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Overview The Exhibitions Program at the Center for Documentary Studies presents images, documents, sound, and written experiences in four galleries, bringing to light telling details and resonant moments in everyday life that might otherwise go unnoticed. CDS exhibitions connect people to those moments, and to a larger story. Serving as a community forum for documentary work, the galleries make the documentary arts accessible to a general audience and present experiences that inform, heighten our historical and cultural awareness, create discourse, foster understanding, and confront traditional views of "others."

Playing "god" in a digital age: The thin line between art and the subjectivity of photojournalism Jarle recently commented on the post "Crazy light", in which I wrote: "We are constantly challenged to make scenes that are less than interesting, more interesting." The question that this raises, however, is when and how are the conventions of honest visual reportage bent for the sake of making images more compelling? Jarle continues: Correct. We all strive to make our photos more interesting. But, ethically and philosophically speaking, isn't this in direct conflict with the "our pictures must always tell the truth" mantra? There's often a thin line between photojournalism, "art" and subjective, commentary photography. And, playing the devil's advocate, what's the difference between adding motion blur in Photoshop and using a slow shutter speed? I'll start out by agreeing with much what Jarle has said here. From a purist perspective, "Straight" photography should be a style of photography that records what the eye witnesses without elaboration or embellishment. For the most part, this form of photography, what is photojournalism today, has remained pretty much true to form. At the same time, it is possible to find quite a few examples of photojournalism from the 1980s to the present day, that deviate from the normal conventions.

In this digital age, metering is becoming a lost art. Many new photographers seem to be relying on the back of the camera for metering and correct exposure. Although, as a photographer mastering proper metering techniques is essential for achieving consistent repeatable results.

Journalistic ethics still matter even in a corporate media culture Sometimes there needs to be a distinction between what people believe to be an ethical decision and a matter of taste. There are lots of disturbing images that may be distasteful to some, but not unethical to run in a newspaper or online. Cultural values and taste, not ethics, increasingly play a significant role in the decisions being made today about what picture see the light of day. There is a tremendous amount of self-censorship going on in the news today. Many papers will not run disturbing images, not because they are afraid to tell the truth, but simply because of the push-back they get from advertisers and the public.

« Previous | Main | Next » Photojournalism today Phil Coomes | 09:20 UK time, Friday, 14 August 2009 Phnom Penh, Cambodia by Christine Spengler / Sygma / CorbisThe world of photojournalism is in a state of flux. In recent times, two of the industry's most respected agencies have run into trouble. Last week, the financial problems at the Gamma photo agency in Paris came to light and another one-time giant of the industry, Sygma, also closed its doors to new photographers a few years ago following its acquisition by Corbis.

" I was introduced to the work of Trent Parke (born in Australia in 1971, a member of Magnum since 2007) by a mutual friend, the photographer, Matt Stuart. He showed me two books by Parke, both self-published. The first was The Seventh Wave (2000), photographs of Australia's beaches, by Parke and his partner - now wife - Narelle Autio. A more intimate and egalitarian collaboration is hard to imagine. Without the list at the end explaining which pictures are by whom it would be impossible to tell them apart. Much of the action takes place in or under the waves. You don't look at this book. You open it and plunge in. Whoomp! Immediately, you're immersed, submerged. They're like pictures of being born, of people exploding into life beneath the sea, or bursting through the surface and into being. It's as if evolution has been speeded up and compressed so that the origins of life on the planet turn, in a split-second, to the creation of an individual human life. In the same breath it's mythic and candid - street photography from Atlantis! In one photograph we get a blurry echo of Michelangelo's The Creation of Adam from the Sistine Chapel. Here it's two hands almost touching underwater, one clutching a ball of burning light. In a related picture - included in the Minutes to Midnight series - we see the birth of the photographers' own son, erupting from the water, dragging the umbilical cord like a lifesaver."

A Gear Guide For Going Freelance By David McIntyredavid-mcintyrecloseAuthor: David McIntyre See Author's Posts (2) Recent Posts * Nine Essentials (Besides a Camera) You'll Need as a Freelance Photographer * A Gear Guide For Going Freelance David McIntyre is a photographer for Black Star based in China and Hong Kong since 1995. Prior to becoming a freelance photographer, he was a staff photographer for The Phoenix Gazette. He has also worked for UPI, the Associated Press, EPA, Asiaweek Magazine, the Far Eastern Economic Review, Baseball America, and the minor league baseball teams in Denver and Phoenix before they had Major League teams. Visit David's Web site. in Business of Photography on March 13th, 2009 I've read the articles and postings about newspaper layoffs, and I've gotten my share of e-mails from former staff photographers asking for guidance. As someone who's been freelancing for most of my career, what's the first advice I would give to those of you striking out on your own? Get the right equipment. A lot of corporate and editorial assignments require portrait work, for example - which requires lighting gear. But most new freelancers don't realize they will need more than their one shoe mount strobe. Others may have more or less gear than what I find works best. But here are my recommendations for the equipment you'll need to fulfill the majority of requests from potential clients.

The ethical and real hazards of citizen journalism People powered People powered Who is responsible for the risks taken by citizen journalists who become 'accidental' reporters in dangerous situations? This was the excellent question asked by Slawek Kozdras, a Polish student, who was in the audience when I gave a talk at Cumberland Lodge to LSE Government scholars. I was doing my usual schtick about how networked journalism could alter the terms of the political communications trade. I put up slides about activists in Burma, G20 protestors and other people using new media technologies to report where professional journalists can't go. Slawek made a good point drawn from a fellow eastern European's work: "I remember a story told in Kundera's Unbearable Lightness of Being. After the Soviet army stormed into Prague in 1968 the brave Czech people (as opposed to cowardly Czech politicians) were mocking the army, women were teasing with Russian soldiers, laughing at them, taking pictures with them knowing the Russians can't react. The paradox is that later on these pictures with people mocking Russians turned against the Czechs and served as evidence in trials."

Is The Amateur Really A Threat to the Pro? Consider the photographer who has an unlimited amount of time to accomplish an image. Or, the student, who has a week or two to complete an assignment on, say, lighting a bowl of fruit. Or, the hobbyist photographer, who stumbles upon a great image. Are these photographers a threat to the photographer who works on assignment?

Photographing Cruelty Susie Linfield Red-Color News Soldier Li Zhensheng Phaidon, $39.95 (flexi) Assignment Shanghai: Photographs on the Eve of Revolution Jack Birns, edited by Carolyn Wakeman and Ken Light University of California Press, $34.95 (cloth)

website of Joe McNally national geographic photographer

Corporate Photographer specializing in annual report work worldwide.

Location annual report photo shoot by corporate photographer David Tejada. Photographing an asphalt plant and highway construction

ten good tips for making better pictures

This is a practical introduction to the photo equipment used in my professional photography studio part 1 of 2

Part 2: this is a practical introduction to the photo equipment used in my professional photography studio.

A basic guide to the principles of camera metering A basic guide to the principles of camera metering Category: Howto & Style Tags: photography digital camera basics tutorial metering