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Why I made the decision to move on from *exclusively* focusing on #photojournalism. I've yet to be paid for a photo of mine that ran online at a major publication ( @guardian) in 2015. The news wire I was freelancing for at the time closed up and sold. That was that. https://twitter.com/caj/status/1352324315228717056
Though many reporters (including myself) are expected to shoot and write for a story — especially at community papers — it shouldn't be the case.
The two jobs, both necessary, require completely different skill sets and ways of thinking and approaching a story.
The two jobs, both necessary, require completely different skill sets and ways of thinking and approaching a story.
Decent, quality photographs don't often happen by mistake. They're made.
A journalist cannot focus on making good, quality images when they're simultaneously having to divide their bandwidth across everything else. Multitasking is a myth — it's dissociation.
A journalist cannot focus on making good, quality images when they're simultaneously having to divide their bandwidth across everything else. Multitasking is a myth — it's dissociation.
If anything, photojournalists and good imagery are even more valuable in a visually-driven society that seems to be reading less.
Just take a look at the recent events in the U.S. It was photojournalists who risked their skin to bring us there to see what was happening.
Just take a look at the recent events in the U.S. It was photojournalists who risked their skin to bring us there to see what was happening.
Photojournalists are vital to our understanding of the moment and later on, to history.
Whether it's the local hero or an insurrection, photos serve as a record, evidence of life — the meaning and importance of which often isn't fully understood until much later.
Whether it's the local hero or an insurrection, photos serve as a record, evidence of life — the meaning and importance of which often isn't fully understood until much later.
I had a family reach out once from the U.K. for a high-res copy of a photograph I made of their relative playing bagpipes which ran in a local paper. I had thought absolutely nothing of it at the time, but it meant a lot to them, having not seen him in many years.
Photojournalists should not be an afterthought to a struggling news industry trying to catch up and find its way in the digital age. The humans beings behind the camera transporting us through our backyards or across the globe also matter and deserve to feed themselves.
Anyway. Thanks for reading and making it to the end. Just wanted to share my thoughts on a job I love dearly, after reading @photobracken's important thread on @caj's account.
Perhaps things will one day be better for the industry and photogs.
The siren song is a strong one.
Perhaps things will one day be better for the industry and photogs.
The siren song is a strong one.
