work

Refreshing an annual report /  by Lisa Tossey

Previously, Maryland Sea Grant’s annual report was produced as a print piece and mailed out to a list as a package along with a letter and other pieces. The last one to go out in this format was the 2018 report, at the close of 2019. Then came the pandemic.

It was time to rethink the report—early in pandemic, there was a lot of uncertainty about its spread and distrust in mail. Additionally, with the office all working remotely, the mailing “packing” parties to prep the envelopes weren’t an option, and print costs were skyrocketing due to supply chain issues. So we regrouped and reevaluated.

One limitation of the printed piece was that it provided little space for text and imagery and we wanted to better highlight the work the program was doing. We had originally shifted some of our magazine stories to the ArcGIS StoryMap format in order to test more engaging ways to present them, and those efforts had been successful —we’d received great feedback on them and the story analytics showed that readers were staying on the pages for longer. So we turned to that platform.

We also decided to shift to a biennial format, in order to be able to delve a bit deeper into some of the content. I’m really proud of the result: our 2019-20 biennial report.

Producing magazine Content during a pandemic /  by Lisa Tossey

The COVID-19 pandemic has brought a host of challenges to our communications team - from suddenly going to remote work and being limited to virtual interactions, to being unable to go into the field to conduct interviews or collect photos and video. But we still had work to do, and publications to put out, so like everyone else struggling to figure things out, we considered our options and got creative.

Our regular magazine, Chesapeake Quarterly, has always been a print product, but we had recently tried a different approach: a fully online issue built on the ArcGIS StoryMaps platform. This platform allows for the integration of graphics, audio, video, and maps into stories, resulting in beautiful, engaging pieces. We were fortunate to have had that online issue under our belts during the “before times,” and knew it would be a solid approach for another issue we were planning.

The upcoming issue was to focus on work done by Black Marylanders on the Chesapeake Bay and included a great deal of archival materials, including photos, newspaper clippings, maps, and ticket stubs. Being able to highlight these materials in such visually-friendly way was key, so we pivoted the issue to the StoryMaps format as well. It would give stories more space than the print version, so we could provide more details and imagery, we could all work on them simultaneously virtually, and we wouldn’t have to stress about not being able to do in-person press checks, or if subscribers would be wary of receiving print copies in the mail due to uncertainties about COVID-19.

On site before dawn at Kent Narrows

As the issue came together, we had a wealth of materials to illustrate the older stories, but still needed imagery for a story focusing on Black headboat captains who currently operate on the Bay. We were close to wrapping up the issue, and were now seven months into the pandemic, so guidelines were constantly evolving. I was able to get permission to go out and shoot a couple of the headboat captains as they prepared to leave on a day trip, as long as I followed strict guidelines, which included staying masked and keeping a distance of 10 feet from others at all times.

It was a challenge — especially since I had a short window of time from daybreak to 7 a.m., when they departed from the docks. The boat was about 90 miles from me, so I rose at 4 a.m., with my husband in tow, to get up there and make a gameplan. I was able to scope out the area a bit using Google Maps, and had a rough idea of the area, but wasn’t sure where the boat would arrive and dock. My goal was to get a wide variety of material to help bring the story to life, so we set up a GoPro to capture a timelapse of the boat’s preparation, a tripod with the video camera to capture high resolution B-roll, and a Nikon Z5 for still images as well as additional B-roll.

On site I used a variety of cameras to capture as much as I could, while socially distanced, in a short time. A GoPro (attached to the back of the bench with a GorillaPod in the foreground) captured a time lapse of the boat’s preparation, while I used a video camera on a tripod and a handheld mirrorless DSLR to collect B-roll and stills.

On site I used a variety of cameras to capture as much as I could, while socially distanced, in a short time. A GoPro (attached to the back of the bench with a GorillaPod in the foreground) captured a time lapse of the boat’s preparation, while I used a video camera on a tripod and a handheld mirrorless DSLR to collect B-roll and stills.

It was stressful, and chaotic, but worth the effort. Here is a resulting video from the shoot that morning, which was paired with audio from a Zoom interview. The time lapse and a few of the still photos can be seen in the full StoryMap.

Explore the full issue below!

Stuck at Home? #ShuckatHome Series /  by Lisa Tossey

What do you do when a pandemic hits, communities go into lockdown, restaurants close, and oyster growers shift their sales efforts to home cooks? You share some resources to help folks learn how to shuck and prepare the tasty bivalves in their own kitchens!

That’s how our Maryland Sea Grant “#ShuckatHome” video series came about at the start of stay-at-home orders for the COVID-19 pandemic a year ago — through a conversation with Aquaculture Extension specialists who were looking for ways to show consumers how easy it is to prepare and enjoy fresh, local shellfish at home. I gave the specialists tips on how to use their smartphones to record themselves in their own kitchens, they uploaded their “how to” clips onto a shared folder on Google Drive, then I created a custom opener and edited the pieces together into episodes. The videos are shared on YouTube channel and via our social media accounts.

I just took part in a session, The Sea Grant COVID-19 Response to the Needs of the Shellfish Industry, at the National Shellfisheries Association annual conference and presented on the series. See the abstract and video of that presentation below.

