What is a Photojournalist? (short video version)

video by Mark M. Hancock / © DFWmark.com

Have you ever wondered about the why, how or what of being a photojournalist?
Please watch “What is a Photojournalist?” – the shortened version.

Also, if you’re not a subscriber please subscribe to my YouTube channel (it’s free and easy). Please follow this link, sign in to YouTube (or create an account) and hit SUBSCRIBE at www.youtube.com/newseagles
Enough for now,

Shoot for magazine layout

Betty Greenberg poses for a portrait at her home in Beaumont on Wednesday, Oct. 25 2006.

This version of a cover image allows room for a magazine nameplate, mailing label and story teases. Orientation is to the right.

Photos by Mark M. Hancock / © The Beaumont Enterprise for BE magazine



Betty Greenberg poses for a portrait at her home in Beaumont.

This version allows room for a magazine nameplate, mailing label and story teases down the right-hand side plus a breakout box on the lower, left-hand corner. Orientation is non-traditional. Her angle is left, but her eyes orient right.



Betty Greenberg poses for a portrait at her home in Beaumont.

This is the best version for most publications. It allows room for a magazine nameplate, mailing label and story teases down the right-hand side plus a breakout box on the lower, left-hand corner. Orientation is to the right.



Paige Windham (left) and Betty Greenberg (right) pose for a portrait at Greenberg's home in Beaumont.

This version is the best for a traditional cover. It allows room for a magazine nameplate and mailing label. Orientation is forward.




We've talked about offering various layout options. Primarily, we've talked about horizontal and vertical layout options as well as subject orientation. These are common requirements of newspaper layout. However, newspapers don't (and shouldn't) place text within the image area.

If PJs are shooting a magazine cover, additional factors come into play. Text is commonly placed within magazine image areas. Cover images are almost exclusively vertical. Most magazines also tend to run more vertical images than horizontal images inside.

Although I haven't elaborated yet, it's important to have model releases on everyone and property releases for anyplace (non-public) appearing in images for a magazine. Although most magazines have journalistic protections, some don't. Don't take a chance with any of them; get the releases.

What magazines require
About 80 percent of all magazine rack sales come from cover design. Every element of a magazine cover is critical to the magazine's survival. Consequently, PJs must shoot exactly what's needed if they want to get a cover.

For the cover story above about sweaters for a specialty publication, I needed to present several options. All of the options needed to have extra space at the top of the frame for a nameplate. If the image runs inside, the top would be cropped to make the image into a square.

While traditional magazines only require nameplate space at the top, most modern magazines place text over the cover image to entice readers to the stories within. Frequently, text is placed on the right-hand side of the image. No matter how good an image is, it won't be used for the cover unless there is a place for this text.

Most Western-language magazines are bound on the left-hand side. Middle Eastern magazines bind on the right-hand side. This can present problems for some PJs in Europe, Africa and Asia.

Most American publications want the subject situated in the middle-to-lower, left-hand corner for cover consideration. Well-established magazines often float the subject over the nameplate, but it's not the preferred option for most designers.

Additionally, many glossy magazines require a mail label area in the lower, right-hand corner of the cover image.

When a magazine client lets a PJ know an assignment has cover potential, it's critical to make sure to keep these factors in mind (particularly if there's cover incentive money involved).

Once PJs are certain they have the cover shots nailed, they can move to inside shots. These are shot similar to newspaper images, but it's wise to shoot both horizontals and verticals of everything.

Previsualize the layout
New PJs and/or those wishing to branch out into editorial work need to start seeing these layouts when they look at a scene. Most PJs know how to previsualize the frame proportions when they look at a scene. Rather than looking at the subject, they see the edges of the frame.

Next, PJs learn to superimpose text elements over the scene. The remaining area is the usable portion of the frame. This is the area where the main subject must be located.

However, the remainder of the frame must still contain information. Although it's less important space, it's not "dead space." Some clients may use a square, oversized format. This really compresses the usable image area.

Orient right
Considering the information above, it's best to orient the subject toward the right (where the text is). Otherwise the subject looks toward the spine of the magazine and the layout folks might be tempted to flop the image. Although this is forbidden in newspapers, it happens too often on magazine covers.

