Taking the good with the bad
Currently listening to: Sagaba by Blue Scholars
Evergreen Fire Station Controlled Burn. Click image to view audio slideshow.
I’m a competitive person – it’s in my genes. Anyone that has met my family or watched a Red Wings game with us knows how intense we can get (speaking of which, I know we’re not going into the playoffs all that strong but I believe simply being in the playoffs will rejuviante the team towards the Cup. But enough about that). Just as I’m passionate about hockey, I’m even more obsessed with perfecting my work. I want my images to convey the story that leaves a mark on the viewer. Anything that hinders this lofty goal, whether it be lack of interaction between subjects or not finding an appropriate emphasis of light, is cause for ruthlessly critique myself.
Take for example last week. Our lead photographer was assigned to shoot a funeral for a state trooper that passed away in a traffic accident the previous week. I was assigned to be a secondary shooter once the people would begin arriving at the cemetery. Law enforcement from across the state and beyond filled the scene and a decent amount of media personnel were present for this somber occasion. The emotion of the event had to be documented delicately. It was not an easy shoot. I came away feeling like none of my shots communicated the scale and the sentiment that was evident. I headed back to the office to process my weak images and then headed home, hoping that the day wouldn’t be a foreshadow of the rest of my assignments for the week. Thankfully, it wasn’t.
Flathead Boxing Club. Click image to view audio slideshow.
The next day, I shot a sports feature story on a boxing club that was preparing to hold it’s first boxing tournament (check out the audio slideshow I made on the club by clicking here). The club practiced in a facility that had pockets of light in some great places. I could barely contain myself from hitting the shutter with all the action that was taking place during the club’s training. After getting some quality action shots, I began to actually look for images that would set themselves apart from ones of two gloved opponents hitting each other. Looking for just anything to happen didn’t seem to allow for any sort of visual connection to be made to the story so I started to take my time a bit more and look around for a stronger storytelling moment to capture. The majority of club members were children so I wanted to try to communicate their innocence against the backdrop of the rough sport. No luck. I turned around to the boxing ring and saw one of the younger kids watching the two pros going at it and made the frame. I wish I had been more creative with the image by going in tight on the action and putting the kid in focus in the background or something along those lines but I like the sense of place the image gives, let alone the expression the kid has on his face. And lucky me, the kid in the image told me later he wants to go pro when he turns eighteen.
Whitefish Pond Skimming - Click image to view gallery
Some days moments seem to evade me, other they fall into my lap. Like hockey, I can’t let how great or pitiful your success or failure feels get to me (My dad has to be proud of me making a sports to life reference). Becoming complacent about my images isn’t going to make them stand out. Even if they are good shots, they’re going to be the same after a while (Check out SI Photographer Robert Beck’s article “Take A Risk: Be DIFFERENT“). By dwelling on how boring and static my is work instead of trying something new only allows for the pitiful cycle to continue.
Photojournalism is a career that takes patience and yet anticipation. This is not only true for how to go about shooting images but also with regard to possessing a philosophy that helps in developing stronger images.
