JRN 422 - The Picture Story
Thought Pieces, The Great Picture Hunt 2
Thought Piece #1
As I ingested this first section of The Great Picture Hunt, my first thought it that finding and developing story ideas for a photo story is not all that dissimilar to what I do when I'm reporting. The first couple of pages encourage photographers to write down and track any semblance of an idea they come up with. This is something I actively do for CM Life. I have a living document of leads for sports, news and visual content. I'm glad that's a habit I have already built up.
One of the things I think will be my biggest challenge for stories this semester is finding a theme and then adapting my images to reflect it. A lot of my ideas start out broad but need to be narrowed down. I know how to tell when something is newsworthy, but what makes it important to another human being outside of education/entertainment? LaBelle suggests that we can start feeling out themes early on, but I feel as though that's something that develops naturally with time. My goal is to have some different directions laid out before I start shooting just so I am not going in blind. However, I also want to be adaptable if the story takes on a life of its own.
Something I have been grappling with that LaBelle also brings up in this portion of the book is how to use your judgement to make images ethically. I, at some point (hopefully this semester) want to make images that capture reality even when reality is ugly. But I often find myself wondering what the line between storytelling and exploitation is. Is what I do just making a show of something rather than calling positive attention to it? I think that is my biggest fear going into the class. I don't want my subjects to feel like they are a means to an end.
One thing that really stuck out to me was when LaBelle said "the pen may be mightier than the sword, but the image is quicker than the pen." I think this is just always a good phrase to have in the back of your mind. Even well-intentioned photographers can misconstrue their images; no one is immune to ignorance. As I make my stories, I want to strive to always think intentionally about what I am doing and how it might impact an audience. This would especially come into play if I am documenting people whose social identities are different from my own. Photographs can be very influential, so I want to make sure what I am making is fair, accurate, and not perpetuating underlying harm.
Another challenge I think I'll be facing this semester is focusing too much on deadlines and deliverables instead of paying attention to the moment at hand. My brain moves a million miles an hour, and my schedules pretty hectic, so I sometimes have trouble on giving my attention undivided. LaBelle encourages photographers too look beyond their initial plan, which is something I have trouble with sometimes. But, sticking around outside what is necessary and getting curious with people would be a good way of combatting that.
Thought Piece #2
Labelle opens the book with insight into what he believes makes a good feature photographer. He names traits like ambition, curiosity, patience, and ability to be a storyteller (just to name a few). These attributes are reflected in a lot of the active photojournalists we have had the privilege of meeting. Jake May, Yunghi Kim, Jessmore- all of them have a combination of what Labelle listed off. It's something that has always inspired me, but is harder to replicate than I think it is. For me, I have a strength in building relationships with subjects and learning how to blend. My experience as a reporter has also helped me build a sense of curiosity that often leads to new information you can't get on the surface level. However, I do think I struggle to be patient at times and sometimes lack confidence in my abilities. I can get easily wrapped up in what other people are doing, or everything that I have going on personally. Those things sometimes make me feel rushed or disheartened as I shoot. In order to succeed in this class, I think I need to internally remind myself that I do have the skillset to make great images and tell impactful stories. Planning ahead of time and always being ready for an impromptu shoot will also help with this.
The more I shoot, the more I have tried to get in the habit of taking time to think about the timing, lighting, and composition of my photographs in the moment. I force myself to outwardly consider those factors. Talking to myself in that little way has helped me get more into the habit, and that's something I hope to continue throughout this semester. I also want to develop a better sense of what equipment I like to have with me so I feel capable to shoot whatever comes my way. During my time at Interlochen, I shot almost exclusively with a nifty fifty. While that practice was born out of necessity, it ended up being the driving force of some of the best work I have ever made. I got super comfortable with the setup, and it became an extension of myself. Right now, I am rocking and rolling with a new camera, so I'm still learning how to wield it and develop a new(ish) style as I learn.
LaBelle also touches on the importance of a photographer's awareness when hunting for pictures. He highlights the benefits of always having open ears and watchful eyes. I want to get in the habit of always imagining I'm looking through a view finder as I navigate through my day. This is something I used to do when I was shooting more full-time, and I have fallen off the wagon a bit as I take on other responsibilities. The author suggests that having that situational awareness ultimately allows you to make better photos. If you're already keeping an eye out for feature shots, it directly ties into how you might set up the lighting, composition, and timing of what you're shooting.
Overall, I think the characteristics and advice shared in this portion of the book has given me a better frame of reference for what I should expect from myself as I hunt for picture stories. It still feels really daunting, but I think I just have to jump in and learn as I go to further build my confidence.
Thought Piece #3
The author opens up this section of the text by hashing out some key details of a good feature frame. The obvious answers are emotion, humor, etc. But the one aspect that really resonated with me was originality. That's something that always feels like a mental roadblock for me. I'm always worrying about if my work looks to similar to others, but at the same time, I also love to look at other photographer's work and see if I can try a similar technique and put my own spin on it. At this point in my career, I feel like I am still figuring out my style. For example, I can look at some of my peers' photos and have a pretty solid guess about who took them. But, I don't know if that's true for me yet. I'm really excited to use this class as an avenue to explore and develop my style, especially because it's so feature centric.
LaBelle goes on to talk about other components of a strong feature photograph, like simplicity and unique angles. One thing that jumped out at me was his section (albeit brief) on technique. He said "technique should suggest, not smother." This hit me because sometimes, I feel lost in trying to make a "cool" image as opposed to one that uses technique to highlight the story I am trying to tell. I think this ties in well to what LaBelle was saying about awareness in a previous reading. As photographers we not only have to be aware of our surroundings and environment when hunting for a good feature photograph, but also of the story we are trying to tell and what we want to represent visually.
This section also caused me to reflect on my own thought process when it comes to reaction, action and interaction. I find these particularly important while shooting sports, because I don't want to just make cool freeze frames. The last time I shot a volleyball game, I found myself trailing one player in particular, because I knew every time something positive happened she would react. When sometime really good happened, she roared. When I noticed that, I spent probably around 20 minutes (give or take) focusing solely on her. I worked it around the court until I had a frame I was happy with. While I was doing it I also tracked what teammates she gravitated towards, who would be the most responsive back, etc. I found it really helped me make an interesting, intentionally composed frame; that's something I sometimes struggle with in heat-of-the-moment action playing out around me.
Something I think about often is how different generations of photographers view going out and cruising for a photo, or networking your way into story ideas. Every boss I've ever had has said that talking to people is what makes a good journalist great. And they're right. I just find it interesting that seasoned photographers are so used to this, but our generation finds it more daunting. I've done this dozens of times, and will continue to do it, but I feel like I'll never not have to work up the courage to do it. Maybe it's a byproduct of the epidemic or something. All this to say, is I'm glad this course requires me to more consistently work outside of my comfort zone and push myself to be a more assertive hunter.