[Mark McLeod]

For the most part I'd rather have an adult do the media camera work.
Some students do very well, but for us at least they have been few and far between over the years. I've had the same experience as Jane. I'd send out student media and get back nothing, terribly composed shots, or clowning around with the camera that gave us nothing to work with for the team DVD or end-of-year slideshow.

I do not like, nor do I support witch hunts for people who did not take the Media badge seriously. Sniping is a poor sport. I have to admit, I have sent students out onto the dome floor on occasion just so they would get an experience they never would get unless they happened to qualify for the drive team. They carried a camera, but I did not expect to get any photos back. I firmly believe it's a poor example for the students for them to be taught to look at and disapprove of how other teams decide to operate in any instance.

I witnessed some bias and personally experienced uncalled for false conclusions while I was wearing our team Media pass on the field.
I got snide comments from the queuer about not acting as a coach or mechanic or whatever often while I was out there. I still took more than 20 GB of photos in Atlanta. I really like to take photos.

I promise I took no part in alliance discussions, I am a terrible mechanic, and I did not reprogram anything while in the Dome. I did get dragged onto a different field by an FTA to fix something just because I happened to be down on the Dome floor.

My camera rides on my belt or in the palm of my hand, and I probably looked like I wasn't carrying one half the time. I don't bring my big rig to Atlanta, but I have a pretty good HD, 12megapixel, 12X optical. Our best equipment with the bulky lenses was used in the stands by our main team photographer, because the designated media shooting areas were terrible on the field. The Media had to stand in and amongst the carts and I have banged and bruised shins for my trouble.

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That's one improvement I'd like to see in St. Louis. The Media shooting area at field level was completely obstructed by the mass of traffic routed between it and the playing field. We always have the necessary refs of course, but field attendants without apparent duties (not fielding escaped balls) wandered randomly and stood blocking the photographers. Then all the robots for the next match crossed and parked in the same area completely blocking all photography.
I understand the necessity for keeping the matches moving by getting the next robots into place to go onto the field, but some consideration of photography sight lines would be welcomed.
Perhaps a front section to the side in the elevated stands reserved for team photographers only while their teams for in a match - no sitting. Maybe risers up against the stadium wall to raise the photographers and their tripods.


A note on the judges… We had a small contingent this year and could not staff our pit to wait for the random arrival of judge interviewers. However, two judges were kind enough to track us down on the field and corral our drive team after a match to give them the opportunity to discuss their robot with them. I'd like very much to thank them for their over and above attention to duty.


And Northrop Grumman as a sponsor of 294 was mentioned almost every time Beach Cities were announced on Einstein. I took notice because that's where I work.