Reader Suzanne Flores asks Schoepp about his experiences working with his colleagues on the other side of the camera.
Flores: As a news cameraman, no doubt every work day experience was a different "story", but I can imagine that this dynamic would vary greatly depending on who your partnering reporter was for the assignment. Can you tell us about your working relationships between the personalities of different reporters, and remark on some of the experiences you've had while working with reporters?
Schoepp: First of all, as a cameraman shooting the news, you need to be able to "size up" or "get the feel" of who you are working with. If it's for the first time, this must happen in very short order. You don't have the luxury of a gradual process of familiarity. You are assigned to cover a story together, right now, as a team: he or she with words, you with pictures. Sometimes ego gets in the way, on either side. In which case, I would prefer not to mention the name of the reporter who, because of a demeaning attitude and verbal abuse directed toward me in front of others, I left standing at the curb when I wrapped the assignment and drove off on my way back to the station. Fortunately, this never happened more than once, and I am privileged to have only fond memories of my working relationship with countless other reporters throughout my long career.
Flores: Tell us more about some of your fond memories. Who were some of your favorite reporters to work with, and why?
Schoepp: Twenty-nine years saw a great many reporters come and go at KPIX, and with fond memories of my working relationship with almost every one of them, it would a take another book to tell all their stories. However, there will always be someone who you remember and who stands out for a particular reason.
Mike Hegedus impressed me as one who had complete control of a feature story. Every time. He knew in advance exactly who to interview, what to say during his stand-p to the camera, and, most important, left me to my own devices, deciding and shooting whatever B-roll I felt we needed.
Pam Harper had what I used to call the "gift of approach." She had that rare combination of professional savvy and sensitivity to victims of a tragedy which, on more than one occasion, we experienced while telling a news story under difficult circumstances.
Whenever Rolando Santos spoke to my camera and microphone and the viewers at home, he would ask for my opinion afterwards, not only on its content but on his appearance while delivering the stand-up. And, from time to time, he would comment about how he felt more destined toward a career in news management rather than reporting in the field. Some years later, after holding managerial positions at various other television stations around the country, Rolando settled in Atlanta as president and head of CNN.
And some reporter/cameraman partnerships just end up as long lasting friendships. That's what happens when two great minds are required to think alike. In all modesty, coming up with original and entertaining ideas and then producing over two hundred Car 5 feature stories in a single year doesn't happen by accident. Needless to say, working alongside reporter John Lester in 1979 was one of the highlights my entire career.
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Veteran news cameraman Hank Schoepp, who worked for San Francisco’s KPIX/CBS 5 from 1968-1997. His book covers a one-of-a-kind view on some of the biggest stories of that time.
Read more about the stories captured by Schoepp and many of the high profile reporters of that time. Click here to purchase the book- $4.99 on Amazon. "SHOOT FIRST: Code of the News Cameraman"
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