These are the moments that remind us of our humanity!
This video below was captured by WAFB-TV’s Robbie Reynold. This is one of thousands of rescues that have been conducted over the last 24-hours. Wonderful patience by the Reporter/Photojournalist Robbie Reynold who not only captured these moments but balanced the need to help with the need to capture this story; bringing these images to us, giving us a complete perspective!
I have to say I am speechless. I am having a hard time articulating how much this is bothering me. This blog post is by no means trying to make this situation about “me”…but it could have been me. Yes…I was that guy, that photojournalist. They had no idea…none!
This comes almost a few days after the ten year anniversary of Katrina. I was a part of a crew that covered Katrina for Belo Corporation, who owned WWL-TV. Yes, we flew helicopters over areas where people were stranded, many of whom were trying to get our attention hoping we would help them. Some used guns to shoot at us while flying over, mainly to get our attention…we could not land because of the location and the danger.
I just received the latest edition of News Photographer Magazine in the mail. It is the May 2013 edition. I have subscribed to this publication probably since 1998, my early days as a news photographer at WSPA-TV.
I opened…flipped the pages…and I was overtaken by the powerful images captured in the month of May. The Boston Bombing, The George W. Bush Library Dedication, and even some images from the last year including a funeral from the Aurora movie shooting…powerful stuff.
I have no words to describe the images, the feelings, the emotion behind these images as they take us back…remind us. That is my point…these images reveal the unspoken language from these memories that we all sat back and watched.
These images were taken by experienced storytellers, photojournalists who risked so much to capture these images.
We see groups like the Chicago Sun Times fire their whole photography staff. I am not sure the motives behind this business move…but the numbers do not add up. This is a common trend in the industry. One of the main reasons why I am self-employeed…we photojournalists have a unique skill set that does not fit inside any job decription. We pay the bills with our passion to capture a story…the story as we view it…through our lens.
Michael Borland, President of NPPA, wrote in this edition his message titled “NPPA By The Numbers.” A few of these numbers stood out.
There membership is down roughly 3500 people resulting in a revenue short fall of about $374K. Is this because more and more news organizations are reducing photo staffs and those loosing jobs are not re-engaging in the organization in a post-news profession. I wonder what the percentage of these numbers are independent/self-employeed individuals like myself?
Am I a news photojournalist…no. But the organization I have been associated since 1998 is one of the few that provide the guiding principles for the way I run the creative side of my business.
Photojournalists bring life to our magazines, television, iPads, iPhones, video screens, and movie screens. We capture the slice of life that many forget to capture…those moments in time that help us remember. These images create change, provide a voice, give context, help us make decisions, and create a platform for public servants to advocate.
So let me ask you…the next time you are funding a project, do you want just a picture, just a video, just an image? Or do you want a story. Do you want an moment in time captured so when it is time to sell/adovocate with your next pr/marketing campaign…your audience connects, engages, and sees the story through “your” eyes.
Sometimes you never know when a good story is going to present itself…so we have to be prepared. Years and years of training and it never fails, when the lights are just perfect, the shot is just beautiful…that perfect moment in time happens off camera.
I have always been one who likes to debate the technical expertise versus the storytelling techniques of listening. I have worked with some of the best technical photojournalist, creating some of the best images, capturing some of the most amazing interviews. But the best storytellers, best photojournalists are the ones that are willing to break away from that perfect setting and capture that one shot that tells the whole story.
It was just the other day, I was in the middle of a shoot with a family who was going to share their experience with a physician. Perfectly crafted shots, perfectly scripted, perfectly composed…but the real shot was when the little boy ran out of the shot to get a sucker from the nurse. Perfect moment in time, captured because I pulled away and followed the boy. The shot was not perfectly framed…it included lots of the lighting equipment in the background…but it captured that moment in time shared between a little boy and a provider.
I live by a mantra, work by a mantra, tell stories using a mantra…one that I learned many years ago:
Two Shots Ahead
Three Shots Behind
Get The Moment
That simple. I am always telling stories with my cameras thinking about the next two shots I want to capture, the previous three shots I just captured…and most importantly to always capture the moment.
My wife and I have been cleaning out our attic and working on the baby room. I found an old picture from 1998 when I attended the NPPA Oklahoma Workshop for News & Video. NPPA stands for National Press Photographers Association, which is a group of people who believe in one common goal, telling a good story visually. So why do I bring this up in my blog…well, it goes the very foundation of my business.
As a young journalist, the NPPA along with many workshops like Poynter Institute in Florida, I learned how to listen, capture, and craft a compelling story. From technical proficiency, which included using camera, sound gear, and our linear edit bays to visual storytelling that believed in capturing the moment. These skills have stayed with me over the years and influence how I approach every project I work on today.
