Rarely is an era captured in a single frame. But that’s exactly what TV News photog Jake VanDonge managed to do the other night in Clay County, Texas. That he did it with a Droid X is equally astounding, but I didn’t log in to yap about apps. No, I’m here for the silhouettes. The one on the left is Sheriff Kenny Lemons, an elected position which more than explains the hat. The guy on the right? Why, that’s none other than Paul Harrop: multimedia journalist, ham radio jock and tireless promoter of this very blog. Seriously, besides my Mom (and perhaps Joel Leonard), nobody’s turned more people on to Viewfinder BLUES than this broadcast dynamo way down in the Lone Star State.

Too bad he’s about to bail.

See, Paul’s got more upstairs than your average microphone holder. He’s already done time in a couple of newsrooms and for the past two years, he’s damn near done it all. Now, he’s taking his talents to South Beach Washington, D.C., where he’ll be a Producer/Videojournalist for a national General Aviation association. So why would a promising young man leave the exciting industry of TV news? Have you WORKED in the exciting industry of TV news? Obviously not. Otherwise, you’d understand perfectly how someone so adept at broadcasting would eagerly seek a life outside their local affiliate. Besides, Paul’s got game:

‘I’ll trade live trucks for Cessnas and shallow graves for tarmacs. I will miss local news, but I am a storyteller at heart and have aviation in my blood. My father, grandfather and uncle were all pilots. This is a dream job and will hopefully keep me from standing at the side of an icy freeway for endless live shots on it being an icy freeway.”

Good luck with that, Paul. Should your General Aviation association develop a need for an overly wordy camera nerd, lemme know and and I’ll head straight toward Capital City. Better yet, just tell your new friends about my blog and I promise to keep the hell off the Beltway. But before you shake all that Texas dust from your loafers, know this: you’ve helped me more than you know and a copy of that righteous photo up there will forever hang in a place of honor here in the uppermost reaches of The Lenslinger Institute.

Or at least until the wife makes me straighten up the playroom.