Happy Birthday, Cesar Chavez

Happy birthday to Cesar Chavez, Champion of Workers

The People-Powered Commute - by Erin Glass

Patty now prefers cycling away from traffic, on San Diego's local mountain trails

This is an example of gaining a little press by talking to a writer about a topic you are knowledgeable about. I found out that Erin Glass was looking for experts on bicycle commuting here in San Diego. Since I'd ridden a bike to and from work for eight years back in the 80's and 90's, I emailed Erin and she decided to use my story in her article. It would have been great to additionally have one of my photos accompany the story, as well as some contact information, but if anyone really wants to find me, they can simply google my name. I don't really expect for any business to start pouring in because of this story; however, every little bit helps when you are striving for publicity. Now I've got a "tear sheet," and Erin knows she can contact me anytime she needs quotes from someone about bicycle commuting and/or video production in San Diego.

Here's an excerpt:

.............

The daily commute is a well-worn subject of complaint. Driving is expensive, aggravating and isolating. Cars pollute. Traffic jams rob free time and peace of mind....

Cyclist Patty Mooney, 53, a video producer, wasn’t deterred after being hit by a car and sent to the hospital. In fact, instead of suing the driver, she took him out to breakfast after she recovered.

“I figured it was good PR for cyclists,” said Mooney, whose cycling motivation includes health (both hers and the planet’s) and a sense of freedom. “There are drivers that resent cyclists, though cyclists have the same rights as drivers.”

For example, a Los Angeles physician allegedly injured two cyclists in January by slamming his brakes in front of them. He told police at the scene it was “to teach them a lesson,” one that included broken teeth, a broken collar bone, a severed nose.

Still, Mooney, who commuted 15 miles a day on her bike for eight years before working from home, doesn’t let drivers intimidate her. Once, while riding near Home and Fairmount Avenue, someone threw a chain at her from a passing car.

Maybe it was the wind in the hair, maybe it was the thrill of a cyclist’s independence, but Mooney did not peddle quickly and quietly away.

“I should have taken their license plate, but I rode up, zoomed over to driver’s side and emptied my water bottle on the driver’s head,” she said. The car was full of shady-looking, tough guys, the type with bandannas and tattoos. For a second no one moved.

Then what happened?

“Oh,” she said. “They started laughing.”

Erin Glass is SDNN’s health and lifestyle editor. Read her full story here: San Diego News Network - The People-Powered Commute.

Five Tips on Marketing Yourself - by Rhonda Sher

Most of us think of networking as belonging to networking groups, chambers of commerce or going to mixers, association meetings or other events. This is networking in the traditional sense. It works but what it does not do is show you a way to stand out from everyone else who does what you do. How can you be visible in the sea of others who do what you do? The solution starts with answering the question: what are you best known for and in what areas can you offer your expertise? In an ideal world, you are known for your professional accomplishments but many people are also known for their hobbies or interests. This is not a bad thing as long as your interests reflect your integrity and are congruent with your professional work.
Here are several ways you can get your name recognized and grow your networking simply by creating visibility:

1. Use media exposure as a way to get known for your expertise. Take initiative and contact your local, regional or even national newspapers and magazines as well as online editors to let them know you are willing to be quoted on your area of expertise. For example, if you are long term care expert, you can talk about what baby boomers potentially face without having a plan in place in case of serious illness. You can share stories, statistics, and information that will help those who might be looking into long term care make an educated decision. Since articles will give your contact information, it stands to reason that someone interested in your area of expertise will contact you. Bingo! your expertise showcased in the media brings you to the forefront.

2. Take initiative and write reviews of books in your area of expertise and submit them to Barnes and Noble, Amazon.com and other sites. For example, if you are an expert in real estate investments, write a review of the latest book on real estate investing.

3. Become a public speaker. This is not as hard as it sounds. There are always organizations looking for speakers and even if you are not paid, the exposure is priceless. The thing to remember is to provide information, not a commercial. If you are not secure in your public speaking skills, you can join www.toastmasters.com or take one of the many public speaking courses that are offered. Put a talk together that is interesting, informative and engages your audience. You will be the expert that all eyes are on.

4. Write a book. With print on demand publishing, it is not difficult to have a book published. It establishes you as an expert in your field and makes getting speaking engagements and having your articles published much easier. You can even write your book as an “E-book” and put it on your website as well as other websites for free or purchase. To learn how to put a book together quickly and easily on your area of expertise, there are many resources and classes that can show you how to do this. Just get started.

5. Take positions of leadership in professional, volunteer, civic organizations as well as associations in your area of expertise. When you serve on an advisory board, you have the opportunity to meet some of the most powerful members of your community. Take the initiative.

