Two weeks into my internship at the Silicon Valley Community Newspapers and all is well. I have shot nine assignments and find the hardest part (aside from portraits) is remembering which of the six papers I am shooting for at the time.

It has been great to get back to shooting often again following a short winter break. To be honest, after shooting nearly every day for a whole semester while on the Spartan Daily it felt a bit weird to be at home with the camera on the desk. While not every assignment is glorious, and not every picture is an award winner (okay, none are) starting my internship at SVCN has done nothing but solidify my resolve to become a photojournalist. I have met friendly and interesting people, not to mention I spend my days taking photographs.

As far as my photography goes…I still get nervous and self-conscious when photographing people at events and when directing subjects while taking a portrait. I have been trying to work on my composition, adding elements that would make for better storytelling while subtracting those that do not contribute. It is still, and always will be, a work in progress.

Lisa Martinez grooms the plants around the Almaden Winery Park in San Jose, Calif. on Thursday, January 12, 2006. Ground crews have had to cut their visits to neighborhood parks by two days a week due to city budget cuts.