Just for fun, select any famous cover model with a "beauty mark" (like Cindy Crawford). Go online or to the newsstand and see if you aren't confused after a few minutes about where the mark actually resides. It'll probably switch from side to side with each publication.

However, if every image is shot for the cover, an inside image may get flopped to accommodate inside layout. If PJs take the time to shoot both orientation options (left and right), then there's no need to flop an image. Since a lawsuit was successful due to a flopped image, I'll again emphasize the importance of model releases.


Enough for now,
 

More layout options

Kinky Friedman campaigns for Texas Governor at Lamar University in Beaumont on Monday, Oct. 23, 2006.

Photos by Mark M. Hancock / © The Beaumont Enterprise


Comedian and singer Kinky Friedman campaigns for Texas Governor at Lamar University.


A relatively large audience listens as Kinky Friedman (right) campaigns for Texas Governor at Lamar University.

Earlier this month, I stated PJs often don't know how images will be laid out on a page. Consequently, it's best to present both horizontal and vertical options to the layout desk. It's also good to give the layout desk left, right, center and behind options if possible.

The top two images are similar, however PJs can give layout the option of left or right orientation. This is particularly important on assignments near deadlines. Page designers make the page with a hole for the image. PJs can ask if the hole is on the left or right-hand side of the page and deliver the appropriate image without layout needing to rearrange the text (and possibly create other design problems).

In the example above, we also have the option of horizontal or vertical. All four options (VL, VR, HL, HR) were shot and available, but this post is redundant enough. ;-}

Although it would be ideal to manage to have equally "useful" shots from both sides, it's important to understand the PJ (or photo editor) can change the entire deal. If one image is much better than the others, the image determines layout. The best image always trumps layout decisions.

If all options are about equally publishable, give the desk what works best for it.

Get the options
When covering a speaker (or singer) at a microphone, the first objective is to get the mic out of the person's mouth (or nose). This is best accomplished from the sides. Occasionally, the entire mic can be cropped in-camera. Otherwise, its interference is minimized by the angle.

To get both left and right angles, the PJ needs to move to the opposite side of the stage. The speaker continues to look forward. For PJs, s/he is looking both directions depending on shooting angle.

The third option above is tricky for some folks. Whenever possible, try to work the speaker and the audience into the same shot to show turnout. In the image above, he had a fairly good audience in a relatively small room.

I'll write about "shooting blind" sometime soon to explain how this angle is accomplished.

Enough for now,
 

Present portrait options

Photos by Mark M. Hancock / © The Beaumont Enterprise


(Above and right) Anthony "Val" Volentine, business manager and financial secretary-treasurer for the Pipefitters Local 195, poses for a portrait at the Pipe Fitters Union Hall in Nederland on Wednesday, Sept. 27, 2006.



PJs often don't know how images will be laid out on a page. Consequently, it's best to present both horizontal and vertical options to the layout desk. For this shoot, I knew one image option would go in the Business Monthly magazine and the other would run on the business page. So, the two images wouldn't conflict in one publication.

The magazine had both options available and chose one for their needs. The business page could handle either option without difficulty.

Both images are basically similar in subject matter, but the lens selections, lighting and subject placement makes for two drastically different shots of the same thing. The first image is shot with a wide-angle zoom (17~35mm) and a flash with a softbox. The second image is shot with a 80~200mm zoom and the subject is holding a silver reflector to kick light into the shadow under his hat. Both options made publishable shots.

Enough for now,
 

Turn one portrait into two

Photos by Mark M. Hancock / © The Beaumont Enterprise

(Above) Brothers Jeremy (left) and Matthew Garza (right) pose for a portrait at their home in Beaumont on Wednesday, June 1, 2005. Jeremy will enter his senior year at the U.S. Naval Academy this year and hopes to become a pilot. Matthew was also accepted to the academy and will begin his training in the fall.

(Right) Brothers Matthew Garza (top) and Jeremy (bottom) pose for a portrait at their home in Beaumont on Wednesday, June 1, 2005.

