Best sports movies? Here’s my list

The NFL is in full swing. Baseball playoffs are underway. Hockey and basketball are just around the corner. To celebrate this sports lovers utopia, here’s my list of best sports movies, in no particular order:

61*
Yankee uberfan Billy Crystal chronicles the relationship between Roger Maris and Mickey Mantle as the two chased Babe Ruth’s single season home run record in 1961. Make sure you watch “the making of” special feature.

Remember the Titans
When a high district begins to desegregate, football unites students and townspeople.

Ali
Will Smith gives a stellar performance as The Greatest, Muhammad Ali.

Major League
Charlie Sheen leads a team of misfits to the pennant.

Hoosiers
Gene Hackman coaches a small town basketball team to the Indiana state championship.

The Natural
An aging baseball player finally gets his chance.

Eight Men Out
Eight members of the 1919 White Sox — the best team in baseball — were banned for throwing the World Series.

The Replacements
The football version of Major League, as Keanu Reeves leads a rag tag group of players across the picket line.

A League of Their Own
With Major League Baseball’s best fighting the war, Geena Davis leads a group of women onto the diamond.

Caddyshack
Dangerfield, Murray. Need I say more?

That’s my list. What’s on yours?

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Follow your intuition to be a better photographer

I recently returned from a trip to New York City designed to improve my photography skills. During the four-day stay, I participated in several workshops and also ventured out on my own for many walkabout shoots.

My goal was to become a better photographer, and what I came away with was an interesting, new way to approach photography.

Three of the sessions were offered by The Art of Intuitive Photography, and as the name implies, students are encouraged to follow their instinct and intuition when searching for a good photo, rather than pre-determined guidelines. In other words, look for subject that you connect with, not necessarily a postcard-type photo.

Sounds obvious, but it was eye opening. As workshop participants walked through the streets and parks of the Big Apple, each of us clearly heard a different calling and ventured off to shoot what caught our eyes. One focused on birds and flowers. Another photographed children playing in a fountain.

During my first session, we came upon a statue of George Washington, located on the steps where he took the oath of office. My images of the statue failed to excite me, but the photo of this flute player (above) at the foot of the statue jumped out. Lesson: I’m a better people photographer because I find humans more interesting than a statue.

The Art of Intuitive Photography teaches students to focus on things that interest you by adopting a child-like spirit. One exercise — pretending we were a newborn looking around for the first time — helped drive this home.

On the final day, I ventured to Harlem to capture the culture and personality of the neighborhood. I shot a few buildings and murals, but my mission was to find interesting people. The image to the left depicts a cook on break during his early shift.  The photo to the right, a man lighting his morning cigar.

Some people would find the murals and buildings much more interesting, and that’s okay. Whether looking at a photo, painting, or sculpture, beauty is in the eye of the beholder. Thinking about what attracts your eye will make you a better photographer, as I hope it has me.

See more of my New York City photos at: http://www.flickr.com/photos/johnlamb1
Read the BBC article, Trusting your gut: Smart management or a fool’s errand?, which features The Art of Intuitive Photography

5 ways to beat writer’s block

You sit, ready to craft an important memo, but find yourself struggling to begin. Staring at the blinking cursor doesn’t help, so you do the next best thing — go for coffee.

Overcoming writer’s block can be difficult. Here are a few tips I’ve picked up over the years:

Just write it
Early in my career, I was working with a veteran PR person on an important memo. As I noodled what to say for the opening, he interrupted, “Type something … Just start writing.”

He was right. If I’m struggling with a lead sentence, I’ll skip it and start with the second paragraph. It helps establish a rhythm and prevents me from over thinking.

Make a list
If I’m stuck, or have a lot to cover, I’ll jump to the end of the document and list key points. It substitutes as a primitive outline of sorts, and lets me focus on how I want to say something, rather than what I should include.

For example, if I’m working on a flu vaccine story for a newsletter, my list might include:

• Free for employees
• Protect yourself and your family
• Evergreen Conference Room
• M-F, 8 – 9 a.m.
• Nov 1 – 15
• Painless
• Employee Health, ext. 1234
• Remember hand hygiene too

Jump around
Once I’ve made the list above, I’ll pick a point or two and write a sentence or paragraph. For example:

“Public health experts say a vaccine, combined with good hand hygiene, is the best way to protect you and your loved ones from catching the flu. Best of all, flu vaccines are free for employees.”

You can order the segments later, and once you start writing, you’ll likely see things falling into place.

Talk it out
Good writing is conversational, so think of how you’d tell the news to someone who knows nothing about the situation. For example, work is being done on the plumbing in your office building, and during that time, the facility will be close due to lack of water. So what do you want to tell staff?

“The office will be closed next Friday while crews work to repair a damaged pipe.”

You’ve got your start, now fill in the details.

Walk away (but not far away)
It’s a bit counterintuitive, but when struggling to come up with something, try walking away for a couple of minutes. Grab a drink of water, pop a letter in the mail, anything to clear your head.

Your turn. What do you do to overcome writer’s block?