Advice to new (photo)journalism grads
Posted by Tim Gruber | Filed under career, journalism
As a fresh graduate from OU I found Will Sullivan’s post on his Journerdism blog to be an entertaining and informative read. You might need your earmuffs for a few of the points, but you can’t fault his enthusiasm.
Just a taste of what he wrote:
Your coworkers / your environment matters a lot too.
Surround yourself with people that inspire and encourage you that you can learn from.
That’s the exact reason why I felt like my time at grad school was so valuable.
Toxic environments will destroy your life faster than Crystal Meth.
Avoid them like the plague. This isn’t your high school boyfriend that you may think you can ‘fix him and he’ll be a keeper.’ Maybe you can sometimes, but by the time you do you’re finished fixing it, you’ll be going to be bitter and old. Get out as quick as possible and read the No Asshole Rule if you’re stuck in a toxic environment or if you see one forming
Awards don’t really matter. (But they really do.)
They shouldn’t. But if I’ve got dozens of resumes with similar previous experience, skills and portfolio between candidates, someone who’s won half a dozen awards for their work versus someone who’s won none will probably get them put in the ‘to check out further pile.’ Outside of ladder climbing, winning awards just feels good. Recognition for hard work is important. Just don’t stress about it too much, because awards are so random and subjective depending on the panel of judges. (Watch as many contest judging events as you possibly can and you’ll learn this quickly.) One thing to remember: You can’t win awards if you don’t enter. I’ve judged a couple dozen contests, and I gotta say, sometimes people win just because there wasn’t really any competition and they paid an entry fee, so someone has to win.
We all know firsthand how dreadful the contest game can be.
“You need ‘Fuck you’ skills. Like a hand with a raised middle finger, you need to have a bunch of little fingers of skills in many different areas like flash, social media video, writing, audio, programming, CAR or whatever, but one area that you’re really awesome in (the middle finger). So if things are really bad somewhere, you’re awesome at that skill and you can say, ‘fuck you’ and move on.” (Kinda like FU money.) But recently, I unveiled a new theory while rappin’ with some Mizzou j-students: It’s a little risky to put all your eggs in one basket. So I’m thinking, “Peace out” skills are better. (It’s also less vulgar than ‘fuck you’ skills.) So my advice is: Be familiar with as many aspects of journalism as possible — have a little of your fingers in everything — but have two disciplines that you’re really awesome with. Hence, the “Peace out” sign. When it comes time to say “Peace out” it’s best done with the body slightly askew, throw the peace sign rapidly in a downward motion sideways, cock your head, scrunch your lips, blow out your cheeks and enlarge your eyes. Practice in the mirror before actually doing this on the job, to make sure the effect is totally perfect. You don’t want to be “That guy who was really great in Flash and Video Animation, but when he left he awkwardly poked himself in the nose and make a farting sound with his mouth. What was his deal?”
Check out the other 28 great points on Will’s blog and add your own while you’re there.
Only thing I might add is thinking of yourself as a brand.
Tags: career, contests, marketing, selfpromo
World Press Interviews
Posted by Tim Gruber | Filed under interview
Listen to 22 incredible photographers talk about their winning work from the World Press Photo contest. Nice job Travis.
Tags: contests, interview, world press
The Pulitzer Prize - Feature Photography Preston Gannaway
Posted by Tim Gruber | Filed under photojournalism
A big congrats to Preston Gannaway for winning one of the greatest honors for any storyteller; a Pulitzer. Her story “Remember Me“(link to the multimedia piece) is an incredible and intimate journey with Carolynne St. Pierre and her family. Thanks to the St. Pierre’s for sharing their story and to Preston for documenting the precious journey. As somebody going through something very similar right now this piece hits me hard. I don’t know where they found the strength, but I’m glad they did. Thank you Carolynee, Preston and company.
Check out Preston’s winning entry here.
Rich and EJ plant trees in the backyard to memorialize Carolynne.
