Many young news writers - and some veterans as well - struggle to remember the basic rule for numbers: when to use numerals, and when to spell them out. People seem to have an especially hard time with 10: They know it's the cutoff; they just can't remember whether it's spelled out.
Here's the easy way to remember: Spell out single-digit numbers; use numerals for anything larger.
One, two, three, four, five, six, seven, eight, nine, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14 ...
And don't forget that there are exceptions, such as not starting sentences with numerals, and using numerals for age, except at the start of sentences. There are way more exceptions, which is all the better reason to buy a copy of the AP Stylebook and consult it frequently.
© Holly A. Heyser
Thursday, March 29, 2012
Monday, March 26, 2012
Photography: Photojournalists need angles too
We often hear people ask reporters, "What's your angle on this story?" But photojournalists have angles too - literal ones.
Robert Durell, a friend of mine who was a photographer for the Los Angeles Times for 10 years, once gave my students this excellent piece of advice: Never shoot at eye level. Change your perspective: Get down low, or get up high.
When you shoot everything at your eye level, you're showing the viewers exactly what they're used to seeing, which means your photo can easily become wallpaper. But show them something they don't normally see, and your photo will grab their attention.
Here's an example in which I shot my cat, Harlequin, at my eye level:
If you have cats, you recognize this human-eye view. Nothing to see here - just another pretty cat ignoring her human.
But check out this angle:
This is an unusual perspective, unless you're the kind of person who thinks it's fun to loll around on the floor with your cats. Hell, I'm that kind of person, and I still love this photo. Harlequin cracks me up.
Now, think about it: The first photo is what pretty much any amateur would shoot - it would've looked at home on any number of Facebook pages. But the second one is different. It catches your eye.
Sometimes you can get away with an eye-level shot. Sometimes it's your only option.
But whenever possible - especially when you're shooting pets, children or people who are sitting down - change your angle and get the better shot.
© Holly A. Heyser
Robert Durell, a friend of mine who was a photographer for the Los Angeles Times for 10 years, once gave my students this excellent piece of advice: Never shoot at eye level. Change your perspective: Get down low, or get up high.
When you shoot everything at your eye level, you're showing the viewers exactly what they're used to seeing, which means your photo can easily become wallpaper. But show them something they don't normally see, and your photo will grab their attention.
Here's an example in which I shot my cat, Harlequin, at my eye level:
 |
| © Holly A. Heyser |
If you have cats, you recognize this human-eye view. Nothing to see here - just another pretty cat ignoring her human.
But check out this angle:
 |
| © Holly A. Heyser |
This is an unusual perspective, unless you're the kind of person who thinks it's fun to loll around on the floor with your cats. Hell, I'm that kind of person, and I still love this photo. Harlequin cracks me up.
Now, think about it: The first photo is what pretty much any amateur would shoot - it would've looked at home on any number of Facebook pages. But the second one is different. It catches your eye.
Sometimes you can get away with an eye-level shot. Sometimes it's your only option.
But whenever possible - especially when you're shooting pets, children or people who are sitting down - change your angle and get the better shot.
© Holly A. Heyser
Sunday, March 11, 2012
Grammar: who vs. whom
I had a teacher in high school who said one day there was no difference between "who" and "whom." I never could figure out whether she was stupid or she just misspoke, but her statement still bothers me more than 30 years later.
Why? Because the difference between "who" and "whom" is so easy to figure out. The only reason we struggle with it in written American English is because we have become sloppy in spoken American English, rarely bothering to use "whom" where we should.
Here's how you can tell which word belongs where: "Who" is to "he" as "him" is to "whom." If you're looking for a mnemonic device, notice that "him" and "whom" both end with "m."
So when you're trying to figure out whether to use "who" or "whom," rearrange the sentence to use "he" or "him" - if you speak American English fluently, you should have no problem figuring it out.
Here are some examples, starting with what should be a perfect mnemonic device:
For _____ the Bell Tolls.
Is it "the bell tolls for he" or "the bell tolls for him"? Duh! The answer is "him," which means we use "whom."
We gave the job to Bob, _____ was clearly more educated than the other candidates.
