Know Your Rights as a Citizen Photojournalist

video, narration, beats by Mark M. Hancock / © DFWmark.com
photos by Mark M. Hancock / © DFWmark.com, The Beaumont Enterprise and/or The Dallas Morning News

Do you know your rights as a photojournalist?
Please watch “Know Your Rights as a Citizen Photojournalist.”


Please share and subscribe to the NewsEagles 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,

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,

Lake Lewisville boat wreck

© Mark M. Hancock and The Dallas Morning News

A Texas game warden leaves the Lakeview Marina Gas Dock after air ambulances evacuated injured boaters on Lake Lewisville in Lake Dallas on Sunday, Sept. 12, 2010. Eight children and four adults were injured in the two-boat accident.

The game warden refused to talk at the time. Much was/is strange and unresolved about this story...

Please read, "Lewisville Lake crash under investigation" by Kerry Solan / The Dallas Morning News.

Epic Roadtrip - The Alamo

Fayrouz Hancock visits The Alamo in San Antonio on Monday, July 19, 2010.


photos © Mark M. Hancock / DFWmark.com



The Alamo stands as a monument of Texas independence in San Antonio.


A groundskeeper cleans the sidewalk in front of The Alamo in San Antonio.


Fayrouz Hancock visits The Alamo in San Antonio on Monday, July 19, 2010.

DPD Helicopter Unit's 40th Anniversary

photos © Mark M. Hancock and The Dallas Morning News

Tactical flight officer Sr. Cpl. Charles Sherek (window) watches for obstacles as pilot Sr. Cpl. J. Rucker performs a fly-by during the Dallas Police Department helicopter unit's 40th anniversary celebration at the Frontiers of Flight Museum at Dallas Love Field in Dallas on Aug. 8, 2009.


Commemorative patches greet guests during the Dallas Police Department helicopter unit's 40th anniversary celebration at the Frontiers of Flight Museum at Dallas Love Field.


Organizers push a Dallas Police Department helicopter into the Frontiers of Flight Museum during the DPD helicopter unit's 40th anniversary celebration.


Guests visit during the Dallas Police Department helicopter unit's 40th anniversary celebration at the Frontiers of Flight Museum at Dallas Love Field.




Former Police Chief Frank Dyson visits with other officers during the Dallas Police Department helicopter unit's 40th anniversary celebration at the Frontiers of Flight Museum at Dallas Love Field. Dyson founded the helicopter unit while he was chief.


Astronaut and Dallas native Jim Reilly (left) talks with Sr. Cpl. Charles Sherek (right) during the Dallas Police Department helicopter unit's 40th anniversary celebration at the Frontiers of Flight Museum at Dallas Love Field.


Thomas Mitchell (left) and W.D. Smith (right) catch up during the Dallas Police Department helicopter unit's 40th anniversary celebration at the Frontiers of Flight Museum at Dallas Love Field in Dallas. Mitchell was one of the original two civilian instructor pilots while Smith was one of the original four DPD pilots in the program.


Photos of fallen officers are displayed on an "In Remembrance" table during the Dallas Police Department helicopter unit's 40th anniversary celebration at the Frontiers of Flight Museum at Dallas Love Field in Dallas.

Please read, "Dallas Police Helicopter Unit looks back over four decades" by Tanya Eiserer / The Dallas Morning News

Habitat for Humanity demolition

photos © Mark M. Hancock and The Dallas Morning News

Dallas mayor Tom Leppert (left) and Builders of Hope CDC president Norman Henry (right) meet before a house razing ceremony in Dallas on Saturday, May 2, 2009.


Dallas mayor Tom Leppert (left) greets Scott Begin, Dallas Area Habitat for Humanity CEO, (right) before a house razing ceremony in Dallas. Three houses were destroyed to be replaced with new Habitat for Humanity homes.


Irby Walton with Hampton Trucking of Dallas prepares to raze three houses in Dallas. The first of the three homes razed was featured on an episode of Dallas SWAT during a raid.


