Robert Duffley knew little about videography before arriving at Northwestern University for the National High School Institute's journalism program.

"I knew that I had a video camera and that I had a button called 'record,'" Duffley said.

But over the course of the five-week session, the Germantown, Tenn., native has become a more-video savvy journalist.

Duffley, along with 11 other cherubs, contributed regularly to Club Vlog, the group that put together the program's weekly video blog. The videos focused on various issues in journalism.  

Videographers like Duffley are quick to praise Club Vlog's organizer Sarahmaria Gomez, a cherub instructor and self-described multimedia geek.

"She's crazy good," Hunter Bradley, of Sturgeon Bay, Wis., said. "I've learned a lot from her."

Mike Juliani, of Pasadena, Calif., agreed. 

"She works really hard and always gets the job done," he said.

But Gomez doesn't see it as work. 

"It's been the busiest five weeks of my life, but I love to see young people get excited about the future of journalism," she said.

Five weeks is not enough time to master the art of videography. But it's long enough to learn the basics, such as the importance of lighting, say Club Vlog members.

"Lighting can be the difference between a decent video and a fantastic video," Gomez said.  "A lot of journalists are so eager to get the story that they don't work on aesthetics."

Members of Club Vlog also learned how to use video equipment.  The tripod, for instance, is an important but often overlooked tool.

"It's essential for holding the camera still, especially now that smaller cameras are making shaky videos," Gomez said.

The fun was not restricted to Club Vlog members.  Cherubs were interviewed and viewed the weekly videos.

"[The video blog] is always something I look forward to," Emily Hatton, of Chevy Chase, Md., said. 

Hatton was interviewed in several video segments. Bridget Fitzgibbons, of Longmont, Colo., said she was humbled seeing herself on the screen.

"It was fun, but it made me realize that the harder I try to sound smart, the dumber I sound," she said.

Duffley said he will now go home with a newfound appreciation for the craft.

"At first I was intimidated," Duffley said, "but as soon as I started, I realized how much fun it was."