There are many ways to stand out from everyone else but it takes going out of your comfort zone. Once you step out there, you will find that you are not alone and with many others who will be your strategic partners, affiliates and power resources. Take action and become visible. It is amazing what you will see when others see you in a different way. After all, it only takes two minutes to go from invisible to visible. Take down the curtain and unveil your talents and expertise to the world and have fun.

Rhonda Sher, Two Minute Networker

Don't Shoot the Brewmaster! - by Mark Schulze

Mark Schulze, Jim Koch and Patty Mooney

Don't shoot the brewmaster! Okay, that's my little allusion to the old quote, "Don't shoot the piano player." It's an inference that you don't want to destroy something or someone that brings you pleasure. And I was being sarcastic, in that I DID shoot this particular brewmaster, Mr. Jim Koch, the CEO of Samuel Adams, but I shot him with my camera when he appeared at the Craft Beers Convention in San Diego last summer. If you've ever seen the Sam Adams commercials on television, yes, that really is Jim's voice.

This is a man who knows his beers! And why not? He is a third-generation brewmaster, and he and his forebears have been immersed in hops for decades. See the taps behind us? That is what they call a "perk" of the gig. It was one of the best video production gigs I have had the pleasure to be a part of.

Some of the finest beers on Earth, right there in that room. Well, as they say, someone has to do it! As someone who is part German, I certainly know how to appreciate well-crafted beers. And so does my wife, Patty, who is part Irish. 'Nuf said.

On Speaking to Grow Your Business - by Liz Goodgold

Liz Goodgold, Speaker and PR Specialist

What do you think about doing speeches to grow my brand and business? Is it a valid business building tool?

Answer:

Public speaking is a great way to show off your expertise; prospect; and influence people. Just remember a few key rules:

Be Authentic - don’t copy anyone else’s style. Your brand is always the right brand.

Make Sure the Event is Appropriate - Do not commit to a speech if the venue, audience, time of day, or objectives aren’t in concert. Your “30 ideas in 30 minutes” may be a great lead generator for small business, but may bomb if offered to product marketers late in the evening, and after they’ve had way too much to drink.

Get the Message Right - As speaking coach Chris Witt writes: no one wants to listen to Donald Trump give a touchy-feely speech about customer service. Instead, he must talk about money - the message that matches his brand.

Give a Masterful Performance - Deliver the talk that is right for you with passion, but just do it bigger and louder. You don’t need to change anything else. Add a little drama and voila! You’ll hit a home run!

Want more guidelines and help? For a detailed book on speaking your best, see Chris Witt’s new book, Real Leaders Don’t Use PowerPoint: How to Sell Yourself and Your Ideas. Contact Chris at chris@wittcom.com.

By Liz Goodgold, branding expert, author, and speaker. Sign up for her FREE Hot Topics newsletter with valuable information.

On Squidoo Lenses and Driving More Traffic to Your Site - by Patty Mooney

Ever hear of "Squidoo"? Until an hour ago, I had not heard of it either. And I "own" a lot of "real estate" in Cyberspace, including pages on Facebook, MySpace, Vimeo, YouTube, Flickr, Picasa, Digg, not to mention Blogger, and the list goes on! Squidoo invites people to create "Lenses" (pages) about topics that are near and dear to their hearts, touting it as "A fast, free and fun way to stand up for what you believe in."

So I started to tinker with Squidoo and built up a Lens about our documentary, "The Invisible Ones: Homeless Combat Veterans." I decided to create this Lens because it's another free way to get the word out into Cyberspace about a very important issue. We will have to see how this little experiment goes.

Meanwhile, I came across this interesting Squidoo Lens which I wanted to share with my blog buddies... It's an excellent place to visit just to see how doing something you already love to do - writing - can help bring more traffic to your site.

Check out this explanation of Squidoo by Wikipedia.

read more digg story

How to Get Massive Traffic To Your Blog - by Penny C.Sansevieri

How to Get Massive Traffic to Your Blog: Tag! You’re it! - by Penny Sansevieri

One of the biggest questions I get from authors is: “I have a blog but how do I get people to it?” Well first off, you want to keep blogging, but there are other things you can do too and we’ll discuss two of the most powerful ones here.

If you’ve spent any kind of time online you’ve probably heard the terms: tag or social bookmarking. But what *exactly* do these terms mean?

Well if you think of the term “tagging” like you would a name tag at a party or networking event it will start to make much more sense. Generally when you post a blog, it’s recommended that you “tag” it with various terms appropriate to the message of the blog. The Wikipedia definition of “tag” is: A tag is a keyword which acts like a subject or category. This keyword is used to organize webpages, subjects, and objects on the Internet.

