Contributor Spotlight

The Eagle is delivered to our readers’ mailboxes each week, bringing the news of Wahkiakum County and now Clatskanie with it. The Eagle wants to introduce its community to the team of dedicated people who work diligently to fill each issue with relevant content for our readers. This week’s edition of The Eagle’s Contributor Spotlight will showcase one of our photographers, Rob Hilson, who has provided The Eagle with photos of local sports since 2018. Rob began his career covering local news around 1995-96. He was a cameraman, shooting news for WZBN TV 25 in Trenton, New Jersey, and then contracted with FOX 29 in Philadelphia from 1996-97. Rob Hilson has been contracted and published in over 40 news media publications, including EO Media, Lee Enterprises, Adams Publishing, and the Spokesman-Review.

In 2011, Hilson and his wife, Allison, left the East Coast and took a chance on Washington. In 2017, he took off his cameraman hat and took up photography, starting his own freelance business. Hilson considers himself a street shooter, specializing in news and public interest events, and for the last five years, he has been exclusively involved in sports. After working for prominent publications in the past, Hilson can appreciate the vital role that local news plays in a community, “I like independent, small, news organizations, like The Eagle, because they are concentrating solely on the local angle.” Hilson takes a passionate approach when snapping his photos; he arrives at the games with a particular look in mind and has his lenses lined up and ready so he can switch between them quickly. Hilson uses vintage Nikon lenses ranging in age from 45-55 years old. He finds these lenses incredibly effective on his modern DSLR cameras, achieving the specific type of image Hilson wants to create.

Several high school sports games occur every week, and The Eagle can always count on Hilson to attend the games and deliver quality photos. In 2018, Hilson realized that the Eagle didn’t have consistent coverage of sports photos at the time. He began to work with Rick Nelson, The Eagle’s editor and publisher at the time. “Rick really respected the Eagle’s audience. I noticed immediately that he had worked hard to achieve a well-rounded local newspaper. And [Rick] did this with limited resources. I was only a freelancer for the Eagle, but I wanted the sports coverage to be solid, just as he wanted. So Rick gave me complete freedom with both content and creative endeavors. I was always very grateful for his generosity when it came to assignments.” Hilson remembers working with Rick fondly and is excited to continue his journey with The Eagle and for the projects he hopes to work on.

Hilson is located in Long Beach, WA. In his free time, when he’s not snapping photos, he enjoys surfing, gathering for Bible study, and cooking.