Irby Walton with Hampton Trucking of Dallas razes a house after a ceremony. Dallas Area Habitat for Humanity, Builders of Hope and Dallas Faith Communities cooperated on the project.


Dallas deputy police chief Rick Watson (left) and mayor Tom Leppert (right) talk as a house is razed in Dallas. The three razed houses accounted for more than 120 previous arrests.

Easter excitement

© Mark M. Hancock / DFWmark.com

Emergency workers welcome Easter by moving a woman to an awaiting ambulance in Plano on Sunday, April 12, 2009. Police arrived first at the scene.

I have no idea what happened, but a Plano police officer ran past my balcony with what appeared to be a drawn weapon. So, I grabbed my camera and waited. Then the firefighters showed up and helped a woman into an awaiting ambulance. No matter the circumstances, it's not the best way for anyone to start Easter.

I wish everyone a happy, healthy and calm Easter.

Final weekend campaigning

photos © Mark M. Hancock and The Dallas Morning News

Marty Doucette drinks coffee at Friendship West Baptist Church before campaigning door-to-door for the Democratic Party in Dallas on Saturday, Nov. 1, 2008.


Edna Pemberton of Dallas (left) and others applaud Democratic candidates at Friendship West Baptist Church before campaigning door-to-door. The general election is on Tuesday.


Democratic candidates and volunteers coordinate at Friendship West Baptist Church before campaigning door-to-door in Dallas.


Shay Cathey (left) helps coordinate Democratic candidates and volunteers before a door-to-door campaign effort for the Democratic Party.



Sheriff Lupe Valdez, a Democrat, (left) coordinates with others at Friendship West Baptist Church before campaigning door-to-door.


Sheriff Lupe Valdez campaigns door-to-door in Dallas.



Sheriff Lupe Valdez (right) asks for the vote of landscape specialist Jorge Torres (left) during a door-to-door campaign for the Democratic Party.


Sheriff Lupe Valdez, a Democrat, (right) asks for the vote of Shanelle Joseph (left) during a door-to-door campaign for the Democratic Party in Dallas. Valdez won the election.

If your day isn't going well, consider one guy at his home on a Saturday morning. He answered the door in his underwear and found the Dallas County Sheriff, a photojournalist and a DMN reporter.

Although he's got a new story to tell, I'm sure his whole day was ruined. No, I didn't make any images there.

Please read, "Dallas County sheriff candidates step up stumping in home stretch" by Kevin Krause / The Dallas Morning News.

Hardin County dispatchers

Mark M. Hancock / © The Beaumont Enterprise

Hardin County dispatcher Dee Ann Durbin answers calls at the Hardin County Dispatch Office in Kountze on Wednesday, April 30, 2008. County commissioners approved a new phone system to allow management additional access to 911 phone recordings at their desks.

Dead PJs don't make deadline: tips on cover and concealment

I've covered both hostage standoffs and warrant roundups with other shooters (mostly TV). I've also been consistently shocked by how little they knew about staying alive.

Recently, I covered a county-wide warrant roundup. We didn't know what any of the offenders had done. Considering how heavily-armed the deputies were, I guessed it wasn't helping little old ladies jaywalk across the street.

When we arrived at the first location, the deputies surrounded a house. I settled down with a telephoto lens behind a large steel air conditioner within site of the house and made myself as small as possible.

Meanwhile, one of the TV folks stood in the middle of the street with his feet planted and a camera on his shoulder. Luckily, nobody was home, or there could've been blood and camera parts scattered throughout the neighborhood.

Most working photojournalists (PJs) aren't in combat zones, but a hostage standoff or warrant roundup can turn ugly fast. At least once each year, I've needed to know how to avoid bullets. Hopefully, this knowledge won't be used. However, it's too late to figure out what to do once bullets start flying.

Don't go out in someone else's blaze of glory

The speed of sound is 1130 feet per second (fps). A 9mm pistol round moves at 1175 fps. Military-grade 7.62mm and 5.56mm rifle rounds travel at about 2850 fps. In other words, nobody is going to hear the first shot before they're hit.