When you think of it this way, what you’re really doing is organizing each of your blog posts so that folks can find and search them. By tagging each of them with specific keywords you’ll come up faster when someone searches those keywords than if you left your blog blank. Make sense? Ok, then let’s get started learning how to tag. (I promise, it’s very easy)

When creating tags, there are two types that you can create. You can imbed your blog with tags using services like Technorati (more on that in a minute) or you can go to social networking sites and tag your blog as well. Honestly, I recommend a combination of both.

Social bookmarking is a way of “bookmarking” favorite sites (i.e. yours) so you can easily share them (via tags) with the Internet community and especially folks who are searching on your search term. I’ll explain how to get your site bookmarked but for now take a look at sites like www.digg.com and www.del.icio.us.com – these are the top two social bookmarking sites you’ll want to use. There are others but we’ll discuss these in a minute.
Ok, here we go!

Simple steps to tagging:

1) Create a blog post: just write your blog, don’t worry about doing anything different.

2) Identify some keywords you’ll want to use: just pick some keywords, as many as you want. Don’t worry about getting too scientific with this, just be thorough.

3) Create your tags: head on over to http://www.egmstrategy.com/ice/tag-generator.cfm and generate a tags (this will be choice #1). Once you input the keywords make sure the default button is checked at Technorati. Then go to the bottom and click “generate code” – this code will get posted right into your blog. It’s that easy! (tip: always post this code at the end of your blog) When you’re done you’ll see code in your blog like this: http://www.redhotinternetpublicity.com/blog/?p=454)

Social bookmarking: simply put, you want to tag each of your blog posts in one or all of the following social networking sites. The one slightly time consuming piece is that you’ll need to set up accounts for each of these but once you do, it will take you a minute or so per post to add a social bookmarking tag to each of them. Here are some of the most popular social bookmarking sites you’ll want to use: dig.com, del.icio.us, yahoo.com (this is still in beta but I recommend using it anyway), blinklist.com, spurl.com, reddit.com, furl.com, and stumbledupon.com5) Nuts and bolts: each of these sites has a different set of criteria for bookmarking your blog post. If you’re blogging everyday this might seem pretty tedious. If it’s too much work to tag and bookmark each of your posts, handpick a few each week and focus on those. The idea is that you want to get these keywords out in cyberspace so folks can find you.

Ready for a final tip? If you want to impress customers with your endless list of resources why not share your del.icio.us page with your readers/customers. Del.icio.us gives each registered member their own page with all of their bookmarks. Ideally you’ll want to include other resources besides your own blog but a link to this page could be a fantastic way to gain additional exposure not just for your blog, but to your wealth of resources as well. (here’s my page: http://del.icio.us/bookmkr)

Penny C. Sansevieri, CEO and founder of Author Marketing Experts, Inc., is a best-selling author and internationally recognized book marketing and media relations expert. Her company is one of the leaders in the publishing industry and has developed some of the most cutting-edge book marketing campaigns. She is the author of five books, including Book to Bestseller which has been called the “road map to publishing success.” AME is the first marketing and publicity firm to use Internet promotion to its full impact through The Virtual Author Tour™, which strategically works with social networking sites, blogs, micro-blogs, ezines, video sites, and relevant sites to push an authors message into the virtual community and connect with sites related to the book’s topic, positioning the author in his or her market. To learn more about Penny’s books or her promotional services, you can visit her web site at http://www.amarketingexpert.com. To subscribe to her free ezine, send a blank email to: mailto:subscribe@amarketingexpert.com

Copyright © 2009 Penny C. Sansevieri

An Interview With Ced Dempsey - by Mark Schulze

Ced Dempsey and Director of Photography/Videographer, Mark Schulze - Photo by Patty Mooney

Now that March has roared in like a lion, it seems like a great time to talk about the day we shot a short interview of Ced Dempsey, who is one of the most respected men involved with intercollegiate athletics in the United States.

According to his bio on the Albion College website, Ced Dempsey, who has been President of the NCAA since 1994, "has championed athletic involvement as a means of enhancing international understanding. He provides leadership for the more than 1,200 colleges, universities, conferences, and affiliated organizations that comprise the association."

Additionally, "A nine-time letter winner in three different sports at Albion (football, basketball, and baseball), Ced was named the MIAA Most Valuable Player in basketball his senior year and was inducted as a charter member of the College’s Athletic Hall of Fame in 1989. From 1959 to 1962, Ced served as Albion’s head basketball and cross country coach. The following year he was dean of men."

"Prior to joining the NCAA, he was director of athletics at four institutions, the University of Arizona, University of the Pacific, San Diego State University, and the University of Houston.
He earned a doctorate from the University of Illinois in 1963. A recipient of the Distinguished Alumni Award from Albion in 1993, he was presented with an honorary doctor of laws degree from the College in 1995."