Is it "he was clearly more educated" or "him was clearly more educated"? No brainer: The answer is "he," which means we use "him."
Let's pick on Bob just a bit more.
We gave the job to Bob, _____ we consider to be the most qualified.
This is the one that gets people. It was Bob comma who the first time, so why shouldn't it be Bob comma who this time?
This is why you have to use the "he-who, him-whom" test: Is it "we consider he to be the most qualified" or "we consider him to be the most qualified"?
The answer is "him," so we should use "whom" in this one.
© Holly A. Heyser
Why? Because the difference between "who" and "whom" is so easy to figure out. The only reason we struggle with it in written American English is because we have become sloppy in spoken American English, rarely bothering to use "whom" where we should.
Here's how you can tell which word belongs where: "Who" is to "he" as "him" is to "whom." If you're looking for a mnemonic device, notice that "him" and "whom" both end with "m."
So when you're trying to figure out whether to use "who" or "whom," rearrange the sentence to use "he" or "him" - if you speak American English fluently, you should have no problem figuring it out.
Here are some examples, starting with what should be a perfect mnemonic device:
For _____ the Bell Tolls.
Is it "the bell tolls for he" or "the bell tolls for him"? Duh! The answer is "him," which means we use "whom."
We gave the job to Bob, _____ was clearly more educated than the other candidates.
Is it "he was clearly more educated" or "him was clearly more educated"? No brainer: The answer is "he," which means we use "him."
Let's pick on Bob just a bit more.
We gave the job to Bob, _____ we consider to be the most qualified.
This is the one that gets people. It was Bob comma who the first time, so why shouldn't it be Bob comma who this time?
This is why you have to use the "he-who, him-whom" test: Is it "we consider he to be the most qualified" or "we consider him to be the most qualified"?
The answer is "him," so we should use "whom" in this one.
© Holly A. Heyser
Grammar: 'Only' is such a clingy word
Writing precisely is important if you want your meaning to be clear, and the word "only" can't be thrown just anywhere in a sentence if you want to write with precision. (And if you don't want to write with precision, you probably shouldn't bother being a writer.)
This rule is simple: The word "only" needs to be as close as possible to the word or words it modifies. Here are some examples:
INCORRECT: Fritz only ate Raisin Bran once a week.
You probably know what the writer is trying to say here, but if you look closely, you'll see that this sentence is saying that the only thing Fritz did was eat Raisin Bran once a week. I'm going to guess that Fritz also read books, watched TV and used the bathroom, so this can't be accurate.
CORRECT: He ate Raisin Bran only once a week.
Here, our meaning is clear.
While most readers will overlook poor placement of the word "only" and understand what the writer meant to say, there may be times when the word's correct placement is crucial. If you're in the habit of placing the word properly every time, you won't have to worry about bungling it when it really matters.
© Holly A. Heyser
This rule is simple: The word "only" needs to be as close as possible to the word or words it modifies. Here are some examples:
INCORRECT: Fritz only ate Raisin Bran once a week.
You probably know what the writer is trying to say here, but if you look closely, you'll see that this sentence is saying that the only thing Fritz did was eat Raisin Bran once a week. I'm going to guess that Fritz also read books, watched TV and used the bathroom, so this can't be accurate.
CORRECT: He ate Raisin Bran only once a week.
Here, our meaning is clear.
While most readers will overlook poor placement of the word "only" and understand what the writer meant to say, there may be times when the word's correct placement is crucial. If you're in the habit of placing the word properly every time, you won't have to worry about bungling it when it really matters.
© Holly A. Heyser
Grammar: hyphenating compound modifiers
A compound modifier is two or more words that work together to modify a noun that follows them; essentially, they team up to form an adjective.
Because these words have to be taken together for their meaning to be clear, we generally hyphenate them. If we don't hyphenate them, the meaning of our sentence could become ambiguous.
One way you can tell if two or more words constitute a compound modifier is by removing one of the words to see if the meaning is still clear. Here are examples, with the compound modifiers underlined:
Johnny is a five-time winner of the intramural tennis championship.
How did we know this was a compound modifier? Simple: Johnny can't be a five winner, or a time winner - that wouldn't make sense. "Five" and "time" have to go together for the sentence to make sense.
