I spent nearly 14 years of my life playing softball. The game took me
all over the country and earned me a scholarship for college.
My place of solitude has always been on the field. Taylor Turner | NYT Institute
But suddenly, like a bad pitch that slams into you in the batter’s
box, I was taken out of the game by two successive back surgeries to
remove tumors on my spine. After that, each time I stepped up to the
plate, the decision was no longer whether I should bunt or hit, but
whether I would walk in the future.
Suddenly, I found myself on the sidelines of the game I love. I
became softball’s biggest fan in the stands and began looking for ways
to combine my love for the game with my aspirations to be a video
journalist.
Jennie Finch, famed softball player, made an appearance at the NCAA Softball Super Regionals in Lafayette, La.Taylor Turner | NYT Institute
This month, I helped cover the women’s college softball Super
Regional series between the University of Louisiana-Lafayette and the
University of Arizona. It was my first opportunity to combine my two
crafts. I was faced with many challenges as a videographer attempting to
catch the game from a fan’s perspective. Video rights, technical
challenges, thirsty mosquitoes — plus an unexpected sighting of the
famed softball player Jennie Finch — kept me occupied during the
tournament.
The best part of this experience was the ability to hit a home run to
any pitch that life throws you. I walked away from the tournament with a
vision for a career in sports journalism. A career that will make
waking up in the morning that much easier and enjoyable for the rest of
my life. A career and not just a job.
The University of Louisiana players have unusual superstitions that
extend to their fan base and parents. The Ragin’ Cajuns’ superstitions
include stuffed frogs, no-lens glasses and holey batting gloves.
Just as a picture is worth a thousand words, Evan Ortiz cannot be described in one.
“I am just as quiet and observant as I am engaged, outgoing, funny
and insane,” said Mr. Ortiz, a 21-year-old photographer from Brooklyn,
N.Y. “I am all over the place, but I love it. I love being able to
interact with people, be a part of their lives and also see, observe and
learn.”
Mr. Ortiz discovered his passion for fashion photography while
studying photojournalism as an undergraduate at the Rochester Institute
of Technology.
“I realized there was an opportunity to really get to know people
through photography,” he said. “I just love what the camera can do to
visually show and represent a person in their life and what their life
means to them.”
Evan Ortiz, 21, in
New Orleans on Monday is a photographer from Brooklyn. He said, “I am
just as quiet and observant as I am engaged, outgoing, funny and
insane.”Photo by Donnalyn Anthony | NYT Institute
Mr. Ortiz first heard about the two-week New York Times Student
Journalism Institute from a professor who encouraged him to look into
the program. After doing a bit of research, he was eager to apply.
“I have had some journalism experience, but I want to push and expand on my knowledge,” he said.
Mr. Ortiz hopes that the institute will teach him how to work under
deadlines, enrich his storytelling abilities and develop the practical
and technical skills needed to execute his stories.
“I have done a lot of photography work and video journalism, but I
also want to see if I can harness more skills specifically related to
journalism,” he said.
Mr. Ortiz said that he was excited and amazed by the group of
students in the Institute and he hopes to build a community with his
peers and produce a body of work that will make them proud.
“The collaborative aspect will be a good and healthy challenge for
me, but it is something I am really proud to be a part of,” he said.