"He and his wife, June Luke Dempsey, ’54, recently funded extensive improvements in the College’s softball field. The Dempseys are the parents of three children and reside in Indianapolis."

It was a great pleasure for my wife, Patty, who is also my sound person, and I got to meet Mr. Dempsey. It would be difficult to meet a more gracious man. Although Patty met the late, great Pete Newell a couple of years ago, just before he passed, and he, too, was fantastic.

The great Pete Newell - Photo by Patty Mooney

How to Improve Your Photographic Skills - by Patty Mooney

I am no Henri Cartier Bresson or Annie Liebowitz; however, I have been shooting photographs since I was a wee child and I still have my original camera, the Brownie Hawkeye, sitting on a shelf in my office. I use photographs to accompany articles and press releases that I write about video production here in San Diego. I've had good success in getting many pieces published over the last couple of decades. Here are just a few:

Create Magazine - Los Angeles Edition
They used a photo of Oprah Winfrey which I shot when she was in San Diego

Indie Slate Magazine - "The Meaning of Freedom: 'My Choice'"
They used several photos I snapped while attending the March for Women's Lives in Washington DC

Definition: The High Def Source Book
They used a photo of my husband, Mark Schulze, which I shot just before he lifted off in a helicopter to videotape aerials above San Diego

Consumer-grade cameras with good resolution are so reasonable right now that you couldn't afford not to have a camera for your public-relations needs. The model I have, the Canon Powershot 750, paid for itself almost immediately, based on the photographs (and video!) I took with it that have appeared in various online and printed publications. If you have been sitting on the fence waiting for better prices, you can jump down now, get yourself a nice little camera and start snapping.

Once you have camera in hand, you are ready to go and take some photographs. Henri Cartier Bresson, arguably the greatest photographer of the 20th Century, used to say “I don’t take the photograph. The photograph takes me.” For him it was a matter of geometry, sensitivity, spontaneity and intuition. Here is one of his most famous photographs, which illustrates what he called “The decisive moment.”




Here you see a man in mid-leap over a reflective patch of water and everything arranged in the photo is very well balanced.

So how do you achieve that kind of balance in your photographs of people, how do you capture that decisive moment?

Here are some tips that will help you improve the quality of your photographs.


1) Fill the frame with your subject. Most amateurs make the mistake of too much "head room." Get closer to your subject, and eliminate too much sky or ceiling.

2) When you are taking outdoors shots, remember to have the sun behind you. The best time to shoot photos is the hour just after sunrise, and the hour just before sunset, what we call “golden hour.”

3) When shooting posed shots of people, do it at their eye level. This includes children, so if they are shorter than you, then scrunch on down.

4) If you are shooting outside, you may want to use a force flash in certain situations; for instance, if your subject is wearing a hat with a brim that is causing a shadow on their face, or if the sun is casting shadows on buildings or people.

5) When shooting in low-light situations, use a tripod. If a tripod is unavailable, then set the camera on a solid surface and use that as your tripod.

6) Because 35 mm film is mostly a thing of the past, and most people are shooting with digital cameras now, you can shoot your photograph as many times as it takes until you feel satisfied with your shot.

7) When shooting people in action, make sure to cover them in both orientations, vertically and horizontally. Depending on to whom you pitch your story and photos, they may prefer one over the other.

8) When photographing people you don't know, it is best to ask their permission first. If you ever intend to sell the photo, then be sure and get a release form from your subjects. You can find generic release forms by googling "photo release form" and just keep some copies in your photo bag.

9) Many publications like using photos of people that are unidentifiable. For instance, if they are seeking photographs of obese people, you could provide shots of people from the shoulder down, or taken from behind them. In this case, you won't need any release forms.

10) Go to sites like Flickr and Picasa to see the work of other photographers. You can learn a lot by asking yourself why you like certain photos and dislike others.

Now go forth and photograph!

The Lucky Lady Who Dined with Oprah and Sid - by Patty Mooney

Lucky Lady Dawnn Butler, Sidney Poitier and Oprah Winfrey

Camera Operator, Mark Schulze, videotapes Dawnn Butler at her apartment - Photo by Patty Mooney

Dawnn Butler never saw it coming. A single mother who had raised her two sons using Sidney Poitier as a role model, Dawnn had no idea that she was about to be surprised with an invitation to attend Oprah's "Dinner of a Lifetime" with special guest, Sidney Poitier. As a sound technician on the crew that day, I stood in the hallway, boom pole poised, waiting for her to answer the door to her apartment as Mark lifted his camera and Brian, the producer, rang the buzzer.