Here's another one that gets bungled a lot:
As a 10-year-old freshman at Orosi High School, Adelita stands out.
She's not an old freshman, she's not a year freshman and she's not a 10 freshman. This makes sense only when those three words are bundled together.
Now, here's the form of this sentence that gets people:
Adelita, a freshman at Orosi High School, is 10 years old.
Why didn't we hyphenate it that time? Because the rule applies to compound modifiers that precede nouns.
Now, here's the big exception: We don't hyphenate compound modifiers that start with the word "very" or with adverbs ending in -ly, because it's super clear that "very" and the -ly adverb goes with the adjective that follows it. Examples:
Adelita is an extremely pretty girl.
Carmen is a very fast runner.
Brett is unusually tall.
© Holly A. Heyser
Grammar: that vs. which, and the comma that loves one of them
The question of whether to use "that" or "which" is one of the easiest grammar rules to master:
Use "that" when the subsequent clause is essential to the meaning of the sentence.
Use "which," preceded by a comma, when the subsequent clause is not essential - you could stick a period where the comma is and the meaning of the sentence would not be altered.
Here are some examples with the essential and non-essential clauses underlined:
NON-ESSENTIAL CLAUSES: I have two rugs: a red one, which was cheap, and a green one, which was very expensive.
We know these are non-essential clauses because you can get rid of them and the meaning of the sentence is not altered. I have two rugs: a red one and a green one.
ESSENTIAL CLAUSE: I have two rugs, but I'm going to get rid of the one that was cheap.
See the difference? If I get rid of "that was cheap," this sentence loses vital information. That means this clause is essential.
One of the things that makes this rule easy to remember is that people rarely have trouble getting this right when they're speaking. When the clause is essential, there's no pause - no comma - before you say it. When it's non-essential, you pause automatically. The comma goes with the one that has the pause.
© Holly A. Heyser
Use "that" when the subsequent clause is essential to the meaning of the sentence.
Use "which," preceded by a comma, when the subsequent clause is not essential - you could stick a period where the comma is and the meaning of the sentence would not be altered.
Here are some examples with the essential and non-essential clauses underlined:
NON-ESSENTIAL CLAUSES: I have two rugs: a red one, which was cheap, and a green one, which was very expensive.
We know these are non-essential clauses because you can get rid of them and the meaning of the sentence is not altered. I have two rugs: a red one and a green one.
ESSENTIAL CLAUSE: I have two rugs, but I'm going to get rid of the one that was cheap.
See the difference? If I get rid of "that was cheap," this sentence loses vital information. That means this clause is essential.
One of the things that makes this rule easy to remember is that people rarely have trouble getting this right when they're speaking. When the clause is essential, there's no pause - no comma - before you say it. When it's non-essential, you pause automatically. The comma goes with the one that has the pause.
© Holly A. Heyser
Grammar: lie vs. lay
Uh oh. It's time to use the word "lie." Or is it "lay"? And God help you if you need to use past tense. You know the grammar nannies lie in wait for you to make your mistake. Or do they lay in wait?
Lie and lay, with their confusing past-tense forms, are my nominees for the most vexing words in the English language. But if you can just master the rule for present tense, you can win this battle. So here's the rule:
"Lay" takes an object. "Lie" does not.
Unfortunately, some of the best-known examples confuse the matter.
I lie down to sleep.
Now I lay me down to sleep.
I just said the same thing correctly both ways. The second one is correct because I use "me" as an object.
Maybe this will help: Lay down the law.
"The law" is the object in that sentence. That's pretty easy to remember.
But in case that isn't good enough, here's an example from the 1980s in which musicians - usually famous for popularizing bad grammar - actually get it right. ("It" is the object in the song title.)
Now, for past tense, which really makes things even more confusing:
The past tense of "lie" is "lay." Oh yeah, no problem there. Whose idea was this, anyway?
The past tense of "lay" is "laid."
Here's where it gets easy, because vulgar slang is coming to the rescue with a mnemonic device: Someone got laid last night. If you can remember that "someone" is the object in this sentence, you can remember that "laid" is the past tense of the the word that takes the object: "lay."
