About Billy

Junior

Aerospace Engineering

**Campus Involvement:** Staff member and photographer, Avion Newspaper, Student Technician for Information Technology Department, Digital Design Studio Tutor

**Hobbies:**Graphic Design, Photography, Video Production, Playing the Piano

Being Organized Pays Off

Posted on February 13, 2017 by Billy

With five weeks of school completed so far this semester, I seem to have found a pretty nice daily routine for myself. This is important, well at least to me, because it’s good to establish a schedule for you life. I’m sure as you know, once things pick up in the semester, everything starts building on each other making life a lot more stressful than it already is.

Is this illegal? Not quite sure.

In addition to being more organized, I’m also trying to cut back on my procrastination. It took me a while to realize that the more you get done early, the more free time you actually have to spend. Whether you spend your time going to the beach to take photos, hanging out with friends after school, or maybe working at your other jobs, school comes first and it’s important that all of your school work is done first.

Rip McKay. So many great memories freshmen year.

I suggest keeping a small planner with you and note all of the homework assignments, quizzes, tests, and projects in it. It’s really handy to see how your week is, school work size, and it’ll definitely help you plan out your week.

Probably another useful tool I have is a daily schedule I made with Excel! It shows me not only when I have classes and when I have work, but I budgeted my time accordingly to ensure that I don’t get sidetracked. However, it’s sadly only as good as your will to not get distracted.

I wish I had some updates about some cool things that happened recently, but sadly I don’t. I hope that changes with soon!

The library recently had a book sale, and they actually had a lot really neat stuff!

New Semester, New Year, New Digs

Posted on January 26, 2017 by Billy

Hey everyone! Welcome back to our scheduled broadcast. I hope everyone had a fantastic winter break. Despite only having three weeks off from school, I vowed to make the most of my break….that was until I actually flew back to NJ and realized that it was really too cold to do anything.

Flying into New York, I was greeted by the pleasant sight of snow…which soon melted the next day.

So what did I do during break? For the first week I helped my parents out at their shop since Christmas and New Years were right around the corner. Not surprisingly they own a nail salon and since I’m lacking in the manicure department, I was basically a receptionist for seven days.

Once the holidays blew over, I started making plans with some of my friends who were home for break. The thing about going to school in the South vs. North is that everyone starts and ends school at different times so it’s always a ballet trying to find times that work for all parties involved. In the end, some plans worked out while other didn’t. No biggie: That’s what summer vacation is for!

I didn’t go on a lot of photo trips this break sadly. Hopefully the summer will allow me to make up for it.

I did get to see Rogue One in theaters though! That was the first time I saw a Star Wars film in theaters and it was honestly an enjoyable experience. I think near the end I had to use the restroom, but I was so captivated by the action and story that I was glued to my seat. The movie had so many memorable moments and just listening to the audience react to the film made me miss going to the movies.

I sadly didn’t get to go to New York City like I wanted to though. I keep forgetting how much effort it actually takes to plan out a trip to the city. In my experience, you need an itinerary of places and things you want to do. Without one, you’ll probably get lost and side-tracked and might forget why you even came to the city in the first place. The weather was also a major factor.

Speaking of weather, it actually snowed! I was so excited to see snow before I flew back to Daytona. While shoveling and driving in snow is a bit of a chore, you have to admit that it is fun to play with. If anything, it adds a whole new layer of atmosphere to your environment.

Time slows down, you can hear the slush on the road as cars drive by, and kids emerge from their homes and enjoy their one out of three snow days. I wish it snowed earlier, like around Christmas like it’s supposed too, because it’s just nice to be around it.

But, like all good things, my break was over. Three weeks with my family was well needed and I was very sad to leave. However, while traveling to Daytona, my sadness turned into excitement when I realized that I have not only another semester to make up for the last one, but that I kinda have a new lease on life.

Watching rockets launch on the beach is one of my favorite pass-times.

I have had a lot more time to myself, I have some goals that I want to accomplish, and overall, I’m starting to understand my limits and how I operate. Hopefully this knowledge and sudden urge enlightenment isn’t just a phase.

Another Semester Down

Posted on December 15, 2016 by Billy

Well we did it! Approximately 16 weeks of school officially over and done with. What’s next you may ask? Well I have about another three to four weeks before school starts again so I can only assume adventure!

Of course, the break is what I make it so I’m making a promise to myself to actually go out and do stuff this time. Then again, the New Jersey winter can be very limiting and New York City is a bit tricky to navigate with snow on a ground.

A lot has happened to me the past few days, and these events really made me rethink about the direction I was heading and how far I’ve come as a person. Unfortunately some doors closed on me, but some new ones opened as well. We don’t really have a whole lot of control over the things that happen in our lives, but life is what you make it right?