Photo by: Preston Gannaway
Tags: contests, documentary, photojournalism, pulitzer
Critical Mass
Posted by Tim Gruber | Filed under Uncategorized
Been enjoying the 2006 winner galleries on the Critical Mass website. Not all of it is photojournalism or documentary work, but it’s inspiration none the less.
It looks as if they have a page for the 2007 winners, but it contains the 2006 gallery. Hopefully that changes.
A few photos from the site:
Photo by: Beatrix Reinhardt
Photo by: Donald Weber
Tags: contests, inspiration, photography
Contests: The love and hate relationship.
Posted by Tim Gruber | Filed under career, contests
With the contest season slowly coming to a close I enjoyed a recent post by Trent Nelson on contests in response to a student threatening to burn his photos. A panel of contest judges deemed the young photographer and all the entries in the Young Scottish Photographer of the Year category to be unworthy of the honor.
Apparently the young photographer was misquoted and never threatened to burn his photos, rather he said he’d be burning bridges by speaking out.
What fun is that? Burn those suckers. (Alright I didn’t major in PR so I’m not sure if that’s the best move.)
After finishing up my latest contest entry last night I had the same thoughts linger in my head that always appear after I enter a contest:
Why do I do this? What good is this for? If I’m doing this to give a voice to my subjects why bother? Why expose myself to the torture of losing?
The reality remains though — I’m new to the business and don’t have much of a career(if you can call it that) in this field I love. A contest helps bring credibility to my work.
We all know our field is extremely competitive and talent flows from all corners. Contests are a way to give yourself an edge. In many ways it’s like building a brand. Your name and your work are your brand. It’s your passion and you want validation that your hard work means something to your peers.
This recent blog post on Innovation in College Media touches on the idea of branding yourself in hopes of landing a job:
You might think you’re too young in your career to build a brand. Wrong. You need to start developing it now. Literally, your employer is purchasing your skills over someone else. You have to sell that idea to them. This requires you to think in marketing and advertising mode.
Contests are also a chance to reflect on the year. What worked? What didn’t? Did I meet the goals I set out for myself? It’s a chance to see how many bad photos I took(a lot) and serves as a reminder that there’s always more that can be done.
It’s a wonderful way to gauge your growth against not only yourself, but your peers.
What do we know for certain about contests?
As Melissa states:
They are such a double-edged sword. You win: You feel validated. Your bosses and publications are happy. Your resume gets padded with a few extra lines. You lose: You take it personally. You feel like your best is not good enough. Your ego get deflated.
Love ‘em or hate ‘em they’re a part of our business.
Trent says it best:
To all of you young photographers looking to be the next big thing: Invest your emotion into your work, not into contest wins. Contests are not science. The results are subjective and unpredictable. If you work hard and stay focused on your art, then recognition will come.
I came home to this last year on the floor in my house and it
served as a nice reminder that there’s more to life than contests.
Thanks guys.
Tags: brand, contests, photojournalism, selfpromo
Judging POYi: I am not a moron
Posted by Tim Gruber | Filed under Uncategorized
Brad Magin breaks down his week of judging the newspaper category in POYi.
It has often been said that if you took the same set of pictures in a contest and had them voted on by a different set of judges you would have a completely different set of winners. I will add to this theory. I claim that you could take the same set of pictures and the SAME judges and have different winners the NEXT DAY!
Even though I have never won a POYi award, and I probably never will, I feel like I won an award even greater. I had the honor and privilege to view and judge all of your pictures. I cannot thank you enough for allowing me that opportunity.
via: Trent (check out his blog as he consistently turns up great links.)
Tags: 2read, contests, photojournalism
What makes a prize winning photo?
Posted by Tim Gruber | Filed under Uncategorized
In the spirit of the contest season here are a few quotes to get you through the sleepless nights of editing.
Found this on the WHNPA website. They asked past contest judges what they look for in a prize winning photograph.