How had we come to be there? Oprah had sent out a call for submissions to people who thought they deserved to be invited to dinner with Oprah and Sid. There was a deluge of emails from readers who felt a special connecction to Sidney Poitier, and after weeks of intense screening, the guest list was narrowed to the lucky seven who would join Sidney and Oprah for the Dinner of a Lifetime.

Among those guests would be Dawnn, whose entry had been submitted by her sons. She was a single mom from San Diego and had used Sidney Poitier's life as a guide to raising her two sons. She had just finished reading Poitier's "Measure of a Man" when just a few weeks later, she opened her apartment door to Oprah's crew. Sneaky, eh?

"At 23, I was a divorced mother of two young sons. As a single young mother, I stressed education, community service and spirituality," Dawnn said. Feeling it was important to expose her sons to as many opportunities as possible, Dawnn described how she started her own consulting business and dedicated much of her time to helping others in the community. "With all of the community work, I never lost focus and continued to make my children my priority," she said. "When my son was accepted into the University of California—Berkeley School of Engineering, I knew the family team we built had become a success."

It was an event months in the making—the dinner of a lifetime for one of Oprah's heroes, Sidney Poitier with whom Oprah had been enthralled since seeing him win the Academy Award on her black-and-white television when she was a child. After Poitier published his book, "The Measure of a Man," Oprah chose it as a book club selection and decided to create a magical evening around it with Sidney and seven lucky readers. "The entire event was a labor of love, really, from my heart to the man who made me believe that I could dream a bigger dream," Oprah said.

The Young Dubliners "Say It's So" - A Video shot by Mark Schulze and edited by Patty Mooney

In honor of St. Patty's Day, here is a video we shot while traveling through Ireland last year, following The Young Dubliners.

Entrepreneurialism is Honorable - by Perry Marshall

I just came home from a seminar by Paul Manwaring called "A Culture of Honor." As he spoke about how carelessly people criticize each other on TV and in daily life - and how uplifting it is to receive words of affirmation - I was struck by how little appreciation most entrepreneurs get from... well, anybody. The evening news is no celebration of business people, that's for sure. The government ain't doing much to make your job easier.

So... why would you risk everything, endure multiple bankruptcies, work 17 hours a day for weeks and months at a time, to be the first to be taxed and the last to get paid in a game that offers no guarantee of success whatsoever? It takes a very special kind of person. It takes a person who is driven from the inside by passion and vision and a bit of eccentricity. It requires you to be so dissatisfied with the status quo that you feel like you can endure anything so long as it's not the present mediocrity. You're one of those people who just can't stand following the car ahead of you on the expressway to some cubicle for the rest of your life.

Or maybe you have this idea for a product or a way of doing something and you're convicted to your very soul that the world needs to see things *your* way for once.

In any case, I doubt it's because you're just some greedy, money-grubbing over-achiever who needs to take a chill pill. No, that popular depiction is deeply misleading. I just want to say... Wherever you are in your journey, I'm proud of you, I HONOR you, and I cheer you on in your effort. Any honest business is a noble and honorable thing.

I'll never forget my 2nd trip to Africa. I'm somewhere southwest of Nairobi Kenya, visiting George Karanga and his wife Jane, two very special people who run a foster program for AIDS orphans.

I'm meeting a woman whose husband is dying of AIDS, he's down to 66 pounds... all kinds of kids who've lost both parents to HIV and now live with aunts, uncles or grandparents... people who are deathly sick for lack of $1.00 for a bus ticket to go to a medical clinic... a woman who's 8 years a paraplegic, living under a tin roof in a dark mud hut, her sole entertainment her radio, her cat, and her kind neighbors who look after her.

Not a cheery scene.

But the epiphany occurs when I meet a fellow named Paul Mungai, who runs a cobbler shop. Paul, ironically, is crippled, but he knows how to make and fix shoes. And he knows how to run a business.

He started with just $50.00 of seed money and now has, by Kenyan standards, a sound business. He's feeding his family, he's paying his rent, his kids have uniforms to wear to school, and everyone in his care has enough to live on.

There's a gleam in his eye. We exchange a few words and share our mutual understanding: There is one and only one path out of poverty. The one and only path out of poverty is entrepreneurship and business success.

It ain't government. It's not social programs. It's not charity. It's not even jobs or technology. It's entrepreneurship.

The message was loud and clear: What you and I do may be daring, crazy, irrational and largely misunderstood. Condescending do-gooders may tell you you're greedy or too successful. Your brother-in-law may think you've got your head stuffed in a cloud.

The government may think it has the right to confiscate your profits and give them to "education" or other well-intentioned social programs. You might cater to some strange market, doing something that most people consider frivolous.