Despite these minor setbacks, I’m very excited for what Spring 2017 has in store for me. I’m finally starting to advance in my engineering courses and am slowly starting to appreciate all of the hard work and thought that goes into engineering. Hopefully I can apply what I learned these past few months to my daily life.

For now, I am just worrying about packing up my stuff for a 12:30 p.m. flight out of Daytona this Saturday. Enjoy the holiday break, and we’ll result our regularly scheduled broadcast in January.

We’re 93% There!

Posted on December 1, 2016 by Billy

With less than two weeks left in this semester, you have to stop and wonder where the past four months went. I still remember my train ride back to Florida very vividly, despite it happening late August.

But, since it’s near the end of the semester, there’s no time to reminisce: Not yet. Group projects and tests make their final appearances while final exams and course evaluations follow shortly after. But in the midst of organized chaos come some periods of down time.

Chancellor Brady recently held an art exhibit which showcased artwork for students and faculty. Ferrari’s formula one racing team brought an F-1 car to campus. Also, the Student Government Association held a town hall to answer some hot-button topics on the minds of students.

It fascinates me how diverse Riddle is because there’s always something for someone. I guess we have our diverse student body to thank for that. Anyway, I’ll probably make one last post before finals so stay tuned!

Break-ception with Astrophotography

Posted on November 21, 2016 by Billy

I think with all the breaks we’ve been having and have had so far in the month of November, we might as well just take the whole month off right? Not quite.

With the semester nearing its end, the classes, assignments, tests, and projects are certainly upping their level of difficulty. In addition to school, juggling three jobs has also been quite difficult. Time management is key and I’m still working on it. Hopefully Thanksgiving break will give me some time to catch up with all my classes since things have been getting a bit cluttered in my schedule.

Day & Age – The Killers

ITS SO PRETTY.

Thankfully, the breaks we’ve had so far allowed me the opportunity to travel deep into the Floridian wilderness for some stellar astrophotography! Ocala National Forest is definitely one of my new favorite places in Florida just because of how beautiful it is at night. I mean, sure you have to drive like one hour and thirty minutes out of your way to get there, but you’re greeted by breath-taking views of our vast galaxy.

Stars and constellations make themselves known while the Milky Way comes out of hiding where you can see it with the naked-eye: I almost broke down and cried because of how beautiful it was. Because I was so far away from civilization, I had to be careful with my surroundings…which can be hard to do as you’re admiring the scenery around you.

That’s not my truck.

I recommend traveling with a few friends, bring some snacks, and the proper photography gear if you decide on traveling to the vast expanse of Ocala National Forest. Keep checking the weather days in advance to make sure the weather will be clear and not cloudy. The first time I went, I drove so far that I somehow drove past the clear weather and found myself surrounded by fog: Not cool.

Shutter Speed: 30 seconds, Aperture: f/2.8, ISO 2500 & Focal Length: 16mm

In the realm of photography, a camera that allows for manual control and a tripod are pretty much what you need shoot photos with. In your settings, try the following exposure settings:

Shutter Speed: Between 20-30 seconds.There’s a thing called the “500/600 Rule” which basically involves taking either 500 or 600 and dividing it by your focal length, which is how wide you’re currently shooting (i.e. 16mm). The resulting number is the shutter speed you need to shoot at/below to stop the stars from “moving/streaking” in your image.
Aperture: Try to open up your aperture to its widest setting. Most lenses can do f/3.5, while other lenses can do f/2.8. In the world of photography, 2.8 is wider than 3.5.
ISO: This is your sensor’s sensitivity to light. The higher the ISO, the more light it captures. Keep in mind, the higher the ISO, the more likely you are to get noise in your images. Because my 5D Mark III can handle noise fairly well, I shot at ISO 2500.

If your photos turn out too dark, try increasing your ISO. Likewise, if your photos are too bright, consider decreasing your ISO to lower the amount of noise in your photo. Most importantly, set a 2 second delay after you press the shutter button. This will allow you to take the photo without having the camera move after you’ve touched it.

With that said, go out and have fun. That’s the most important thing!

Fall Break

Posted on October 25, 2016 by Billy

Well, Fall Break is now behind us which means that there’s about six to seven more weeks left of the fall semester. I’m amazed at how fast we’ve gotten to this point and everything that’s happened since the beginning of the semester until now.

Tennessee is so beautiful.

For Fall Break, I went home with my roommate to Tennessee, and needless to say, I was really excited since I’ve never been to to Tennessee before. We left Port Orange at 5 a.m. and embarked on a 10-hour road trip north. We encountered scenic roads, strange billboards, and interesting individuals: All the hallmarks of a great road trip.