I should have fill-flashed the top image to set the details of his face better. I thought I was shooting fast enough, but I guessed wrong. You live, you learn.

This is a fairly good example of using 100 frames. After the standard "safe shots" of them standing in the front yard, I was forced to think of ways to show these men are in the Navy. They didn't have any military paraphernalia, so I needed to be creative.

I like the pilot idea, even though it's not to my satisfaction. The pool shot looks like a swim team sportrait, but Navy = water and the pool was available.

The point is to make the portraits look drastically different. A feature story tends to get more space to flesh out the information. This means the story jumps (refers to an inside page). If portraits look too similar, it would be redundant to have a second portrait inside.

However, if the portraits are different enough, a second image can run on an inside page. Since inside pages tend to be gray space receptacles (text only), it's good to break up the monotony.

For magazine freelancers, who are paid on space rate, a good business practice would be to maximize your income by providing multiple, non-redundant images. Yes, the subject is the same. But if the images look different enough, it means the PJ gets twice the space fee for a few more minutes of work at the same location.

Enough for now,

Deadline pop quiz: Where in the AP Stylebook can a journalist find the guidelines to write the name of military educational institutions and its students?

The answer is in the comments section.
 

Shoot sportraits

Mark M. Hancock / © The Beaumont Enterprise

West Brook High School baseball team seniors (from left to right) James Ewing, Jay Bruce, Brandon Castolenia, Pat Ford and Michael Ewing pose for a portrait at Bruins Field in Beaumont on Wednesday, May 18, 2005.
They play a series against Humble for the 5A regional quarterfinals starting on Thursday. The five have played for the varsity team since they were freshmen. They all graduate on Saturday.

There are certain universal facts in this world: The sun will rise in the east and set in the west, everyone eventually dies, and each daily newspaper needs sportraits (Sports portraits).

Most people think of high-action images when they think of becoming a Sports PJ. However, sportraits are equally important because of how sports are reported.

Why do we need sportraits?
Sports is about numbers. Sports reporters present a set of numbers after each game. The numbers describe the game in a comparative manner. Likewise, players of most sports track their numbers throughout their athletic career.

Baseball players know their batting average. Football players know their rushing yards or sack totals. Swimmers and track athletes know their fastest times per event. High-level chess players know how many moves were made to get a win.

Chess? Yes, it's a sport because it involves numbers and a winner/loser equation.

Wait, the Business page is about numbers. How could Sports be the same?

Because both Sports and Business involve money. If it has a numerical conclusion, people can place wagers (or sell short) against the numerical outcome. Chess, for instance, can have odds against the winner or loser based on the players' previous experiences. Odds can also be placed against the number of moves required to win. Obviously, if 50,000 people each bet one dollar on an infinite number of moves, someone will win big by foretelling the exact number of moves (or the house keeps it all).

Numbers aren't visual
Since we've determined Sports is mainly regulated by numbers and the human ability to achieve certain numeric milestones or limits, we realize these numbers don't make great visual content.

In the image above, five baseball players have been on the varsity team for four years each. These are the numbers which separate these players from the other players and break up the team to a reasonable number for the reporter. The numbers are the story peg.

Of these five players, one is a pitcher, one is a catcher, one is the shortstop and two are in the outfield. What are the odds of getting all five in one frame during a specific game? Unlikely to impossible would be my guess.

To accompany a strictly numerical story, photojournalists must round up the various people who represent a given set of numbers and somehow make it look cool and give the readers faces to equate to the numbers. Often, it's the only time most readers see their faces (because of helmets).

Business considerations of sports
For many businesses (including various media), sports are the road to profit. Likewise, huge industries exist to perpetuate this revenue-producing trend. Uniform and equipment manufacturers, athletic trainers, kinesiologists, insurance companies, CPAs, and countless advertisers of beer, chips, etc... all have a vested interest in sports reportage. Additionally, we've already discussed the potential income for professional gamblers as well as the casinos and various other book keepers.

Publisher considerations of Sports
Because of the general business environment, sports are doubly important to publishers. The Sports section not only generates advertising income from related businesses, it also generates circulation from all the parents of young athletes, who have a keen interest in becoming a future hometown hero.