But the fact remains: What you and I do is profoundly important. You and I pave the road that leads from poverty to success. We create the ingenuity and jobs and wealth that makes good medical care possible.

We create the world that has enough to eat, the world where even welfare kids in housing projects get three square meals a day.

So don't ever apologize to anyone for doing what you do. If it wasn't for you, me and the rest of us entrepreneurs, "they" would still be sleeping on dirt floors.

That conversation with Paul in Kenya sparkled with the mutual awareness of what I just described to you. And as George took me to see other recipients of Micro-Enterprise seed funding - a lady selling sardines and tomatoes on a nailed-together stand on the side of the road, several women selling fruits and vegetables in the local markets, I thought of the entrepreneurs I meet in the US, Canada and Australia.

I thought of those rah-rah Amway rallies I was going to years ago, and the easily-exploited naivete that's so characteristic of the "Biz Op" market as it's sometimes called.

And like it or not, it's that raw enthusiasm and independent spirit that drives the prosperity of the West.

Where that drive, imagination and ingenuity are lacking, people starve - literally.

So yes, some business people are too greedy. Some entrepreneurs don't care about their fellow man. Some people do make their money by dishonest means. But remember, the character quotient is no better on the poor side of the fence.

So if you're prospering by means of an honest enterprise - or if you're struggling to put one together - then you are a hero. The bards and minstrels may not sing songs about you, and your handsome face may never appear on The Apprentice, but what you do every day when you get out of bed is a worthwhile and indeed necessary thing.

Don't ever forget it. What you do matters. A lot. It's worth celebrating and it's HONORABLE.
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Learn more about Perry Marshall, Guerrilla Marketing and Google AdWords Guru

Pat Travers Gettin' Betta at San Diego Hooleyfest 2007 - by Patty Mooney

A couple of years ago I was one of the camera operators at the San Diego Hooleyfest show that featured performances by Town Pants and Pat Travers. I went up on a scissorlift to shoot down at the stage. This is the uncut version of my camera angle that night, so it doesn't include the footage from the other two cameras. Also, it's a bit "muddy" as it's been vastly compressed for youtube. Still, it's proven to be popular on youtube, and I wanted to share it in honor of St. Patty's Day.

Bad News, Good News Cartoon

"Pioneers of Irrigation" Video Highlights Movers and Shakers of Irrigation Industry - by Patty Mooney

Our latest project is hot off the presses. The "Pioneers of Irrigation" has turned out to be quite an interesting video project. Technically it shows off such video production advancements as the use of the green screen, couple with the 16 x 9 high-definition format which demands more from an editor.

In this case, the editor was me. I also worked as sound technician on two of the three shoots which took place in San Diego, Los Angeles and Napa, California. (I missed out on the Napa one unfortunately, because as we all know, some of the best wines in the world come from there and it's a wonderful place to be.)

This video is worth checking out because it tells the story of an industry through its pioneers. As a "fly on the wall" during two shoots, I learned many things about irrigation and its leading innovators. For instance, when asked if they would do it again, most of the interviewees, some of whom had been involved in irrigation for two, three and four decades, said, "I would have gotten started sooner." They were completely devoted to their chosen profession, and several of them had businesses that included several generations of family members.

It turns out that Irrigation encompasses three tiers: agriculture, turf and golf courses. The most important topic for everyone concerned was water conservation. It was readily apparent to me that the Irrigation Association is way ahead of the rest of us when it comes to conserving our water usage.

What you see here is an initial demo that the Irrigation Association will put up on its website. They have plans to create a longer version that tells the full story of irrigation from the past to the future.

I hope this can be an example to other organizations in that an industry's "elders" will not always be around to tell their stories. Ken Burns showed us all with his series on "The War" that now is the time to collect the stories of our foreparents before they die.

It is good that History Chairman, Glenn Bowlin, had the idea of producing this historical video on the Irrigation industry, as one man we interviewed, Al Dedrick, is now gone. But his words and smiles live on through the power of video.

"The Invisible Ones: Homeless Combat Veterans" Website

We are very excited to announce that the website for our multiple award-winning documentary, "The Invisible Ones: Homeless Combat Veterans" has been updated with our latest awards. There's a trailer there and viewers can click on that and see the four-minute piece that highlights the plight of nearly a quarter of a million homeless veterans across the nation. Every American needs to see it. The thing is, those who served their country and performed the work that was required of them should not be disposed of like trash. There are veterans from every war, even going back to WW2, who are sleeping on the sidewalks. We have troops coming home now from Afghanistan and Iraq who are slipping through the cracks and finding themselves sleeping in cars and on park benches because they missed one payment on their home or apartment. After getting clued in by watching the trailer, you will realize how deluded someone like Bill O'Reilly is when he says "there are no homeless veterans." Yep, and I have some swamp land to sell you in Florida.