Here are a few of the responses:
Here’s what I look for in a picture: I want to see a picture that resonates on several levels. One that has to have solid content, good composition, and a moment that takes the view to another level. - Bill Luster of The Courier-Journal
Some judges were swayed by the event and would choose pictures made at major news events over superior images from less important occurrences. - Arnold Drapkin, retired picture editor at Time
A winning photograph should have compelling and engrossing subject matter contained in an aesthetic composition. - OU’s very own Marcy Nighswander
In search of the intangible: Beyond immediate, visceral impact and the “layering” of secondary meaning so often seen these days, a memorable photograph also has heart. -John Kaplan, Professor of Journalism and Communications at The University of Florida
And my favorite of the bunch comes from Cheryl Diaz Meyer at The Dallas Morning News.
A good image use the elements of light, composition and moment - a great image goes beyond - it is made in the gut and it reaches out the viewer viscerally.
Find the PDF of the article here.
Ideas
Posted by Tim Gruber | Filed under Uncategorized
I love ideas. Don’t we all?
Especially simple ideas. You know the ones that leave you saying, “Why didn’t I think of that?”
The My Audience series by Tim Davis is a great example of this.
See for yourself.
Photo by Tim Davis
On the topic of public speaking if you happen to be in the DC area check out the annual WHNPA seminar and judging going on this weekend.
My friend Travis Dove will be one of the speakers. Knock ‘em dead kid.
via: Colberg
Tags: contests, inspiration, photography, photojournalism
Atlanta Photojournalism Seminar Ramblings
Posted by Tim Gruber | Filed under Uncategorized
Jenn and I had a great weekend in Atlanta for the Photojournalism Seminar.
It was great finally getting to meet the multimedia genius himself, Richard Koci Hernandez. He posted his notes from the seminar on his blog.
Had my Chipotle and Waffle House fix.
Saw some of my mates from what feels like my extended family in Roanoke.
Bonded with my man T Dove. Sharing a room and eating at Waffle House two nights in a row will do that.
Met some great Western students.
It was interesting to watch the judging after having watched things in Missouri for CPOY. Having 40+ Photo Mechanic windows open compared to a nice tidy IView catalog to judge a category like picture story looked somewhat daunting, but they pulled it off.
It was great hearing Dan Beatty, the Director of Photography, at The Roanoke Times speak. He was my boss this summer, but I see him as more of a friend and mentor. His caring ways and people skills are something everyone in a leadership position should possess.
Dan was in tears at points during his speech as was I. The compassion, sincerity and his belief in the power of a photojournalism is moving.
I feel very blessed to have spent a summer working under his guidance and the guidance of a very talented staff. In the contest portion of the seminar the staff was named the Newspaper Staff of the Year. A very deserving award for everyone there. I couldn’t think of a more deserving staff. A big congrats to Justin Cook and Roanoke’s newest hire for winning Best in Show and First Place Portfolio.
Congrats to all the winners.
Dove and I at Waffle House.
Photo by: Noah Rab
Tags: contests, photojournalism
Editor and Publisher 2007 Photos of the Year
Posted by Tim Gruber | Filed under contests
Editor and Publisher have announced the winners in their 2007 Photos of the Year contest. Read the article here. See the gallery of winners here.
There’s some great images and others that leave me puzzled, but that’s the nature of contests.
An overhead umbrella shot winning best feature image in the 25k to 99k circulation category? It’s a fine daily weather feature, but in a contest?
Sure it’s easy on the eyes and there’s nothing lacking in the composition department. But this is a photojournalism contest not an art contest.
Where’s the content? Where’s the journalism?
Contests are often seen as setting the bar in this industry and I’m not sure the judges are sending the right message with this one. Nothing against the photographer, but this one falls short for me on what E&P lists as their definition of a feature photo: Features: A storytelling photo used in any section of the newspaper, often with strong human interest.
Perhaps I’m being over critical thanks to my picture story class this quarter and have demanded more of myself, my classmates and the industry as storytellers.
For me this image doesn’t help increase our voice as storytellers if anything it puts us back in the category of a being a service department.
Rant off.
Tags: contests, journalism, photojournalism
