. I'm like 70 minutes away from Hartford.

Ya the chief photog at FOX told me personally he would want me to go to a local Community Tv station get expierence there and that way I dont have to spend $6,000 at the CT School of Broadcasting, he said its a waste. Once I gain expierence at a local community TV station I can have abetter shot at it. I did work at a local station when I was in highschool, but that was 4 1/2 years ago.

I'm excited to string for NBC. Now all I have to do is listen to my scanner and get some footage!! How much do you think I should get per tape in my area? I'll be covering Fatal MVA's, Fires etc.

Chas Briggs · January 14th, 2010, 05:52 PM

Hey I wanted to touch base with you I have been a news stringer since 1995 need any tips let me know. I can give you a few of the top of my head never hose the police or fire meaning if the cops are on a chase only show 3 or 4 police cars they can get in deep poop for to many cars in a chase, the more cops you be friend the better footage you will get. I wont shot any cop hitting someone either you don't want your video as a witness the cops will know it was you, and there goes your friend ship. I make as many friends with cops that I can, hell they even let me get closer and tell me things I would other wise get.

Take care drop me a line anytime

January 13th, 2005, 09:20 AM	#1
Kevin Galliford Regular Crew Join Date: Jun 2004 Location: USA Posts: 139	News Stringer Hey, I finally got a "job" with a local station as a news Photog/Stringer. I am 21 and I have been wanting to get into the business bad but where I live I'm in the top 30 market and these stations usually hire people with 2-3 yrs expierence or more. I have had a couple of interviews with stations and they really liked my demo tape and could not believe I shot everything and edited it myself and have never had any real photog expierence, but they said if I went to a smaller market area I would definatly be hired but with not as much pay as the market area around here. I told a FOX station I would be willing to work in the studio w/ cameras etc and he said (the chief photog) he put me ontop of the list for the next opening and that way he can show me the ropes for a photog and once I get expierence I can eventually move onto that. But anyhow I e-mailed a local NBC station and told them about a school bus that rolled over (I received and alert on my cellphone) and they didn't know about it and I got 3 e-mails from all the managment thanking me for the info, I was at work so I could not go shoot, so I let them know, and the managment emailed me and asked me for my work schedule and contact info to see if I will shoot for them if they ask me to. I said definatly, so that sould be a great start.

January 14th, 2005, 09:30 AM	#3
Christopher C. Murphy Trustee Join Date: Sep 2003 Location: Boston, MA Posts: 1,707	Hey Kevin, I'm the guy you called last year and I gave you all those tips.....seems to be working. Glad to hear it... Murph __________________ Christopher C. Murphy Director, Producer, Writer

January 14th, 2005, 11:34 AM	#5
Christopher C. Murphy Trustee Join Date: Sep 2003 Location: Boston, MA Posts: 1,707	Hey, cool site...the news people should get that too. Good luck man! __________________ Christopher C. Murphy Director, Producer, Writer

January 16th, 2005, 02:35 PM	#7
Jacques Star Regular Crew Join Date: Jan 2005 Location: Dallas, Texas Posts: 68	Congrats! Congratulations, Kevin, You don't know how lucky you are... I'm a 24-year-old Dallas-based freelancer, and i'm in a top-20 market. I only have 1+1/2 years of shooting "soft news" for community cable television, and five years of overall shooting experience (which includes the news years) It would be impossible for me to get a full-time staff photog job in my market. I'm trying to get a stringer gig with one of the local stations myself, and I am currently in the process of applying. Hopefully, it'll work out. I'd like to learn how to shoot hard news locally, so that I can keep my other freelance work and clients, instead of getting a full-time staff photog job in a small Texas town, but if nothing turns up here, I will go ahead and find a staff job in a small market somewhere. (Why news? I've never had a staff photog job, and it will teach me how to shoot better, faster) I currently shoot occasional reality TV, etc. Lot's of the other guys I work with have news experience under their belt, and they are really good at putting high production value into their footage while moving extremely fast! (I'm not up to the level yet of everyone in Dallas calling Jacques Star to shoot for them because i'm well-experienced, and I am "the guy" to call.) Anyways, I'm hoping to get those one or two years of invaluable experience soon. In the meantime, i'm just freelancing. Check out my website, and the camera packages that I own at: www.jacquesstarvideo.com let me know what you think/feel free to give advice, etc.

January 14th, 2010, 05:52 PM	#9
Chas Briggs Regular Crew Join Date: Jan 2009 Location: Portland Or Posts: 31	News Stringer Hey I wanted to touch base with you I have been a news stringer since 1995 need any tips let me know. I can give you a few of the top of my head never hose the police or fire meaning if the cops are on a chase only show 3 or 4 police cars they can get in deep poop for to many cars in a chase, the more cops you be friend the better footage you will get. I wont shot any cop hitting someone either you don't want your video as a witness the cops will know it was you, and there goes your friend ship. I make as many friends with cops that I can, hell they even let me get closer and tell me things I would other wise get. Take care drop me a line anytime

January 14th, 2005, 09:17 AM	#2
Fred Finn Regular Crew Join Date: Jan 2004 Location: Jackson, WY Posts: 178	Thats AWESOME!! Congratulations! How did you setup that alert on your cell phone? __________________ i am the muffin man.

January 14th, 2005, 10:52 AM	#4
Kevin Galliford Regular Crew Join Date: Jun 2004 Location: USA Posts: 139	Hey, Chris thanks alot I appreciate it. Ya now all I want is a job! :-) I have the alerts from IPN. www.incidentpage.net I only got it for a month, @ $8.95. Its cool alot of the times I get the alert before the news people do, and it says "MVA Battlehill Road, 2 injured lifestar sent" so you know exactly whats going on.

January 14th, 2005, 01:41 PM	#6
Kevin Galliford Regular Crew Join Date: Jun 2004 Location: USA Posts: 139	Chris, I chatted with one of the people at NBC and she said that its hard for them to get to my area (camera peopel etc) and thats why they want me to help them (string) she askd about money and I said yea I would like to gat paid and she asked me how much, I said I dont know, what ever you normally pay. How much should I ask for per video? She also asked if I would be willing to drive to the studio with the tapes if they cannot get a truck out to me and I said ya no problem, should I ask for mileage /gas reimbursment as well? Let me know Thanks

January 17th, 2005, 08:37 AM	#8
Kevin Galliford Regular Crew Join Date: Jun 2004 Location: USA Posts: 139	Hey Thanks! I have a Canon GL2, I really want to get a shoulder ENG cam. The first reason for better controll and practice with real ENG equipment, and two I'm not going around shooting news with a handheld, although it does shoot broadcast quality video, people want to see a "professional" camera, I want peopel to take me seriously, but then again its how you shoot not what with. I do have a professional tripod with ground spreader and it's great. I'm in CT, Hartford is where all the stations are at, #27 in the market area. I'm like 70 minutes away from Hartford. Ya the chief photog at FOX told me personally he would want me to go to a local Community Tv station get expierence there and that way I dont have to spend $6,000 at the CT School of Broadcasting, he said its a waste. Once I gain expierence at a local community TV station I can have abetter shot at it. I did work at a local station when I was in highschool, but that was 4 1/2 years ago. I'm excited to string for NBC. Now all I have to do is listen to my scanner and get some footage!! How much do you think I should get per tape in my area? I'll be covering Fatal MVA's, Fires etc.