Among my 2008 resolutions:

   To shoot more.

   To blog more.

   To video more.

    While this blog is dedicated to the golden age of photojournalism, in the past few weeks this old dog of a blogger has been learning the new tricks of shooting video. It’s exciting and one heck of a challenge.

   I have a whole new appreciation for videographers and TV reporters. And editors. And producers. And how expensive the process is.

   I’ll be the first to admit that often through my journalism career I’ve silently made fun of television reporters. You know the old joke about the newspaper reporter who became a TV reporter:

   "Ah," says a colleague, "so you’re leaving journalism to go into show business?"

   Truth to tell, I almost went into television. In 1968, I was fresh out of active duty with the U.S. Navy--during which I had my life’s adventure in the jungles of Thailand--and wanted to produce TV documentaries. I mean, it seemed like the perfect melding of writing, announcing and photography.

   So, the local NBC affiliate in my home town hired me to handle the early morning shift (bad) to shoot l6mm film of car wrecks (badder ). But, I gave notice to the daily newspaper where I was a staff photographer.

   Before my first day of work the news director asked me to come by the station.

   "Before you start," he said, "we want you to go to Blackburn Brothers (a local department store, alas long gone) and buy yourself a lemon yellow blazer. It will cost you about $75" (many much more badder).

   I consider $75 a lot of money now; you can imagine how much it seemed in 1968.

   "Why do I need a blazer," I naively asked?

   "Because it’s our company uniform. If you’re going to be on camera, you have to be wearing a yellow blazer."

   "Well," I suggested, "If the station wants me to wear a yellow blazer, why doesn’t IT pay for it."

   "You want to work here or not?" he asked.

   I went back to the paper and asked for my job back.

   I’ve often wondered where I would be today had I forked out the money for that single-breasted pastel piece of public relations.

   It’s probably just as well; yellow has never been my color.