If surrounded people don't want to go to jail, they may decide to go out in a "blaze of glory." If these people are well trained and armed, they're going to take out the easiest targets first - namely the TV shooter standing in the middle of the street without body armor.

While this may make our front page more interesting, I'd rather get photos of a docile arrest or maybe a tackle and arrest. Everyone lives through the event, and everyone goes where they belong.

What's concealment?

Concealment is the ability to disappear from the view of others. Most people can't kill what they can't see with a direct-fire weapon. In practical terms, it means the bad guys won't put a bullet through our lens.

To me, anyone firing live rounds at unarmed PJs is a bad guy.

Practical concealment is like a game of hide-and-seek. PJs find a bush or some other object to mask our presence. This makes it easier for us to work without notice and, sometimes, without a trip to the hospital.

Often, police try to clear an area for "safety reasons." Many of my colleagues have images of governmental authorities doing some not-so-safe things to people when they think they're out of the limelight. Consequently, it's important to quickly find concealment and vanish not only from the subject, but also from authorities.

A thick bush is the fastest and easiest form of concealment. Shadows on sunny days can work if there are no other options. A combination of the two is always good. The point is to avoid being seen. This lets us stay in the area where breaking news is happening and live to tell the story.

What's cover

While concealment reduces the risk for PJs, cover ensures reasonable safety. Cover is an area of protection. Cover may also conceal a PJ, but it's primarily a place to avoid fire.

There are different levels of cover, but there's also a tradeoff with the ability to work. We need to find something thick enough to absorb or redirect rounds or shrapnel while allowing us to make images.

A tree with a thick trunk is cover. A brick wall is cover. A concrete or steel post is cover. An armored car or personnel carrier is cover. All of these items will absorb or redirect potentially harmful projectiles. Each also creates challenges for PJs to do their jobs.

All a PJ actually needs is a hole in a cement wall large enough for a lens. Unfortunately, this is all someone with a rifle needs as well. However, the less exposed we are to fire, the less damage we're likely to receive.

Types of fire

We must choose cover based on the firepower we're facing. If we encounter a single gunman in a one-story house, a low brick wall could be enough cover.

If we're facing an incoming army with artillery and tanks, we'll need more fortification and overhead cover.

The key is to understand the weapons we face. There are two basic kinds of fire. These are direct and indirect.

Direct fire
Direct fire involves a line-of-sight weapon. Pistols, rifles and rocket-propelled grenades (RPGs) are the most common direct fire weapons. A projectile is aimed and fired at a target.

Basically, if a PJ can focus on a person with one of these weapons, that person could do the same with a direct-fire weapon. Aren't we glad we understand concealment now?

Indirect fire
Indirect fire involves using an arc to place a solid, fragmentary or combustible projectile in a location where direct fire isn't possible or feasible. Molotov cocktails, rockets, artillery, mortars and launched grenades are the most common.

These weapons give little or no warning before they explode beside someone in a seemingly "safe" environment. Indirect fire weapons are the most difficult to protect against and require solid overhead cover.

Types of projectiles

While we now understand we can face direct or indirect weapons when we get called away from the annual kindergarten parent's day, we also need to understand how particular weapons work for more unstable assignments.

Solid rounds
Most common weapons fire solid rounds. From slingshots to rifles, a solid object is hurled downrange toward a target. The purpose of the weapon is to place a single round in a single target.

As stated, these are the most common weapons PJs face. As long as we keep our eye on the weapon, and have adequate cover, we should live to tell the story.

While solid round weapons may appear easiest to avoid, it's important to understand the round can ricochet or create a fragmentation of other objects it hits. Consequently, it's best to find forward cover, but leave plenty of room behind yourself to let the round continue traveling. It sounds logical to hunker down between two walls until a round starts bouncing back and forth overhead.

Fragmentary
Fragmentary weapons break apart and send shrapnel in every direction. Common fragmentary weapons include grenades and almost all indirect weapons. The goal of the weapon is to inflict damage in every direction around the point of explosion.

Almost every terrorist device is fragmentary. The entire point of the weapon is to maximize damage. If PJs cover a known fragmentary attack, understand a delayed, secondary attack is very likely. It's important to stay low and move from cover to cover. Drop to the ground if there is a flash of light.