Being a good storyteller is a subjective trait…many different people have different approaches. Some use writing, some use photography, some use technology. I use my cameras and my digital knowledge. I have learned how to transform that storytelling, journalistic approach into a marketable business in today’s economy. Now what does that mean?
Every project I work on whether it uses video production, new media, teaching, or coaching…I work to find the story in each context. I use a stoytelling approach to each and every project that crosses my desk. I was trained as a journalist to listen for the stories. Yes….listen for the stories. When I would go into a breaking news scene, we were trained as photojournalists to listen visually. Carry our cameras on our shoulders and our microphones in front of us and listen for the stories.
We would capture images from the field during hurricanes, conventions, fires, events, etc. and listen for the story. Listen for people talking and those colorful metaphors that painted the picture. We were trained to look at every situation and then turn 180 degrees to find those who were describing the story. Why…what better way to capture a story than through the eyes and ears of the people who are experiencing the situation. We resist writing voice-over in our scripts…it signifies we did not do our job collecting quality interviews and moments. We aim to allow people to tell the story, not some third party voice-over.
So how does photojournalism and storytelling translate into new media including blogs and social outlets? Storytelling is an amazing tool. It gives us the opportunity to tell stories, third person accounts through outlets like video, blogs, journals, and other new media tools. It allows us to capture other peoples’ thoughts in a way that we can share them others to enjoy. It provides and opportunity to bring the audience into the context and see thing through someone else’s lens. It also provides and ethical approach to content creation. We learn to honor those whom we are using to tell stories, to represent their interests along with ours as well.
We have an opportunity to take a project, a blog, a video, a message and bring the audience into a theater, our digital theater. We have a chance to see something through another lens by using words, video, pictures, sounds, etc. We have a chance to stop writing corporate copy, generating brand messages…instead craft a story that can translate to the people around us.
One of my favorite things to do on a project is a little ethnography project. When I first start working with a group, I like to emerse myself inside the story. I like to find myself inside the context, then start capturing the sights and sounds of the message. Their are many ways to tell a story, but I chose to tell it through another’s viewpoint…to capture reality for others to enjoy. Content can be king!
As the year begins to come to a close, what are the stories you have told over the last year. Now, I do not necessarily mean what book have you read out-loud to a group of people…but stories have you sought out to find and share? In the world of marketing, branding, and pr…we find ourselves wrapped up in mission statements, branding guidelines, and style guides. Stories break all conventions…they tear down the walls of the status-quo.
I recently connected with a talented photojournalist on Twitter. Her name is Debbi Morello (@debmorello) and she is one hell of a photojournalist. Take a few minutes to check out her website here: http://www.debbimorello.com/. To me, it is hard to find people that share the same visual interests in the visual storytelling medium, taking a documentary style approach to marketing and pr…to bring the human element into the visual medium, provide a voice for those who know the story best.
When I was a young journalist, I attended many workshops with the National Press Photographers Association (NPPA.org) and Poynter Institute. These groups helped break down all the conventions and instill in me the need to always listen for the story. Think about it for a second, how many times did you think you wanted to tell a story one way, and it ends up taking an evolution of it’s own. The subjects/people shape the story.
When I walk into situations, I always listen for the story…not just look for the story. Now I realize that I am visual storyteller, but our ears are the most powerful sense. I remember going out to Wenden, Arizona after hearing reports of a town being flooded after a big rain. You see…when it rains for an extended period of time in the desert, the dry ground does not soak up the water…it has to flow somewhere. It typically flows into the valleys of the desert where southwestern towns are centralized.
I remember pulling out my camera and and listening for people, people struggling to figure out this disaster. They shaped the story. There was no need for some fancy writing, just real people telling real stories.
We can apply these same concepts inside the walls of our organizations. We can use our social skills and our senses to listen for the stories that reinforce and strengthen our organization’s message. We can move away from marketing backgrounds and become more PR/journalistic. We are storytellers inside. We like to document life. Why do you think Facebook is so successful? It is because we want to share, share our story with our friends, family, and colleagues. We take pictures, video, write our thoughts, and upload for all to see. We are writing our life story. We like to share stories.
What if we took that same initiative within our organizations. Listen for the stories within the organization and share them. Imagine just taking one or two hours a week, and walk through the halls of your workplace. Listening to the conversations, the stories. Imagine writing them down and sharing them with the world. They might want to share with their friends…more stories…bigger community of like minded people. Stories are fun. So…what stories have you told this year?
What are the stories you are telling within your organization? Please share…I am interested!