And those grammar nannies, what were they doing? I got it right the first time when it was present tense, but the second example was correct for past tense: The grammar nannies lay in wait, but they bounced because the college student finally got the difference between "lay" and "lie."
Now, if none of these mnemonic devices helps you memorize the rule, you have two choices: 1) Avoid using these words altogether, or 2) look it up every time, because you know you might get it wrong.
© Holly A. Heyser
Lie and lay, with their confusing past-tense forms, are my nominees for the most vexing words in the English language. But if you can just master the rule for present tense, you can win this battle. So here's the rule:
"Lay" takes an object. "Lie" does not.
Unfortunately, some of the best-known examples confuse the matter.
I lie down to sleep.
Now I lay me down to sleep.
I just said the same thing correctly both ways. The second one is correct because I use "me" as an object.
Maybe this will help: Lay down the law.
"The law" is the object in that sentence. That's pretty easy to remember.
But in case that isn't good enough, here's an example from the 1980s in which musicians - usually famous for popularizing bad grammar - actually get it right. ("It" is the object in the song title.)
Now, for past tense, which really makes things even more confusing:
The past tense of "lie" is "lay." Oh yeah, no problem there. Whose idea was this, anyway?
The past tense of "lay" is "laid."
Here's where it gets easy, because vulgar slang is coming to the rescue with a mnemonic device: Someone got laid last night. If you can remember that "someone" is the object in this sentence, you can remember that "laid" is the past tense of the the word that takes the object: "lay."
And those grammar nannies, what were they doing? I got it right the first time when it was present tense, but the second example was correct for past tense: The grammar nannies lay in wait, but they bounced because the college student finally got the difference between "lay" and "lie."
Now, if none of these mnemonic devices helps you memorize the rule, you have two choices: 1) Avoid using these words altogether, or 2) look it up every time, because you know you might get it wrong.
© Holly A. Heyser
Saturday, March 10, 2012
Math: calculate percent change
Knowing how to calculate percent change means we can put pay increases, spending increases and other amount changes into perspective. Here's the formula, expressed as an algebra equation:
(new amount - old amount)/old amount = change
Here it is expressed in English: Take the amount of change (new minus old), divide it by the old amount and you'll get the percent change.
This formula works whether you're dealing with increases or decreases, which is handy in times of budget cuts, when decreases seem to be the norm.
So let's use an example that's obvious: If I was making $10 an hour last year and I'm making $12 an hour this year, what is my raise, or percent change?
(12-10)/10=0.2
The answer is 0.2, or 20 percent.
Now, just to be safe, you should double-check your math: Does 20 percent of $10 equal $2? Yes, it does. And yes, you really need to check, because I've seen reporters have to write ugly corrections because they got the formula backwards.
If you need to calculate percent change for a lot of figures, a spreadsheet can help with that. You write the formula just like the equation shown at the top of this post, substituting spreadsheet cell numbers. For the spreadsheet below, the formula is =(C3-B3)/B3.
Or, if you're feeling really lazy at the moment and you just want a quick answer, use the calculator below: Click on the "Click to edit" button, then drop your new and old figures in the appropriate white boxes below - just numbers, no commas or dollar signs. When you hit "enter" after typing in the second amount, the answer will appear automatically.
© Holly A. Heyser
Grammar: items in a series - commas, semicolons or conjunctions?
We typically use commas to separate items in a series, and in journalism, we omit the comma before the conjunction, (usually "and," but can be another joining word). Here's an example, with the series underlined:
CORRECT: He typically eats rice, beans and ice cream for dinner every night.
Sometimes, however, the need for clarity requires us to use semicolons. Check out this example:
INCORRECT: She has lived in three state capitals: Sacramento, Calif., Richmond, Va., and St. Paul, Minn.
See the problem? This is a list of three cities, but because there are commas between each city and state, it looks like a list of six places. In cases like this where one or more items within a series contain commas, we separate the items using semicolons, like this:
CORRECT: She has lived in three state capitals: Sacramento, Calif.; Richmond, Va.; and St. Paul, Minn.
Sometimes, the need for clarity also forces us to use a comma before the "and" in a series:
UNCLEAR: The author said her main sources of inspiration were her parents, Fido and her priest.
