Finding A Feature

Sigma Beta Rho member gets egged by a fellow Wayne State Student for the fraternity's fundraiser.

Every day as you go through life you are constantly taking mental #snapshots of memorable moments in your day. When covering a feature story #photojournalists do the same thing only with their camera. As the event is happening it is important to constantly be moving and vigilant, finding new ways to capture important moments. Those pictures you take to display a feature are like little slices of life. Another key point when shooting photos for a feature is to get a variety of different shots and make sure to take enough photos to get a great group to work with in the end.

Feature stories are my favorite kind of stories to #photograph for. I had experience doing my own feature for my thesis in my first time around at college. Coming up with my own story to cover allowed me to be creative but still challenged me in finding a story that would also be important to others as well. My most important thing I have figured out with feature photography is to get a mix of detail shots, portraits, and wide scene shots. I also make sure to give myself enough time to cover an event because having photos from beginning to end shows the whole story. If you leave early or only spend 15 minutes you are not going to get enough content to work with.

For this feature assignment, I chose to cover my home towns voting day for #Proposal 1. Proposal 1: Should the township of Northfield, subject to the authority granted under section 6.1 of the Michigan Regulation and Taxation of Marihuana Act, 2018 initiated law 1, 6.1, MCL 333.27956, subsection 1, completely prohibit any marihuana establishment, as the term is defined in section 3(h) of the Michigan Regulation and Taxation of Marihuana Act, 2018 initiated law 1, 3(h), MCL 333.27953(h) within its boundaries.

Covering this voting process was very interesting because cameras are not allowed in the actual voting area. I was able to canvas the outside and get some good portraits of important people while also getting some detail and citizen shots.

The first photo on this post is the photo I chose as my stand alone #enterprise shot for another event. Narrowing down to one photo is extremely tough but I'm glad I know how to do it now. Although it doesn't exactly explain what is going on, the shot shows a key detail of the event and then is explained in the caption. #featurephotography #photojounalism

Northfield Township advocates Mary Czech and Tawn Belinger stand outside promoting opposite sides of the vote. Residents gathered in Whitmore Lake on Tuesday, November 5th to vote on the marjuanna business ban proposal. (WSUpj/Kelley O'Neill)

Whitmore Lake resident Mary Czech holds a sign promoting citizens to vote no on Proposal 1 outside of the polling location. Northfield Township residents gathered in Whitmore Lake on Tuesday, November 5th to vote on the marjuanna business ban proposal. (WSUpj/Kelley O'Neill)

Local resident, Tawn Belinger, stands outside of the polling location advocating proposal one. Northfield Township residents gathered in Whitmore Lake on Tuesday, November 5th to vote on the marjuanna business ban proposal. (WSUpj/Kelley O'Neill)

Signs on the lawn of the polling location display the two sides of the vote on Proposal 1. Residents gathered in Whitmore Lake on Tuesday, November 5th to vote on the marjuanna business ban proposal. (WSUpj/Kelley O'Neill)

Local citizens begin their voting process by filling out their registration cards. Residents gathered in Whitmore Lake on Tuesday, November 5th to vote on the marjuanna business ban proposal. (WSUpj/Kelley O'Neill)

Northfield Township citizen Stan Wutka stands next to the Township Supervisor Marlene Chockley as they promote Proposal 1 outside as voting comes to a close. Residents gathered in Whitmore Lake on Tuesday, November 5th to vote on the marjuanna business ban proposal. (WSUpj/Kelley O'Neill)

Whitmore Lake resident Chris Miller finishes his night by participating in the local voting. Residents gathered in Whitmore Lake on Tuesday, November 5th to vote on the marjuanna business ban proposal. (WSUpj/Kelley O'Neill)

Local citizens rush to get their vote in before the polls close. Residents gathered in Whitmore Lake on Tuesday, November 5th to vote on the marjuanna business ban proposal. (WSUpj/Kelley O'Neill)