The architecture is beautiful as well.

When traveling through the country, I-95 is typically the only interstate I used, so traveling on I-75 was different for me. I saw things that I normally wouldn’t see on I-95, got to pass through cities I’ve never visited before, and got a better understanding of the United States geographically.

I also visited Nashville International Airport.

Once we made it through Georgia, I was greeted by the large, looming mountains of Tennessee. Coming from a place like New Jersey, where the land is constantly flat with no major land changes, this was a real treat: I’ve never seen mountain formations like this before, and with fall rapidly approaching, the browning of the trees made me feel like I was in New England. Coincidentally, the homes in the area where my roommate lived were modeled after New England homes. I guess if I had to compare, Tennessee has a rural Pennsylvania vibe to it.

My Canon 5D Mark III died, so I had to use my roommate’s Nikon D7000 for the day.

The next two days involved sight-seeing around town and Nashville. While I’m not a huge fan of country music, Nashville wasn’t too bad. Then again, I really only spent time around the state capital building and the bicentennial park so I didn’t really get to see Nashville in its entirety. It’s kind of like trying to see all of New York City in one day: It’s impossible. I do plan on coming back to Tennessee though. There’s so much I want to do, and now that I have an idea of what the state is like, it’ll be easier to budget my time.

So. Many. Mountains.

Sunday morning, we left my roommate’s house at 5 a.m. but this time took the scenic route home instead of the direct way we took there. The scenic route involved heading east into the mountains by North Carolina, southwest to Georgia, and then south back to Florida. Even though the route added an extra five hours to our journey, I think it was worth it. Tennessee just has something really unique and beautiful about it which no other state I’ve been to seems to have. Driving on the mountain roads with the morning fog was awe inspiring, and sharing the backroads with bikers was equally breath-taking. Passing through Georgia and Florida was pretty normal with nothing important to report. After driving non-stop, we managed to make it back to our apartment around 10 p.m.

The famous US 129 Harley Davidson store.

I think this Fall Break will go down as one of the many highlights of 2016. I got out of my comfort zone, traveled to places I’ve never been to before, and got to see a lot of things that I didn’t know existed. Most importantly, the break gave me time to rethink my life and relax from all of the stress this semester has accumulated. I learned that I need to pace myself and take things one step at a time, which may seem cliché, but is probably something that will save me from breaking down one day.

With that said, I’m going to try hard to finish this semester on a strong note. Until my next blog entry, stay curious and be safe.

Post Hurricane Matthew

Posted on October 18, 2016 by Billy

Well Hurricane Matthew was a very interesting experience, but I’m glad that everyone is ok and that campus didn’t get hit too, too hard by the storm. While I did want to experience a hurricane first-hand, once Matthew was projected to be category 3, if not 4, I realized that this wasn’t a joking matter.

While not on the East Coast of Florida, the waves and wind were super strong in Venice Beach Thursday before Matthew hit.

In the days leading up to Matthew, there was some uncertainty about my travel plans and where I would go in the event campus was evacuated. Thankfully, my friend offered to house me and like nine other people at her house in Venice, FL. While the six hour drive was really long, we tried to avoid going on I-4 Thursday morning, we all managed to make it in one piece. Pro tip: If you’re traveling in a car convoy, walkie talkies definitely make the drive so much better.

Once we got to Venice, I helped my friend make dinner for everyone and we later did a Wal-Mart run. What made the ride to Wal-Mart amazing was that her dad owned a limousine so rode in it. After he got back to her house, night had fallen so we tuned to Weather Channel to see Matthew slowly make his way to Daytona Beach. I tried to stay up to watch the storm, but I was wiped out from driving so I went to bed. In the morning, I checked Facebook to see if everyone I knew in Daytona was ok. Thankfully they were and the damage wasn’t as bad as originally estimated.

Siesta Key Beach was so surreal: Everyone just stood on the white sand watching the sunset. There was no yelling, people were well mannered, it was definitely a far cry from the beaches at New Jersey.

The next few days involved driving around, visiting the local beaches, and trying out some local restaurants. All in all, it was a nice mini-vacation under the strangest of circumstances. I even learned how to swim…sort of.

This past week, Embry-Riddle finally got to host their homecoming event.

After returning to Daytona the following Sunday, I went back to my apartment and was pleased to see no major manage in Port Orange or the surrounding area. My roommates were ok, despite opting to stay in Daytona during the storm, and everyone was slowly returning back to the Daytona Beach area.

I don’t know what kind of paperwork was filed to allow this, but I was impressed.