Combustible
Combustible weapons are similar to fragmentary weapons, but create additional problems after deployment. Common combustible weapons are Molotov cocktails as well as many military-grade bombs.

PJs are most likely to face Molotov cocktails during riots and other domestic disturbances. The best defense is to make images from the sidelines as a crowd faces authorities or another crowd.

As soon as a these devices are spotted, stay away from walls or other solid structures. The bottle can be broken against a building or tree and rain liquid fire and glass shards onto PJs.

Calculate the risks

Last time, we discussed the importance of living to tell the story. This involves taking calculated risks. When in doubt, err on the side of caution because a dead PJ doesn't make deadline.

This post explains the potential weapons we can face as we cover breaking news. While most tense situations allow a few minutes of mental preparation while we're en route, others can erupt without warning during a city hall meeting.

Most conflicts we cover end in an arrest or suicide. However, good PJs react quickly to breaking news and often arrive before S.W.A.T. teams. We better know what we're facing and how to deal with it.

Next time, we'll discuss how to apply this knowledge to survive dangerous situations.

Enough for now,

Rough morning

Mark M. Hancock / © The Beaumont Enterprise

Beaumont firefighter Jeffrey Nesom waits for a wrecker at the site of a two-car injury-collision near the corner of Magazine and North Main streets in Beaumont on Thursday, April 24, 2008.

"Life is a Game" author

Photos by Mark M. Hancock / © The Beaumont Enterprise

Jim Copeland (right) talks with his wife Tiffany Copeland (left) at their home in Beaumont on Thursday, April 17, 2008. Jim Copeland, a special education teacher at a federal prison complex in Beaumont, wrote a motivational book based on his life experiences.


Jim Copeland (left) and his family gather at Copeland's home in Beaumont before Copeland's brother deploys to Iraq. Family members include (from left to right) his wife Tiffany; grandmother Mary Cunningham; grandfather Billy Cunningham, Sr.; daughter Trinity Copeland; father Jimmy Copeland, Jr.; mother Sherrie Copeland; and daughter Essence.


Jimmy Copeland, Jr. (left) talks with his son Jim Copeland (III) at Jim's home in Beaumont. Jim Copeland's motivational book is titled "Life is a Game."

First LNG shipment arrives

Photos by Mark M. Hancock / © The Beaumont Enterprise

U.S. Coast Guard members provide security as boats maneuver the Celestine River LNG vessel into position during the first arrival of liquified natural gas at the Sabine Pass LNG on Friday, April 11, 2008.


U.S. Coast Guard Lt. j.g. Niya J. Williams (bottom) makes photos from the deck of the Sabine Pilot II as boats maneuver the Celestine River LNG vessel into position during the first arrival of liquified natural gas at the Sabine Pass LNG. The 145,000 cm-capacity vessel transported the cargo from Nigeria to the facility owned by Cheniere Energy, Inc.


The Sabine Pilot (center) passes as boats maneuver the Celestine River LNG vessel (right) into position during the first arrival of liquified natural gas at the Sabine Pass LNG.

Please read, "Massive tanker ushers in new wave of LNG supplies" by Christine Rappleye.

Community's daughters

Mark M. Hancock / © The Beaumont Enterprise

Amanda Hulsey (left) and Ashley Hulsey Behn (right) hold a flag with their father's badge at the family home in Beaumont on Friday, March 28, 2008. Their father, Beaumont police officer Paul Hulsey, was killed by serial killer Michael Larkhard on March 22, 1988.

Please read, "Beaumont cop, father's death defined 'community's daughters'" by Dee Dixon.

No body found

Photos by Mark M. Hancock / © The Beaumont Enterprise

Divers search the Lower Neches River Authority canal under Highway 69 near Plant Road in Beaumont on Saturday, March 29, 2008. A woman witnessed a white male jump off the bridge. Fire department officials searched the canal with seven divers because they felt the call was credible. No body was found.

