You may no Mr. Portier by his street name, Turdpolisher.

Rick’s been a friend of b-roll.net for a long time. His eloquent diatribes have graced our FORUM often. He always has the words to say what you want to say… and make you smile along the way.

It seems his true stories of life behind the camera led to a book about not-so-true stories of a photog in Baton Rouge.

As Rick explains the story of Brock Nicholls…

“When his television career went down in flames on the steps of a Dallas courthouse, it made national news and earned the TV photog a night in lock-up. Now, Brock’s stuck in the place where it all started, Baton Rouge, working for a mental midget like Percy Finch and his “Good News” strategy that has viewers flocking to the competition. If that weren’t bad enough, Finch has Brock locked into shooting pet parades for Katie Couric wannabes like Nancy Patrick.

Against his better judgment, Brock drags Nancy to the scene of a fire where he is plunged into the world that originally ignited his passion for this business – a world before cookie-cutter anchors and Barbie doll reporters. There he finds something that has been sorely missing in his life – the first real person he’s met in years, Ida Mae Christophe. Miss Ida is sure the man burning the homes in her neighborhood is connected to former Grand Dragon, Raphe Whitney.”

I have started to dig into the chapters of Brocks world – and I’m transported to my life in the back of a live truck – chasing fire trucks and sirens. It’s an amazing look into our world – with a little dramatic fun added to the mix.

Congratulations to Rick for putting together a great book that every news professional should read. You’ll see yourself in one of the many newsroom characters…

Buy the paperback version on Amazon – or go digital at Smashwords.

The democratic voice of all “b-rollers,” selected amazing stories and rewarded the photogs that made them shine. The prize was a gorgeous engraved crystal trophy and bragging rights for the next year.

Normally, this is the time of year we’d be prepping the site for a new round of entries and starting the next b-roll.net AWARDS. In the past, a number of great sponsors have helped us deliver substantial awards to shooters around the world. Unfortunately, due to a lack of sponsorship this year, we’re going to have to suspend the contest.

The plan is to go back to the “garage” and hammer out some new technology that can make for an even better contest system. With improved technology and some new sponsors, the b-roll.net AWARDS may just come out of retirement in future years.

Thanks to everyone who has helped keep the contest rolling. Great thanks goes to Amanda Emily for fighting the hackers that have looked to break the TV section on b-roll.

Other videos:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dqH_cqB7uQs
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oq-rSjNCFoo

Lenslinger – SCHMUCK ALERT!

Today, Canon announced its latest camera, the C300 at the Canon Hollywood event. The camera, built first for video, has a new form-factor, time-code, waveform, and many other features you need on a video camera. See below for many links to all the camera specs.

To demonstrate what the camera can do, Laforet shot a short film in the Mojave desert – in some of the most demanding shooting conditions possible. The resulting film, Mobius, is gorgeously shot and a fun little ride. We’re waiting for a lot more info on the new camera, but this might change the game a little more.

Check out Vicent Laforet’s blog about it.
Engadget‘s look at the clip and camera
Abel Cine‘s look at the C300
The Verge has specs on the camera

See Dustin’s Vimeo page here…

Congrats to Flagg for remaining rock solid under fire.

Check out WFAA’s coverage.

Here’s Lenslinger’s take on the Schmuck Alert.