Many great ideas were shared that day, and I’m certain that I did not do them justice with these sketches. I encourage you to go watch each talk in full. You won’t be disappointed.

The moment before each TEDxConcordiaUPortland speaker walked on stage was both exciting and nerve-wracking for me. Though I knew that the focus would be on the ideas that each speaker was about to share, I couldn’t help but think about how everyone would react to the short videos that played on those two GIANT screens in front of the audience of 700 people. Videos of a hand sketching with a sharpie – first the TEDx logo, then a portrait of the speaker, the title of their talk and a small sketch to accompany it. The story of how those time-lapse videos came together is my favorite so far among an ever-growing list populated by my experiments with sketchnoting.

(Note: If you don’t give a damn about the story and just want to see the videos, scroll to the bottom of this page)

Prior to the creation of the TEDxCUP videos, the extent of my experience with time-lapse videos involved using a simple iPhone app to create a video of me graphically recording Brene Brown’s interview on the show On Being. Thankfully, we had a real photographer and videographer among the planning team, George Mihaly, to make things look really good for the TEDxCUP videos.

The cool thing about this project is that neither of us had done anything like it before – George’s focus is on video work and I typically enjoy the peace of mind of NOT being recorded while sketchnoting. The fact that we even embarked on this project was thanks to Michelle Jones, the third and final character in this story (apart from all of the speakers, of course). Michelle enjoys finding ways for you to explore who you are, try new things, and take risks in the process. Her moral support and editor’s eye, as well as the wine and food she brought us, were invaluable.

On two different weeknights, we worked from about 7:00pm to midnight to create all of the time-lapse videos that you’ll find below. The first night involved a lot of tinkering and experimentation. The second night was more about getting down to work and busting out sketch after sketch.

I did the sketching, with a photo from the event program or website in front of me, the lights shining down, and the constant click of the camera marking each second with an image that would be added to a string of others to produce the videos that played to 700 people at TEDxCUP on March 23rd, 2013.

And though it took a lot of concentration to make each sketch, it was the social aspect of those evenings that made them particularly fun. We had just enough wine to stay loose without getting sloppy, and the right company to yield thoughtful and engaging conversations throughout both nights.

The thing that I’m most proud of is this – we got all of those videos done ON THE FIRST TAKE. It was incredibly satisfying to never have to go back and redo one. That’s not to say that there weren’t mistakes. Imperfections abound – facial proportions that are way off, mouths that I botched, poor spacing of text and visuals. But I CAN say that they all turned out well, and that maybe those imperfections added to the character of the final work.

At the end of the second night, we laid out all of the finished sketches on the table, and I said to Michelle – “This is one of the coolest things I’ve even been a part of.”

“Why?” she asked.

Because it pushed our limits, because it was collaborative, because IT WORKED, because it was going to be seen by hundreds of people and help them to remember the ideas worth spreading that were shared that day, because it contributed to the FEEL of that day, and to be involved in the generation of those feelings is something pretty special.

It took me a little over a year, but I finally feel that I’ve lived up to my domain name and twitter handle.

This whole blog started as a hobby, something that I could pursue in my free time, something to encourage me to develop creative skills, something to get me writing and drawing on a regular basis. When I bought the domain thegraphicrecorder.com and started this website, I didn’t even have a clear idea about what that term meant. Now, I am one.

A few weeks ago I had my first official, paid graphic recording gig. And it went great. I enjoyed the experience much more than I thought I would, and the folks that I was working for were happy with what I produced. And, more importantly, I was happy with what I produced.

It helped that the topic that I was recording was dear to my heart. I recorded one of the Community Conversations that are part of the Beaverton School District’s Future Focus initiative, in which they are working with the broader community to create a vision for where the district needs to go.

I am so passionate about education that sometimes I have to walk away from it just to breathe. I haven’t yet figured out my role in the education system, but I feel fortunate that my first graphic recorder gig was working with a school district to help them define their vision.

Sometimes I feel silly for having picked the domain name that I did.  Who am I to call myself ‘THE graphic recorder’? Granted, half of the reason that I started this site was the simple fact that the domain name was available. But sometimes I wish I would have just bought dougneill.com and used that from the start.

But other times, I think that having this domain name and twitter handle (@TheGraphicRcrdr) has kept me moving forward. I have often felt the need to live up to the name, and that feeling has pushed me through times of struggle. Now that I have successfully completed a graphic recording gig, I feel that I have summited a hill. Not the last hill on my journey, but a reason to celebrate nonetheless.

So I’m finally comfortable calling myself a graphic recorder. I don’t like to think of myself as the graphic recorder,  but I am a graphic recorder who is excited about improving his craft and owning it. Finally.

Are you interested in learning how to sketchnote?  If so, check out the Visual Note Taking Resources page.

Here’s a picture of the finished sketch:

I’m looking forward to continue experimenting with this method of capturing a graphic recording or sketchnoting session.  So tell me, what would you like to see recorded in this way?

If you’re intrigued, I encourage you to go grab a copy of the video edition of Rohde’s great book.  Also, you can read my review of the text portion of the book here.