BIG IDEAS

Arriving into Cape Coast was like arriving at carnival. People were in the streets, roads were blocked, police were on guard directing traffic and everybody was breathless with anticipation of the President’s arrival.  When the helicopters started to fly above I pulled out my cell phone and called my Dad. I wanted to share this moment with him from the comfort of his living room in Wilmington, Delaware. Women carrying fresh fruit strategically balancing platters on their heads sold their wears to the crowd. Tee shirts, dancing, water bottles and cameras, we all waited for the Obama’s to arrive.

Bob Reid of The Africa Channel who has partnered with Ebony to capture this historic event on film was on the prowl.  He has a tiger’s eye for what makes a good image. He instinctively knows where to find the next great angle or soundbite and I have learned on this journey to step back and let the master do his thing. Bob and I are engaged in two different creative processes. He works hard to capture the images that speak for themselves and to that end he uses angles, light, and color to tell the story. I create imagery through the translation of the physical world into the written world. I have to take in  the moment and then step back to create a panorama that is syncopated not by soundbites but by words.

I can’t wait to see the film documentary that The Africa Channel is creating of this historic event. Our incredible crew Nii, Jason, Abass, Michael, and  Evans are also wide eyed with anticipation. The younger and slimmer ones among us manage to slip into the crowds which were about 20 rows deep to get to the barricades and position themselves to get the best glimpse of President Obama, the Beast, and anything else going on.  Cheers upon cheers and the sound of the drums let us know the moment of his arrival.  The crowd moved almost in sync to the beat of the drums…..President of the United States, a son of Africa had arrived…. and as quickly as he appeared, he vanished into the castle for a private tour.