Uh oh, we just said her parents were a dog and a priest - not what we meant. Here, the need for clarity makes the comma before the conjunction not only acceptable, but desirable:
CORRECT: The author said her main sources of inspiration were her parents, Fido, and her priest.
© Holly A. Heyser
CORRECT: He typically eats rice, beans and ice cream for dinner every night.
Sometimes, however, the need for clarity requires us to use semicolons. Check out this example:
INCORRECT: She has lived in three state capitals: Sacramento, Calif., Richmond, Va., and St. Paul, Minn.
See the problem? This is a list of three cities, but because there are commas between each city and state, it looks like a list of six places. In cases like this where one or more items within a series contain commas, we separate the items using semicolons, like this:
CORRECT: She has lived in three state capitals: Sacramento, Calif.; Richmond, Va.; and St. Paul, Minn.
Sometimes, the need for clarity also forces us to use a comma before the "and" in a series:
UNCLEAR: The author said her main sources of inspiration were her parents, Fido and her priest.
Uh oh, we just said her parents were a dog and a priest - not what we meant. Here, the need for clarity makes the comma before the conjunction not only acceptable, but desirable:
CORRECT: The author said her main sources of inspiration were her parents, Fido, and her priest.
© Holly A. Heyser
Grammar: comma splice
A comma splice is two or more independent clauses - complete sentences - joined incorrectly by a comma. It's a very common error.
To avoid this error, you must first understand what constitutes a complete sentence: a subject and a predicate. A subject is who or what a sentence is about; a noun is at its core. A predicate is what happens; a verb is at its core.
There are three basic ways to join two or more independent clauses: 1) by using a conjunction, 2) by using a semicolon, dash or colon, and 3) by making one clause dependent on the other. Another option is simply to end each sentence with a period. Here are some examples, with each independent clause underlined:
INCORRECT: Coach Petersen said the football team needed new uniforms, its old uniforms were torn and stained.
CORRECT: Coach Petersen said the football team needed new uniforms because its old uniforms were torn and stained.
CORRECT: Coach Petersen said the football team needed new uniforms; its old uniforms were stained.
INCORRECT: This homework sucks, I'd rather be eating pizza.
CORRECT: This homework sucks - I'd rather be eating pizza.
CORRECT: This homework sucks. I'd rather be eating pizza.
INCORRECT: The best way to lose weight is simple, eat less and exercise more.
CORRECT: The best way to lose weight is simple: Eat less and exercise more. (Note that when you use a colon, the beginning of the sentence that follows it is capitalized, just as it would be if you had used a period.)
INCORRECT: I'm eating less, I'm exercising more.
CORRECT: I'm eating less and I'm exercising more.
CORRECT: I'm eating less. I'm exercising more.
© Holly A. Heyser
To avoid this error, you must first understand what constitutes a complete sentence: a subject and a predicate. A subject is who or what a sentence is about; a noun is at its core. A predicate is what happens; a verb is at its core.
There are three basic ways to join two or more independent clauses: 1) by using a conjunction, 2) by using a semicolon, dash or colon, and 3) by making one clause dependent on the other. Another option is simply to end each sentence with a period. Here are some examples, with each independent clause underlined:
INCORRECT: Coach Petersen said the football team needed new uniforms, its old uniforms were torn and stained.
CORRECT: Coach Petersen said the football team needed new uniforms because its old uniforms were torn and stained.
CORRECT: Coach Petersen said the football team needed new uniforms; its old uniforms were stained.
INCORRECT: This homework sucks, I'd rather be eating pizza.
CORRECT: This homework sucks - I'd rather be eating pizza.
CORRECT: This homework sucks. I'd rather be eating pizza.
INCORRECT: The best way to lose weight is simple, eat less and exercise more.
CORRECT: The best way to lose weight is simple: Eat less and exercise more. (Note that when you use a colon, the beginning of the sentence that follows it is capitalized, just as it would be if you had used a period.)
INCORRECT: I'm eating less, I'm exercising more.
CORRECT: I'm eating less and I'm exercising more.
CORRECT: I'm eating less. I'm exercising more.