Dilbert - Cartoon by Scott Adams

Hello March Madness and Goodbye Pete Newell - Photos and Story by Patty Mooney

A small collection of photographs from my encounter with the late, great Coach Pete Newell at his home in Rancho Santa Fe, back in 2007 when he was 92 years old. I was Sound Technician on a green screen shoot. The footage was later used in a video that is now playing at the College Basketball Hall of Fame in Kansas City. What really impressed me about Coach Newell was his ability to remember the particulars of games he had been involved with several decades ago. He was a sharp man, very hospitable and charming with a playful sense of humor. I am so glad I had the chance to meet him before his passing.

East County Magazine Covers "The Invisible Ones" - by Patty Mooney

A disabled homeless female veteran who served in the Iraq War, with her pet Chihuahua, at San Diego Stand Down 2007

In our quest to attain publicity for our latest documentary, "The Invisible Ones: Homeless Combat Veterans," today's Google Alert has informed me that a local e-zine called East County Magazine wrote up an entire page about it. When it comes to publicity, as author Judy McColl advises, you have to be like a "dog with a bone."


First, you write up the all-important press release. If you don't know how to do one there are hundreds of examples that are just a click away on Google or whatever search engine you prefer.


Second, have a close friend, or two, or three, check out your press release for any errors. A second (third, or fourth) pair of eyes are invaluable and can usually spot something you may have missed. Believe me, even eagle-eyed moi has made mistakes in this arena, to the extent that one of our video box covers has the most glaring typo in the universe and yet somehow everyone missed it, including the graphic artist who committed it, my hubby, me, and the printer. Doh!


Next, acquire a list of all publications, both printed and online, that you think would be interested in the nature of your press release. You should fashion the press release to the publication. This is what is known as a targeted approach rather than a "shotgun" approach where you are scattering your bullets like a freaked out terrorist on the show, "24." You want each and every "bullet" to count.

Once you are completely confident that your press release has the who, what, when, where and why of your topic, fire away. I think that most bloggers can easily do it, as we are in love with words, and it's all about spreading the word. Be sure to include any related photographs with your press release; give the publication a "choice" of ones you want to see printed. Since "a picture is worth a thousand words" you can really cash in when your chosen publication(s) publish your story. All you have to do is give 'em what they want.

Check out East County Magazine's spread on "The Invisible Ones".

To Green Screen or Not to Green Screen, That is the Question - by Patty Mooney

A Green Screen shoot for the Irrigation Association's "Pioneers Video" (Photo by Mark Schulze)

You are making arrangements for an event in a new city and the last thing you want to think about is video. However, all your corporate department heads will be gathered in one convention arena at the same time, and you cannot afford to let the opportunity pass. You must gather interview footage of everybody while you can, if only for historical documentation. So to green screen or not to green screen… that is the question.

In the early days of green-screen interviews, a production crew would show up with a cumbersome neon green backdrop and take an hour and a half to set it up. Now there are portable green screens that are easily erected in a fraction of the time. But do you need it? Many corporate event coordinators are tired of bland convention walls, ugly draping or reflective and immovable art found in hotel rooms and convention halls where interviews are traditionally shot.

The green screen offers a happy alternative. The digital editor who stitches your interviews together can place any backdrop you desire behind the interviewee. For instance, your CEO who hails from San Antonio could have the Alamo in the background. Or the representative from Maui can have a gorgeous tropical waterfall behind her. You get the picture. You can also change out the background in future presentations.

You will need to make sure that the production crew properly lights the interviewees and green screen, as lighting is everything in a production. And you will also need to make sure that the editor can expertly key out the green so you don’t get any green pixels showing through and around a fuzzy blonde head of hair. Please make sure your interviewees are not wearing anything green!

If you are well organized, you can gather quite a few interviews in one day. Our record stands at 36 interviews in one day (each interviewee had two or three lines to deliver to the camera).

In order to qualify a video production company or editor, ask to see examples of their work. They will generally have a demo reel or two online at their website, or available on DVD. Check ours out at Crystal Pyramid Productions.

Premiere of "The Invisible Ones" at San Diego Public Library

This last Sunday afternoon was matinee time for around a hundred people who came to see the world premiere of our latest project, a documentary called "The Invisible Ones: Homeless Combat Veterans. The reason we created this documentary is that we felt not enough people know about the plight of homeless veterans; they comprise around half the population of homeless on our streets. My wife, Patty, has written extensively about this topic, so if you are interested in learning more about veterans, and homeless veterans in particular, read these blogs by Patty Mooney. Here are the links.

Our Gift to Veterans

Sunday, Sunday, Sunday!