With Fall Break coming up, I am not so sure if I need another break. However, I’ll be traveling to Tennessee with my roommate so there’s that to look forward to. Adventure never waits I guess. Until my next update, stay safe, and remember to be curious.

I never got free pizza 🙁

Here I am Rock You Like a Hurricane

Posted on October 4, 2016 by Billy

With Hurricane Matthew rapidly approaching, I really don’t know how I feel. On one hand, I would really like to experience a hurricane, as stupid as it sounds. On the other, I really don’t want to see the devastation that would happen because of Matthew. With the storm only a few days away, it’s too early to tell what will happen.

Sadly, nothing major to report so hopefully I’ll have some really fun hurricane stories and video to share with you all! For now, please be safe, don’t do anything crazy, and I hope to see you all in another two weeks!

New Year, New Goals!

Posted on September 15, 2016 by Billy

We’re back! I haven’t posted an update in the three weeks I’ve been here, so I feel terrible about that! A lot of stuff has happened since May so I’ll do my best to recap everything since.

Thanks to Pokemon GO, I learned that I could bike for three hours straight.

Summer vacation was actually an enjoyable experience for me! I took a chemistry class and lab at my local community college, got to spend a lot of time in New York City, and hung out with my friends. As always, I wish I was able to do more, but with school and scheduling conflicts there was only so much I could do.

Central Park is still my favorite place in New York City.

The chemistry class and lab were very interesting. I haven’t taken chemistry since sophomore year of high school so trying to recall all knowledge on the subject was a fruitless affair. I can say with definite certainty that I did not miss chemistry, and I’m glad that I won’t have to do anything else with it soon. It’s funny though, after taking the class, it seems like all of my courses are becoming a bit reliant on chemistry.

Before school though, my family decided to take a road trip from NJ to FL.

Over the summer I also bought myself an old Polaroid camera, and I love it. The Polaroid SX-70 is definitely no Canon 5D Mark III, but you don’t buy an old camera to use for work: You buy an old camera because it’s fun to use. I love how the camera taught me shutter discipline and forced me to think about the photos I take. If anyone is interested in seeing more Polaroids, follow my Polaroid Instagram @oldformat!

Roosevelt Island is really neat too! This is where you can get nice photos of the UN Building.

Another memorable experience for me this summer was that I got to fly in a small airplane for the second time in my life! My friend invited me to join him on a flight down to Cape May, NJ, which was like a 45 minute flight when compared to the 1 hour and 35 minute drive it would’ve been. We flew on a Piper Arrow and it was very relaxing to fly in. Yes, my friend actually let me fly it for most of the flight and it was such a surreal experience.

*Flies complex airplane* *Proceeds not to take photo of it*

As summer came to close, I said my goodbyes, packed my things, and sat on the AutoTrain for 17 hours for my trip back to Daytona Beach to start the semester. Going into this semester, I had a “Go get ’em” attitude about it, and I think that’s really important to have. You need to be motivated to tackle a semester or else you’ll start to slowly get bogged down with school work and commitments.

As far as commitments go, I’m now the Photo Editor for The Avion Newspaper, I’m still a tutor for the Digital Studio, and I currently have five classes. Even with all of these things taking up a majority of my time, I still somehow manage to find time to spend with friends.

For instance, a week or two ago I went to Disney World for the first time. Yes, shocker right? I spent like ten hours at Epcot and three hours at Magic Kingdom. It was amazing, and it was even more amazing since I got in for free! Though, I probably spent an admissions worth of money on pins.

Epcot is the best park.

Last week, I got to see a rocket launch and it felt nice to be back at Riddle doing what I loved: Photography. With all of this stuff happening within the first three weeks of the semester, I can’t wait to see what Fall 2016 has in store for me.

Oh, hello there OSIRIS-REx.

SPACE.

Until the next update, remember to make smart choices and be curious!

We’ve Made It!

Posted on May 4, 2016 by Billy

Well, this is the last post for the semester which means that this is the end of my second year here at Riddle. Looking back at when I started as a freshmen, I definitely changed a lot since I checked into my room in Wood hall four semesters ago.

A lot has happened since my last post: Touch ‘n’ Go had their annual big show with American Authors, The Avion Newspaper had it’s annual incentive, and I got to go to an airshow!

Because I missed out on a lot, and I don’t want to make you guys read like a 16 page paper about my life, here are some photos to look at instead:

At this point really, all I have left are finals: Three, not including my take home final for humanities. After that, I drive my car to Sanford, ride the Autotrain to Virginia and then drive to New Jersey.

Good luck to everyone on your finals and to all of the new incoming freshmen, adventure awaits you in the Fall.

My Life @ Riddle

Daytona Beach Edition

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