Photojournalism

CLUB Q Shooting:

Club Q was breaking news world wide. My video and photos were first published by CNN as events unfolded. Reminder, Club Q is an LGBTQ nightclub in Colorado Springs. This was the scene of a mass shooting event that left 17 people injured and five people dead in November of 2022.

My role was an overnight photographer for KKTV 11 News. As the calls for help and support came across the police scanners, I responded to the scene as quickly as possible. Recognizing this as a major news event, I notified the morning news producer, reporter and news director that I needed assistance. We had to get the feed up for CNN, and as calls from around the world came in asking for information and video feeds, we had to manage the demand for information, and provide available information. Get images up for the web publishing and the live broadcast. It was full mobilization of city resources, emergency response resources and our news teams.

Apartment Fire:

During a heavy thunderstorm, multiple fires were started from lightning strikes. This apartment was the largest and most devastating of the fires started this night. This night posed multiple challenges. I had to decide which fire to cover when multiple fires are going. The building was completely uninhabitable. Every family had to evacuate. One of our station reporters lived here. The news station camera failed during the rainstorm. Fire Department was ready to give me a briefing about the situation for the night.

Before leaving the television station, I spoke with the police duty lieutenant that night, I learned this was the largest fire, one that affected the most amount of people and one with the most amount of police resources on it. I decided to cover this fire as breaking news. After the television camera failed, I was able to use my personal camera to continue to record the scene, get the interview with the Fire Chief and get a couple of additional interviews.

Peanut Pusher:

Manitou Springs hosted a guy to flip a peanut up Pikes Peak with his nose. Barr Trail is the hiking trail to the top of the Peak. It took him a week to do it. I was there to cover the start of his journey. The start party included witnesses, a band, and the Manitou Mayor attended the event. He was the fourth person to push a peanut to the top of the mountain.

This was a break from the type of news stories I usually cover. It was light and fun. I got to meet local politicians and got some daytime video and photos. I was not on the coverage when he reached the top of the mountain.