Newspapers cover local high school sports more completely than any other media outlet. Magazines tend to cover collegiate and professional or specialize into specific niche sports. Local television might report the final scores as a list accompanied with 10-second clips from the top two or three games - at a specific time.

Meanwhile, the newspaper creates a document for the atheletes' moms to keep in the scrapbook or stick to the fridge. Dad has one in his office as well. This means at least two newspapers were sold. ;-)

PJ considerations of Sports
Because newspaper publishers value the Sports department and PJs who can deliver compelling images for this department, it's the best opening for young PJs. More importantly, it's regular business for freelancers. Each Tuesday and Friday during the school year, there is something to shoot.

Additionally, Sports is a daily section. They must fill the space with feature stories in advance of upcoming sporting events or because of significant milestones. Most of these stories are about numbers. Sportraits break up the gray on the page and fill the dead spots in a freelancer's schedule.

PJs who know how to shoot various sports as well as make interesting portraits of the players have a much easier time getting initial freelance assignments. Every newspaper in America needs sports PJs for Friday night football in the fall, basketball and soccer in the winter and track, softball and baseball in the spring.

Although staff photographers can handle most of the Sports assignments, during peak times, freelancers are required (or at least hired) at most daily newspapers to get wider coverage and make more readers happy.

The freelancers who can embed themselves into the Sports department are most likely to get sportrait assignments as well.

From there, it's not a big leap to understand that anyone who can catch a guy flying through mid-air at night can handle breaking news. Nor is it difficult to understand how a PJ who's good at sportraits could apply the same skills and knowledge to any other group of people (business, news, lifestyles, etc...). Sports PJs who can light an entire arena should be able to handle most studio assignments as well.

Consequently, any PJs (including part-time and high school PJs) who are trying to break into the industry might want to look at breaking into Sports first. Sports PJs must know how to handle fast action in low light situations as well as how to make interesting sportraits. From there, the rest is easy.

Enough for now,
 

An environmental pop quiz

Many newspapers publish variations of "snapshot" profiles. These are mini-environmental portraits of outstanding community members. However, the portraits often have strict formats due to layout. They must be vertical and relatively tight because they run about the size of the old, broadsheet one column image (about 2 x 3 inches).

Within these rules, we still need to make each image unique enough to quickly identify something about the person in the image for the readers. This is the core difference between a portrait and an environmental portrait. The image isn't a generic person on a generic background like a studio portrait. An environmental portrait is a specific person and some insight into this person from their specific environment and artifacts.

Here's the quiz: match the cutlines with the portraits below. The answers are at the bottom of this post.

A) Jeremy Jenkins poses for a snapshot portrait at Hebron High School in Carrollton on Wednesday, December 8, 2004. He is in the National Honor Society as well as the captain of the varsity soccer team.

B) Barbara Naylor poses for a snapshot portrait with Labrador retrievers Ascot, 8 months, (left) and Rindy, 1 year, (right) at the Sunnyvale School in Sunnyvale on Wednesday, December 8, 2004. She is a K-to-8 art teacher and Canine Companion trainer.

C) Leonard Untung poses for a snapshot portrait at Hebron High School in Carrollton on Wednesday, December 8, 2004. The senior is in the National Honor Society as well as the math and chess clubs.

D) Balch Springs fire chief Ricky Woodham poses for a snapshot portrait at the Balch Springs Fire Station in Balch Springs on Wednesday, December 8, 2004.










Photos © Mark M. Hancock and The Dallas Morning News






All four images were shot on the same day in three different cities. None took more than 30 minutes. I'll admit the students were trickier because we didn't have a soccer ball available. However, it shouldn't have been difficult to tell each person from the next. I've probably taken more than 100 of these images over the last five years. No two look alike. Each subject has her/his own unique environment.

Again, these are simple, straight-forward portraits with tight shooting constraints. Pro PJs already know to track trends and environmental changes over time. It's this skill which makes their images either timeless or timely. For the folks who don't do this for a living, make your family photo albums become a living history of the people and their environments.