Steve Mason's "The Wall Within"

"The Invisible Ones" Wins Two Prestigious Awards

Twitter as Haiku or Just a Pile of Pigeon Poo? - by Patty Mooney

Taking a break from my web empire

I found this interesting article today regarding Twitter:

Why You Should be On Twitter - by Chuck Tryon

As new communication technologies emerge, it is not uncommon to see articles or essays bemoaning how the new technology will destroy or damage communication as we know it, that a tool will lead to illiteracy, narcissism or whatever social ill might be haunting society at any given time.

Click here to access the rest of the story


This is one of those technologies where I am on the outside looking in. I mean, I share a cell phone with my husband, and it's about fifteen years old. It's black with a little antenna that goes up and down. A friend of ours joked that he has seen that model on eBay for $500 (as in, it's an ancient artifact). I feel very much like the writer who disdains computers for their Remington typewriter. So I am not too familiar with Twitter, other than the premise - you can send 140-character messages to your fellow followers and update them on your life, and carry on a conversation in tweets.

As a poet, I feel drawn to a technology where the writer is forced to whittle down language to its bare essence. And yet, how much time is there in a day? My friend, Zeke, joked the other day that "Patty has like, what, eight websites?" Everybody in the room laughed, but when I mentally counted, I realized it's actually eleven. Do I need yet another? With two Myspace pages, a Facebook page, three blogs (two for me and one for my husband), Flickr, Youtube, Vimeo, not to mention our two actual business sites, well, the math is undebatable - eleven websites.

Have I become a computer droid? Is my butt expanding from all these hours in a chair at a keyboard and monitor? What is going on here? Do I really need to now engage in Twitter? Or would that be the straw that breaks the camel's back, the drop of water that causes the bucket to overflow?

What do you think? Seriously, is Twitter all that?

Jon Stewart had his take on it....

In a segment called "Old Man Stewart Shakes His Fist At [Twitter]" Jon explored the world of tweeting last night with help from Samantha Bee, who is not only on Twitter, but Grunter and Stalker as well.

Stewart raised concerns that this trend further frays our already small attention spans, and admitted that he "has no f**king idea how Twitter works or why it is." But Bee assured him "it's awesome."

She went on to explain that it offers insight into our most important news makers' least important thoughts and that young people love it according to old people.

See the clip: The Daily Show's Jon Stewart Takes on Twitter

Looks Do Matter! - by Laura Holka

Interviewing Marshall Goldsmith, CEO Coach with Sound Tech Patty Mooney on left - Photo by Mark Schulze





Looks Do Matter!
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Your appearance and body language are key to a successful interview. I know it sounds superficial and fluffy, but you want your television audience to listen to your message and not be distracted by a noisy bracelet, wild makeup or a shirt that seems to be "moving." Keep in mind these tips and you will be fine every time!

- Never wear black or white! Color is always better.- Stay away from patterns. Solids look better on camera. - Wear shirts with buttons or a jacket - it is much easier to put a mic on something stiffer. - No silky, slippery or shiny blouses unless ok'd by the producer not only because of possible problems with the microphone but they may not be appropriate to the show or segment. - Never wear sleeveless, backless or low-cut anything unless your skin if perfect, you're in amazing shape or you are doing an exercise type of segment! Eyes naturally drift to "provocative," "sexy" or "flapping arms" and may detract from your message. - Simple jewelry is best. No long necklaces that may interfere with the mic, noisy bracelets or shiny earrings. - Everyday makeup not stage makeup. Use a little blush, lipstick and ALWAYS foundation and powder. Blotting tissues are a good idea. - Clean manicured hands. If you talk with your hands or hold up your book no one wants to see dirty fingernails. Yuck! - No Gum! EVER! * No Shellfish or alcohol 24 hours prior. You'll look puffy and puffy is NOT pretty!

~Tip offered by Media Veteran Laura Holka, who is the producer of the Pat McMahon Show & a Media Consultant. For more information or to schedule a coaching session just email her at lholka@live.com or call (602) 509-6468.

Reprinted from "The Book Marketing Expert newsletter," a free ezine offering book promotion and publicity tips and techniques. http://www.amarketingexpert.com/

House Says Bloggers Don't Count as Journalists - by Jason Lee Miller

Capital Building, Washington DC - Photo by Patty Mooney

Forgets the First Amendment

Two versions of a bill in Congress would enshrine a journalist’s right to keep his or her sources confidential, effectively banning the government from forcing journalists to reveal whistleblowers. One version though—the House version—gives an incredibly stupid definition of journalist that excludes not only bloggers, but freelancers, independents, and nonprofit journalists as well.

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For more on this intriguing story, click here

Do You Think Bloggers Should be Considered Journalists?