Oliver Marks knows how important both writing and photography are in storytelling – HS Insider

Rising junior Oliver Marks already has extensive experience in written journalism and photography and is using it to make an impression this summer.

16-year-old High School Insider summer intern Oliver Marks has it all covered. Not only is Marks an accomplished pitcher and third baseman on the Pasadena Polytechnic School baseball team, but he is also a rising high school junior from Silver Lake who is proving to be a valuable resource for the Paw print made of polyand acts as both editor for the sports section and as photo editor.

Apparently he’s something of a journalism renaissance man; Marks decided to pursue journalism after getting an introduction to it in middle school and has continued through high school. A newer hobby for him, however, is photography – a skill that translates perfectly to the field of photojournalism.

“I took a (journalism) class in eighth grade just because all my friends were taking it. We only met about once a week. But the teacher was really nice, even though we didn’t write many articles of our own; we just pieced together other articles and passed them off as news. But that’s how I got into it,” Marks said. “So I decided to go to work at the newspaper at the beginning of my freshman year, and then I started taking photos, I think last May.”

According to Marks, both aspects of creating content for a newspaper are critical to his job.

“They definitely go hand in hand, especially because I was doing sports journalism before I started sports photography.”

“One of the reasons I started was because when I was writing, I would always complain that the pictures they were adding to my articles weren’t very good and it made my writing seem kind of mediocre,” he said. “So I thought, oh, I could do that too. I could do that better. My dad happened to get a camera around the same time because he was also into photography and I kind of stole it. And then, yeah, I started experimenting with it. And I think it definitely helps tell my story.”

So by honing both skills simultaneously, Marks paints a striking picture of a possible future in journalism. With the ability to both verbally and visually capture the events he covers, he takes his reporting to new heights and avoids the discrepancy that threatens stories with accompanying photos taken by someone else. From writing articles for the popular “Athlete of the Issue” series to travel snapshots for his Photography-based Instagram accountOliver Marks has media skills that are rare among journalists.

And in both writing and photography, sports play a big role for Marks. He has been playing baseball since preschool and quickly began writing about sports when he joined the editorial team of the Paw Print. After climbing the career ladder, he will begin his second year as sports and photo editor next school year. In fact, sports is such a big focus of his journalism that Marks will spend his summer as an intern at High School Insider, covering the rise of flag football in high school and international sports as a safer, more inclusive alternative to the tackle version of the traditional American sport.

As for his plans for the rest of high school and beyond, he isn’t sure yet, all he knows is that he wants to continue to focus on exploring and photography, especially sports photography.

“I think I’m going to see where photography can take me. I’ve only ever photographed for myself and for my high school, so I’m going to see if I can branch out a little more and do commercial work or work with colleges or even professional teams. So that would be my dream,” Marks said.

“I like all kinds of photography except studio photography. It’s so artificial. I prefer to be in the moment. But yes, I think if I were to continue, it would be in sports photography.”

In addition to journalism and photography, Marks spends his free time playing baseball, cooking, listening to music, watching television, and taking walks.

Marks attributes the biggest positive influence on his life to his parents. His father has a journalism background, but it was their combined encouragement throughout his life that he believes contributed to his success today.

“They both pushed me to do my best and they are really inspirational, so they always give me guidance,” he said.

Overall, Oliver Marks has a lot to be proud of as a journalist and as a person, but he highlights one aspect of his life as being particularly valuable.

“I’m proud of the confidence I have in my work, I think. Just putting myself out there and trying to build a brand and an image for myself.”