Enough for now,

(Answers) A, C, D, B

Since this post has an education-based link to it, please read "Primary educator's introduction to photojournalism" and see additional environmental portraits in my portfolio.
 

Gain trust for portraits

When making most portraits, PJs want the subject to be relaxed and look pleasant. Frequently, it's the subject's chance to shine and get recognition for achievements. Consequently, PJs and subjects must work together and trust each other.

Often, PJs are required to be part sociologist and part stand-up comedian to accomplish the images. Meanwhile, the patience clock (or cross-town fire) starts ticking the second the PJ arrives.

Personal space
It’s possible to get too close to someone’s personal space (particularly with wide-angle lenses). Each person has a different comfort level for personal space. Often this is dictated by culture. Americans are notorious for wanting lots of personal space while people in many other countries are comfortable in close proximity.

This can cause conflict and misunderstandings while shooting. PJs know we could stand across the room with a 600mm and shoot unflatteringly tight shots of anyone. We also know we can stand a few feet away with an ultra-wide-angle lens and shoot the entire person and most of the room. These are mechanical and technical issues the subject may not understand.

The subject only knows when the PJ is too darn close for comfort. Therefore, the subject becomes uncomfortable and looks as much in the images.

Build trust
To overcome this situation, it takes some trust building. Since PJs don’t typically have oodles of time with the subject, we need to have a plan for a successful portrait session.

The subject must know what the PJ is doing and why s/he’s doing it. The subject also wants to be reassured that they don’t look strange. Some subjects may have had bad experiences with photographers in the past. Now, they assume every photo will be as bad. It’s the PJ’s job to quickly convince them otherwise.

Trust is normally built within the first few minutes of meeting the subject. In these critical first few minutes, the subject will assess how personable, talented, skilled, honest and creative the PJ is. Whatever happens next reinforces any of these initial concepts.

Consequently, the most important first impression for the subject should be a warm, genuine smile from the PJ. Maybe it's a Texan thing, but I always offer to shake hands upon meeting a subject (if I have a free hand). If I don’t have a free hand, I typically say, "I'd shake hands, but my hands are full." This is the first step to gain trust. A handshake is an implied truce.

Next, if the shoot is indoors, ask to enter the home or facility. For portraits, the PJ is the subject's guest. As such, the PJ should be courteous and work with the subject. If PJs need extra equipment from the car, ask if it's OK to reenter without knocking before leaving the location.

The courtesy shown by PJs buys more time for the total shoot. It's also important to use set-up time to reassure the subject and build some trust.

We ask to see some different rooms or patio options. We look around the scenes to find a visually clean shooting area. We're also looking at personal artifacts around the room to find common interests to break the ice. The PJ can comment about a few artifacts, ask questions or relate a story to find common ground.

Once we've chosen an area, we set up. While setting up light stands and tripods, PJs explain what they're about to do. We explain how many frames we'll use, how bright the strobes or flash is and why we're using it. If we're using a florescent gel, we show the subject the gel and tell them they don't want to be this color (bug green).

Be confident
From the subject's point of view, the PJ is a visual brain surgeon. They expect the PJ to be a knowledgeable, confident expert and everything to go smooth. Even if the camera bursts into flames, don’t freak out. If PJs freak, subjects freak and everything slides quickly downhill.

Likewise, if PJs are confident in their technical wizardry, the subject is happy and works with the PJ to make nice images. As we've discussed, we're working toward 100 frames. Consequently, there will be a few lens, lighting and scene changes during a portrait session. Use the subject's stress breaks to chimp a bit and tell the subject how well everything is going. They want to be reassured as much as possible. Say, "I've extracted the tumor and you'll be fine."

Explain issues before they happen
I know my bald scalp sweats a lot while I shoot with a tripod and my big strobes. It could be below freezing, and I'll sweat. Normally, I wear a boonie cap and it soaks up the perspiration. But I still explain this to the subject before I start setting up lights.

I explain that I'm making exposure calculations in my head, and I'll probably sweat. I also quickly add how light is measured in square roots and lenses are in cube roots and how everything comes out right to make the subject look "mah-velous." Then, the subject expects me to sweat and won't worry about my health or if I really know what I'm doing. It's expected and accepted.