© Holly A. Heyser
Photo editing: correcting exposure
It's sometimes hard to tell whether a photo is properly exposed because you can't tell if the problem is the angle of your computer screen or the photo itself. But while your screen may lie to you, the histogram will not.
Check out this photo. There's lots of white, but is it properly exposed?
The histogram tells you the answer:
The bars in a histogram proceed from black on the left to white on the right. If there is white in a photo, you should see bars all the way to the right. We know snow should be white, so we know this photo is underexposed.
You can use the histogram on your camera screen to check exposure while you're in the field, but here I'll focus on correcting exposure in Photoshop. The best place to do that is in Camera RAW.
If you shoot in RAW - which you should always do - clicking on the file to open it will always open it in Camera RAW. If for some unfortunate reason you shot JPGs, viewing them in Bridge will allow you to open them with Camera RAW.
Here's how the image above looks in Camera RAW (click on it to look at the image at full size):
Look for the exposure slider on the right side. Click and drag it until that wall of white bumps up to the right side of the histogram:
Much better, right? Maybe. If that bar on the right is maxed out, you might have blown-out highlights. This is not necessarily a bad thing, but you should click on that triangle in the upper right-hand corner to reveal the blown-out highlights in red. In this case, it's nothing troubling:
Check out this photo. There's lots of white, but is it properly exposed?
 |
| © Holly A. Heyser |
The histogram tells you the answer:
The bars in a histogram proceed from black on the left to white on the right. If there is white in a photo, you should see bars all the way to the right. We know snow should be white, so we know this photo is underexposed.
You can use the histogram on your camera screen to check exposure while you're in the field, but here I'll focus on correcting exposure in Photoshop. The best place to do that is in Camera RAW.
If you shoot in RAW - which you should always do - clicking on the file to open it will always open it in Camera RAW. If for some unfortunate reason you shot JPGs, viewing them in Bridge will allow you to open them with Camera RAW.
Here's how the image above looks in Camera RAW (click on it to look at the image at full size):
Look for the exposure slider on the right side. Click and drag it until that wall of white bumps up to the right side of the histogram:
Much better, right? Maybe. If that bar on the right is maxed out, you might have blown-out highlights. This is not necessarily a bad thing, but you should click on that triangle in the upper right-hand corner to reveal the blown-out highlights in red. In this case, it's nothing troubling:
If it had been troubling, though, I would have had two choices: One, reduce the exposure a bit, or two, use the recovery slider right underneath the exposure slider. Dragging that to the right recovers detail in the blown-out areas.
Here's the before-and-after:
© Holly A. Heyser
Grammar: noun-pronoun agreement
Noun-pronoun disagreement is one of the most common errors in written and spoken American English. It appears most often when people want to use the gender-neutral "they" or "their" in lieu of the awkward "he or she" or "his or hers."
To avoid this error, the writer needs to identify the noun that a pronoun refers to, determine whether it is singular or plural, and use the appropriate singular or plural pronoun.
Here are some examples, with the nouns and pronouns underlined:
WRONG: The team was pleased with their score.
CORRECT: The team was pleased with its score.
CORRECT: The players were pleased with their score.
WRONG: Any student who wants to join should send their contact information to the club secretary.
CORRECT: Any student who wants to join should send his or her contact information to the club secretary.
CORRECT: Students who want to join should send their contact information to the club secretary.
Note that the answer does not always lie in changing a plural pronoun to a singular one; it is often easier and less awkward to convert a singular noun to a plural one.
© Holly A. Heyser
To avoid this error, the writer needs to identify the noun that a pronoun refers to, determine whether it is singular or plural, and use the appropriate singular or plural pronoun.
Here are some examples, with the nouns and pronouns underlined:
WRONG: The team was pleased with their score.
CORRECT: The team was pleased with its score.
CORRECT: The players were pleased with their score.
WRONG: Any student who wants to join should send their contact information to the club secretary.
CORRECT: Any student who wants to join should send his or her contact information to the club secretary.
CORRECT: Students who want to join should send their contact information to the club secretary.
Note that the answer does not always lie in changing a plural pronoun to a singular one; it is often easier and less awkward to convert a singular noun to a plural one.
© Holly A. Heyser
Subscribe to:
Comments (Atom)