More often than not, people have a limited idea of what public speaking is, that it is marked by some kind of extravagant event. However, this is not always the case. Public speaking happens all around us, even when we don’t notice it. When a professor invites a guest speaker to class, this is public speaking. This is the type of speech I will be evaluating and judging for its effectiveness. The speech was given on April 11, 2018 at 10:00 a.m. by Scott Indermaur, a freelance photographer. His speech took place in my COM 101 class and was intended to give a professional perspective on class material regarding visual communication. He spoke about his work experience, freelance photography projects, and the importance of pursuing one’s passions.
My professor did not introduce the speaker. Indermaur did not give a clear attention getter, but rather a “Hi, how are you doing?” kind of greeting that is typical in addressing students. He began by showing us a portfolio of some of his photographic works and explaining them, which gave him credibility by allowing us to see firsthand the quality of his photography. Then, he talked about his experiences
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Something that stood out to me was his metaphorical approach to describing photography, which I think helped the audience understand the abstract concepts within photography. Beebe & Beebe (2018) state that “memorable word structures…can help you craft a speech that has both ‘eye and ear appeal’” (10.4 Crafting Memorable Word Structures). Indermaur used the metaphor of “planting seeds” to describe the emotional impact his photography has in people’s lives. This painted an image for me of photography being an art that heals people and helps them grow. His claims were ethical, as he didn’t overexaggerate his accomplishments beyond believability and made it clear that anyone could have the same success through