Here’s the latest episode of the series. The complete playlist can be viewed here.

2021 National Shellfisheries Association Annual Meeting, #Shellfish 21

Abstract: Taking public outreach into home kitchens: Stuck at home? #ShuckatHome!

Lisa D. Tossey & Shannon M. Hood

The rapid spread of coronavirus and the resulting lockdowns led to a host of challenges when it came to traditional approaches to public outreach. Widespread restaurant closures left oyster growers without the market where about 90 percent of their product is normally distributed. Consumers, eager to eat oysters, found themselves ill-equipped to open and prepare oysters in the home. With consumers, oyster growers, and Extension agents largely limited to the confines of their own homes in the Spring of 2020, Maryland Sea Grant Extension agents pivoted to a digital approach to showcase how the public could continue to enjoy oysters in their own home by sharing easy-to-follow preparation tips and recipes.

The team engaged a range of experts, including growers, extension specialists and students to demonstrate a variety of options for at-home oyster consumption. These included various shucking techniques, shuck-less methods, as well as recipe ideas well-suited to the home chef. Recorded using the technology growers and outreach specialists had on hand–smartphones–and produced by the program’s communications staff to have a consistent look and feel, the resulting ‘Shuck at Home’ series was planned so that episodes could be easily viewed across several social media platforms and YouTube. Optimizing the videos for this type of distribution allowed for a wider audience through social sharing and the use of targeted hashtags, as well as track shares and views through various platform analytics.

Here’s the video of that session:

Telling the Story of Plastics Visually /  by Lisa Tossey

In working on an issue of Chesapeake Quarterly focused on the science of microplastics in the Chesapeake Bay, there were several elements that needed a great deal of research. We wanted to create a comprehensive timeline on the history of plastics — a resource that we could not find online — as well as a clear infographic to show how plastics can break down in aquatic/marine environments. The resulting pieces are below.

We were short on space for the timeline in the print version of the magazine, as it had to fit in a two-page spread. However, we had more options online, so we expanded the piece into an image-rich ArcGIS Story Map, which made it engaging to explore as well as easy to share!

Breakdown of a plastic bag by photodegradation, physical degradation, and fragmentation. From this feature story.

Short & Sweet - Video recaps for multiple platforms /  by Lisa Tossey

Historically, our program has been known for long format documentaries. However, it was clear that we were missing out on opportunities to develop short format videos that can be used as event recaps or to illustrate unique happenings. Such video can be used in a variety of ways to reach a broader audience, from adding them to our YouTube channel, to embedding them in our blog posts, and sharing them across our social media platforms.

Here are a few I’ve shot and produced using footage from several basic cameras: a Nikon Z6 digital mirrorless camera, a GoPro, and my iPhone. Some use voiceovers to tell the story, while others use text on screen, which works well on social feeds.

#MDSGBackyardEcology - Educating from home during a time of telework /  by Lisa Tossey

As our program shifted to telework at the beginning of the pandemic, we struggled with how we could continue to connect our social media followers with their local watershed. We were all hunkered down in our homes, but our staff was spread across the state — from the Atlantic Ocean to the mountains of western Maryland. That allowed us to share a wide variety of images of seasonal changes in plants and wildlife from our own backyards to help others discover and learn about what they may be seeing in their own during a time of lockdown.

Chesapeake Quarterly ArcGIS StoryMap - Chemical cues in groundwater /  by Lisa Tossey

It’s been a while since I’ve had an opportunity to research and write a full length piece. It felt great. Even if it was centered on septic science - there is some really interesting chemistry involved!

Even better: I did it in a StoryMap, including my own images and 360 video. Three cheers for the “septic detectives”!

From the storyboard to the screen /  by Lisa Tossey

Planning is key for videos - especially when it comes to animated sequences. I enjoyed helping to write this script and storyboard it, then watch it come to life under the graphic magic of my colleague, Jeff Chase.

A few shots of my planning sketches on the script, followed by the final video.

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Learn more about this $23 million grant here >

A link between farting termites and cleaner energy? /  by Lisa Tossey

I have to say, that got my attention…

In reality, it is microbes doing the “farting” - specifically methane-producing microbes who live within the gut of termites. And since these microbes also help termites digest wood, researchers are looking at how they might be put to work “mining” vast reserves of coal that are otherwise difficult to access, since coal is basically compressed wood. By having these deep diving microbes convert coal directly to methane, or natural gas, its energy can be captured and utilized in a cleaner burning form to serve growing energy needs as greener alternative energies come on line.

I worked with Jeff Chase, senior art director at University of Delaware’s Office of Communications and Marketing, to produce this series of videos on the topic to accompany an article by Tracey Bryant. These pieces were designed to work in concert with each other if viewers wanted to dive deeper into the topic and are linked by cards. The wood to coal explainer was also designed to stand alone as educational piece.

A huge shout-out to Jeff for his beautiful graphic work on this!

UPDATE Jan. 16: Cool to see this was picked up by Newsweek!

Termites may hold the key to transforming coal - a big polluting chunk of the global energy supply - into cleaner energy for the world, according to Universi...