Port Arthur drive-by neighborhood

Photos by Mark M. Hancock / © The Beaumont Enterprise

Port Arthur homeowner Julius Mathias talks about the east Port Arthur neighborhood, which has suffered an increase in drive-by shootings, in Port Arthur on Thursday, March 27, 2008.


Graffitti remains on a new fence at Julius Mathias' property in east Port Arthur.


Port Arthur homeowner Julius Mathias talks about the east Port Arthur neighborhood, which has suffered an increase in drive-by shootings, in Port Arthur. Mathias, a retiree originally from Trinidad, is considering selling the home and returning to the Caribbean island.

Please read, "Drive-by shootings rattle Port Arthur residents" by Fred Davis.

Images are part of the Faces of Immigration series.

Domestically disturbed fire

Photos by Mark M. Hancock / © The Beaumont Enterprise

Beaumont firefighters battle a blaze at a home in the 2500 block of South Street in Beaumont on Tuesday, March 25, 2008. Police said the fire began after a man attacked his mother with a machete while she was lying in bed.


Beaumont firefighters battle a blaze at a home in the 2500 block of South Street. The injured 72-year-old woman* forced her son, 49*, from the bedroom and locked the door. Capt. Earl White said fires were set in two locations in the house. White said the man could face arson charges carrying up to a 20-year prison sentence and $10,000 fine.


Beaumont firefighters pull a burned bed from a home in the 2500 block of South Street. The mother needed emergency surgery for defensive cuts on her arms and chest. The son suffered burns over 50 percent of his body and was flown to Galveston, where he was listed in critical condition.

Please read, "Son is accused of arson and machete attack" by Dee Dixon and Paul S. Martinez.

* No names on this story until the police file charges.

Retiring Orange constable

Photos by Mark M. Hancock / © The Beaumont Enterprise

Orange County Precinct 3 constable John A. Ford poses for a portrait near his office in Orange on Thursday, Feb. 14, 2008. Ford will have served 38 years at the end of his term making him the longest-serving elected official in Orange County's history.


Orange County Precinct 3 constable John A. Ford's badge shows some wear and tear near his office in Orange. He took the job after his brother, Louis Ford, Jr., was killed in the line of duty in Bridge City in 1971.



Orange County Precinct 3 constable John A. Ford poses for a portrait near his office in Orange. Sixteen candidates are competing in the primary races for the four county constable positions. Only one precinct has an incumbent. In the wide-open race for Precinct 3, three candidates hope to take Ford's spot.

Please read, "16 hopefuls pack ballot..." by Robert Hankins.

McCray intoxication manslaughter trial

Willie James McCray moves to the courtroom before closing arguments in his trial at the Jefferson County Courthouse in Beaumont on Thursday, Jan. 24, 2008. Willie James McCray's car struck and killed Beaumont police officer Lisa Beaulieu on April 27, 2007. McCray faces up to 20 years if convicted.


Photos by Mark M. Hancock / © The Beaumont Enterprise

Friends and family pray with Willie James McCray as jurors deliberate his punishment in the Jefferson County Courthouse in Beaumont on Friday, Jan. 25, 2008. McCray was convicted on Thursday of intoxication manslaughter in the April 27, 2007 death of Beaumont police officer Lisa Beaulieu.
McCray was sentenced to 11 years in prison.

Please see Beaumont police officer Lisa Beaulieu's funeral.

Please read the historical account, see evidence and hear the first 911 call starting with, "Willie McCray sentenced..." by Ryan Myers.

Arson Annie

Annie, a 10-month-old bloodhound (bottom), sniffs downtown air with handler Kevin Pierce, a criminal investigator for the Texas Forest Service, during an event at the Texas Fire Museum in Beaumont on Thursday, Jan. 10, 2008. Annie was trained to track down arsonists for the Texas Forest Service.


Photos by Mark M. Hancock / © The Beaumont Enterprise

Annie, a 10-month-old bloodhound (center), gives a kiss to Elizabeth Lee, 6, of Sour Lake under the watchful eye of handler Kevin Pierce (left) during an event at the Texas Fire Museum. Annie is Texas' first arson canine.