Start wide and close
PJs know the first few frames are typically "warm-up" frames. These are the ones where the subject gets accustomed to the strange person who’s invaded their home or office with lights and tripods and other unknown objects.

Since these first few frames are often light tests and aren't expected to be the best shots, PJs can work this discomfort to their advantage. Explain to the subject what a wide angle lens is. Explain we can see all or most of the whole room, but it makes things look farther away than they really are. Next, explain how we need to set it really close to make the subject dominate the frame.

Then, set the tripod right next to them where their head fills the frame on the widest setting. Give the subject a moment to look at the camera. Then shoot to test the light level.

What just happened?

We built trust, we quickly moved inside their comfort zone and made an image. For the subject, the worst is over. From here, PJs can back away frame by frame and the subject relaxes with each step of distance. Even if PJs change to a 200mm, it won't appear as bad to the subject as the ultra-close wide-angle image. The subject looks comfortable and is relieved the PJ is further across the room.

It's often a mistake to start long and work to wide because the subject feels invaded as PJs get closer. The subject's body language shows this level of discomfort or irritation, which isn't what PJs want as shoots progress.

Sense of humor
If the PJ has a good sense of humor, use it. Subjects appreciate a little levity to lighten the mood while they're uncomfortable. I've found different accent imitations help get subjects to do what I need.

An Arnold Schwarzenegger impression gets football players to stand straight. A bad French accent gets folks to relax their hands. Thick Texas drawls, or any popular animated cartoon character voice (Crush from "Finding Nemo" is my favorite) amuses the subject. However, don't wear out any one accent. Switch them up so the subject knows you're doing your best to amuse them (and yourself).

It's always nice to hear, "This was fun," from a portrait subject when I leave. It means I did my job and put the subject at ease. No matter how the final image looks, the subject will probably like it because it was a fun break from their daily life.

Enough for now,
 

Work with the subject

Mark M. Hancock / © The Dallas Morning News

Flower Mound golfer Ben Morrow poses for a portrait at the Golf Club at Bridlewood in Flower Mound on Friday, July 2, 2004. Morrow won the prestigious 2004 Justin Leonard Scholarship, a $20,000 award, as the "most outstanding" male NTPGA Junior Golf Foundation golfer.

I got some positive feedback from some co-workers about this image, so I thought I would post it to break up the grey letters on this blog.

This is an example of getting a good shot out of an average assignment. The actual photo request was to make a portrait of a golfer at his home. Joy.

The golfer's neighborhood was nice, but everything nice faced eastward at sunset (instead of westward). I told him I needed to shoot 100 frames. I also wanted to do something special with him since he was so special. Most importantly, I would need his help to pull it off. He agreed people normally agree, then they reconsider after the truckload of hungry squirrels arrives....

Anyway, I set up a strobe on the course and got the standard Tiger Woods' I'm-too-confident shot (the safe shot). Then we started trying some different shapes and backgrounds.

I suppose I should explain my strobe (a Norman P-2000) can appear brighter than the sun in an image when I turn it up all the way. I can literally have the sun over someone’s shoulder and have more light on their face. I simply stop down the sun to the intensity I want it – just like any other light. This image uses only one head. I've never even tried to use all six or one at full power.

Anyway, I wanted something unusual. We started trying to get him to jump and match the angle of his golf bag. It worked. So, we tried to have him actually appear parallel to the ground. It worked better, but was harder on the lad (he took the full brunt of each jump on his hip/butt/knee). But we were soooo close to something really cool, so we kept working it. When I layered the clubs in the foreground instead of having them close to him, it really started to pop.

This is the end result of him plopping onto the grass about 40 or 50 times. It was hot, he was tired and sweating by the time it all finished and the country club crowd got a good show with their dinner. Most importantly, we got an unusual image to set his abilities apart from the others.

The point is to work with the subject to get something cool. A nice image isn't the result of either the photographer or the subject. It is cooperation between both. Don't be afraid to ask the subject for something unique and don't let them see the truckload of squirrels before they agree.

Enough for now,