#MAMEA18 in Portsmouth, Va. /  by Lisa Tossey

I always enjoy the annual conference of the Mid-Atlantic Marine Education Association (MAMEA) - it’s full of useful sessions as well as a fun weekend to catch up with my peers in the region and see what they have been doing in their own institutions and organizations. This year was especially cool, as I was elected as president-elect for the organization, which means I get to oversee next year’s conference. I have some fun ideas!

I presented a session on the use of VR/AR/MR (virtual, augmented, and mixed realities) in science communication and education and had some enthusiastic participants who also tried out some of the apps and headsets at the close of the session. Here is the Prezi I used during the presentation, as well as links to many examples, resources, and gear.

Spinning Science in 360° - MAMEA 2018 Conference

Direct Prezi link for sharing >

And here’s a Google Doc of all the links below for download >

I’m always happy to answer questions!

Examples & Resources for Communicating Science

Virtual Reality (VR)

360 Video

Augmented Reality (AR)

Mixed Reality

Cameras & Apps

Google Cardboard Camera

FOV 360 camera app (Apple iOS only)

Panorama 360. Camera

Insta360 camera line

Ricoh Theta camera line

GoPro Fusion camera (Note: I haven’t used this one personally & have heard mixed opinions on it)

Others I’ve tried & have not been thrilled with compared to the first two: Nikon KeyMission, 360Fly

Viewers & Platforms

Google Cardboard viewer app

Smartphone-based viewers:

Standalone headsets:

RoundMe

Thinglink - Sign up for their e-news, as they may have another Black Friday sale!

Google Tour Creator

Both YouTube & Vimeo now support 360 video

My Examples

DE Sea Grant on RoundMe

Thinglink

#SUKAYAKSDelmarva /  by Lisa Tossey

Twenty-one days kayaking and camping around the Delmarva peninsula - not a bad way to start the summer! I was fortunate to spend June assisting with a summer semester course doing just that with the writer Tom Horton and students from Salisbury University. I am currently compiling and editing footage from the journey, but here are a few of the social media posts I made during the trip. 

One year since diving deep... /  by Lisa Tossey

Hard to believe it's already been a year since I traveled down, down, down to the East Pacific Rise aboard the DSV Alvin! 

One of my favorite images from our research cruise aboard the R/V Atlantis, Photo by Luis Lamar

"Driving" Alvin along the seafloor, 2500 meters deep - unsure if my auto insurance covers this... Photo by PI George Luther

A porthole view on the sea floor.

All I wanted to see down there was an octopus ... wish granted!

Students shine on research cruise /  by Lisa Tossey

I'm still processing all the amazing experiences I had on the R/V Atlantis last month, diving on the East Pacific Rise in DSV Alvin. I am currently finalizing a highlights video for the cruise that will showcase some of the amazing sights we saw 2500 meters under the sea, but one of the favorite parts of my work out there were the student pieces. 

I chatted with a couple of the undergraduate and graduate students, as well as a postdoc, about their expectations before making their first dive in DSV Alvin, and then again afterwards to hear about their experience. They expressed their thoughts so clearly and with such enthusiasm it was hard not to get stoked with them! Here's Ph.D. candidate Kristin Yoshimura speaking about her dive. The other videos can be seen on the trip blog or the college's Facebook page. 

The ship's crew and staff also remarked on the quality of the students we had with us - they were all fantastic and did University of Delaware proud!

Test run with the GoPro Karma grip /  by Lisa Tossey

I was a carrying a new tool on our research cruise aboard the R/V Atlantis - GoPro's handheld stabilizer, the Karma grip. We had a few days at sea as we were underway from Costa Rica to our station at 9 North along the East Pacific Rise, so I decided to put it to the test by carrying it completely through the ship to provide a quick video tour.

I'm impressed by the results, which you can see below. The video is from one take, walking through doors, in and out of different work areas, and up steps on the vessel, which was moving at about 12 knots at the time. I can't wait to put it to use on some other projects soon! 

Project VIDEO Virtual Reality work recognized /  by Lisa Tossey

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I’m thrilled to have just been notified that Project VIDEO, the Center for Dark Energy Biosphere Investigations (C-DEBI) grant work I’ve been collaborating with Christopher Petrone on, just won the Audiovisual division of the 2016 Delaware Press Association awards. Chris is the education specialist for Delaware Sea Grant’s Marine Advisory Service and PI on our project, and I assist him on the educational components and do all the video and virtual reality shooting and production. It will now go on to the national communications contest held by the National Association of Press Women (NFPW). 

Across Delmarva via an ARCGis Story Map /  by Lisa Tossey

I assisted Chris Petrone, the education specialist for Delaware Sea Grant, with a series of teacher workshops this summer that had us transecting the Delmarva Peninsula from the Chesapeake Bay to the Delaware Bay, exploring various watersheds along the way. It made for quite a fun and educational road trip for participating teachers! 

I decided to test out Esri's new story map template called Cascade, which is still in beta release, to document the workshops. It's been a bit glitchy at times, and although it promises to optimize images, it can take some time to load. However, I love how it allows you tell an immersive 'story' beautifully by combining images, video, and data!