newsgrunt
Well-known
'wedding reportage' is what I've seen some non photojournalism rooted wedding photographers describe their work as
What IS PhotoJournalism?
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Roger Hicks
Veteran
Sure. I think there's a big difference, though, between shooting a wedding in a photojournalistic style (which Frances and I have done together, under duress of ancient friendship, for a very few friends, and for my oldest friend's daughter), and pretending that anything except the most exceptional or unusual wedding shoot is photojournalism. I really don't see any excuse for the latter. It's about on a par with pretending that shooting nudes is photojournalism (well, it could be, but it's unlikely).
Something rather closer to photojournalism is propaganda photography. How are these two (propaganda and photojournalism) separable, if at all?
Cheers,
R.
isorgb
Well-known
OK, maybe the question should be 'what is photojournalism style' ?!?!
Roger Hicks
Veteran
GSNfan
Well-known
A wedding is a ceremony, a social get together, a party, completely staged and only of visual significance for the people involvedly, mostly the bride and groom and their families. In other words, using the word reportage and journalism in context of a weddings is a pretty crude attempt to glorify wedding photography by labeling it what it is not.
Photojournalism is informing people with visual information about an event that is of relevance due to its social, political or economic nature.
On the bright side for wedding photographers, there are more jobs and better pay for them than any photojournalist working today.
Photojournalism is informing people with visual information about an event that is of relevance due to its social, political or economic nature.
On the bright side for wedding photographers, there are more jobs and better pay for them than any photojournalist working today.
isorgb
Well-known
My thoughts are the same like your JSU. Photojournalism is have not "techniqe" or "style".
For me, photojournalism is the way, how you create your story or essay, but without equipment etc.
Look this James Stanfield picture. This is one of the most important image for why I am interesting in photography:
Dr. Zbigniew Religa:
and the patient from the table:
EDIT:
Interview with James Stanfield about this picture: http://ngm.nationalgeographic.com/ngm/100best/multi4_interview.html
and excellent sentence: "In this day and age you need more than a pretty photograph, you need information"
For me, photojournalism is the way, how you create your story or essay, but without equipment etc.
Look this James Stanfield picture. This is one of the most important image for why I am interesting in photography:
Dr. Zbigniew Religa:
and the patient from the table:
EDIT:
Interview with James Stanfield about this picture: http://ngm.nationalgeographic.com/ngm/100best/multi4_interview.html
and excellent sentence: "In this day and age you need more than a pretty photograph, you need information"
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Roger Hicks
Veteran
d_ross
Registered User
Journalism is telling a story, usually defined as news , photojournalism is telling that story with photographs, full stop. None of the elements of style or truth or candid or posed images has any relevance to it, nor is whether the story is interesting or not.
TaoPhoto
Documentary Photographer
This is an interesting discussion, but I think the thing missing from his point is that photojournalism is just capturing the moment. It's capturing the moment for communication to the public. Since I recently started working for a news organization, something I've done before but not for many years, I've been thinking about this very difference. Many people take shots from the same place I do. Many people are capturing the moment. Yet, I know that mine are going online in about 12 hours, or less, so my thought is not just "how do I capture the moment" but "how do I communicate this to others in an effective way, how do I capture the emotion, the action, the feeling, the atmosphere?" Photography is capturing a moment. Photojournalism is telling a story. Whether shooting a news event or a wedding, that's the basic difference, in my mind.
ironhorse
Joe DuPont
Describing wedding photographers as photojournalists would be a bit of a misnomer. A key consideration is that they are being paid by the subjects and will deliver a heavily biased representation of the events. A photojournalistic style would be a more accurate description of what they do.
ironhorse
Joe DuPont
Isorgb........Thanks for reminding me of that Stanfield photograph. Every time I see that photo I am newly in awe of his work.
Contarama
Well-known
"Journalism is not a profession. It's a craft. So you don't need any training to become one. You can just do it..." Greg Marinovich
d_ross
Registered User
All journalists are paid! therefore the slant on any story will be biased towards the publishers views, that's not much different to a wedding is it?
ironhorse
Joe DuPont
Granted, but they are not paid by their subjects unless they are doing advertising or PR.
presspass
filmshooter
D_ross put it well. Photojournalism is first of all journalism - telling a factual story, in this case with photographs. It can include text, accompany text, stand without text, or support text. So far this week, mine has included a lake rescue of kids in canoes, a public meeting about a bridge, a student winning a state award, and a bunch of sports. There are some standalone photos, but most use photos and text to complement each other. In my case, except for the sports, I'm the writer and photographer, as well as the guy who lays the stories out on pages and determines what goes above fold on the front and what goes inside. Journalism? I think so. Photojournalism, I think so as well.BTW: The only slant to any of this is where I was standing when I pointed the camera and pushed the button and who I interviewed. Stories that are 'slanted' to suit the publisher or anyone else are, by definition, not journalism, and that includes wedding clients.
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d_ross
Registered User
Stories that are 'slanted' to suit the publisher or anyone else are, by definition, not journalism, and that includes wedding clients.
I'd be inclined to say that they were just bad journalism but journalism all the same, they report a story, and every story has two sides some more.
I would almost go as far as to say all journalism is paid work, when it isn't for example by street photographers and artists then it becomes social commentary.
I'd be inclined to say that they were just bad journalism but journalism all the same, they report a story, and every story has two sides some more.
I would almost go as far as to say all journalism is paid work, when it isn't for example by street photographers and artists then it becomes social commentary.
presspass
filmshooter
Not to belabor the point, but journalism must be factual. All journalism works with the facts either available or chosen; historians are usually able to work with more perspective. If the facts are chosen to suit the preconceived story line, then it is a lot closer to fiction than journalism. Journalism done this way is a lot like using photoshop to remove or reposition people in a photo so it suits the artistic nature of the person doing or paying for the work.
Out to Lunch
Veteran
Photo journalism at its best...Larry Burrows...
One Ride With Yankee Papa 13
http://www.life.com/gallery/41912/image/ugc1043002#index/1
One Ride With Yankee Papa 13
http://www.life.com/gallery/41912/image/ugc1043002#index/1
Out to Lunch
Veteran
Contarama
Well-known
Note his reply when they ask why didn't you try to help him...
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20110427/ap_on_en_ot/af_south_africa_uprising_photo
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20110427/ap_on_en_ot/af_south_africa_uprising_photo
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