FORWARD OPERATING BASE DELARAM II, Afghanistan - Many people have heard the saying “Find something you love to do and you’ll never have to work a day in your life.”
One Marine has definitely found out that he can both serve his country and do something he loves.
Lance Cpl. Joshua Rudy, combat videographer, Regimental Combat Team 6, has always been passionate about photography.
“One of the first pictures of me is me holding a camera and taking a picture,” Rudy said. “I still have that camera to this day.”
Rudy, a native of Hampstead, Md., joined the Marine Corps in 2010 and is now serving with the Marines in Afghanistan. He waited in the delayed entry program for a year so that he could get his current Military Occupational Specialty.
“When I had off time I liked to do anything constructive; anything that had to do with problem solving, building things, working on my car, tinkering around with electronics and building stuff,” Rudy said while his personal laptop lay in pieces and he upgraded it with more RAM. “I’ve always been curious with how things work. I guess that kind of brought me towards photography and videography. I was always so curious with how cameras work and that just kind of stuck with me.”
Even those directly in charge of Rudy say he’s great at working with electronics.
“He loves gadgets,” said Sgt. Richard Damer, combat cameraman, RCT-6. “He’s very handy and knowledgeable about things. If you have a problem he can usually fix it.
“It takes a while to break the ice with him, but once you do, there is a cool little guy under there,” Damer added.
Rudy has been making videos and photos professionally and getting paid for it since his freshman year of high school. According to Rudy, he talked to the other services and wasn’t impressed with what they had to offer him.
“I’ve wanted to be combat camera for a long time, even before I knew exactly what it was,” Rudy continued. “I saw it in movies and read about it, and I decided if I ever joined the military I had to do that – it wouldn’t even be an option. I can be a combat photographer in any other branch of service but it’s the Marine aspect that sets it apart.”
Rudy says he enjoys the independence he gets in his particular MOS. He likes the freedom of expression that he finds whenever he makes a video or takes a photo.
“My usual day is mostly dictated by whatever work requests we get in,” he said. “Recently I’ve been doing a lot of ceremonies and administrative work such as promotion photos. For me it has a lot to do with the new eMarine website and I recently made a video for the RCT-6 webpage where Col. Shafer addresses the families.”
Rudy’s staff noncommissioned officer in charge, Staff Sgt. Raul Gonzalez, first met Rudy at the Defense Information School, where Rudy learned about his MOS and Gonzalez was an instructor there. They now work together in Afghanistan.
“He’s got a good head on his shoulders,” said Gonzalez, combat camera chief, RCT-6. “He always does what he’s supposed to do. He’s adapting well to the deployment even though there’s still a long road ahead.”