Photo Shoot–Take One!

Posted on February 20, 2013 by maburdei.
Categories: Uncategorized.

Online Journalism isn’t just about words online. It’s about the multimedia components that make those words come alive.

Yesterday, Alexis Glenn and Evan Cantwell, two photographers from GMU’s Creative Services, came in to share their snap-shooting knowledge.

Below are some highlights:

  • Frame things a little differently. Most people think about photography in the same way. If there’s an event going on, they try and capture a wide-shot of the main character and the action. To impress your audience, or your boss, try taking pictures from an uncommon angle, zoom into the emotion or action, or frame the subject with unique lighting.
  • Ask the gatekeepers. If you need a photo for an event, contact the coordinator or the subject of interest and ask if you can take their photo. This may give you access to a spot other photographers in the room don’t have and make your pictures stand out that much more.
  • Be at the right place at the right time. This is easier said than done. What Alexis and Evan meant was anticipate what the right place or the right time is. Anticipate when the subject will turn to face you, for example. To better explain this, check out the next bullet point:
  • Get their early and stay late. This ingenious, though perhaps exhausting, work ethic could get you the best picture of the day. You never know what you’re going to get from your photo shoot, so being there for the longest period of time is beneficial. Staying a while gives you access to different types of natural lighting (if you’re outside) and provides opportunities to capture unexpected happenings.
Alexei_Camera

Photo courtesy of A. Mansour.

  • Photography vs Photojournalism. Photography is capturing life in picture-form. Photojournalism tells a story. How you frame a subject with the lighting and composition can portray a certain perspective of your subject. If you put them in poor lighting that says something completely different than if you put them in bright lighting. Evan shared a picture he took of Pr. Obama waving at the mass of people attending one of his pre-election rallies. To show that the whole event had a sort of artificial nature to it, Evan famed Obama walking on a field of perfect (aka fake and almost neon green) grass and beneath a massive American flag. The picture looked cheesy. And that’s what Evan was going for. This was more of a pep-rally than a political occurrence.
  • Know where the light is. The best time to capture people on camera is during the “golden hour.”  Another great time is on an overcast day. To calculate the golden hour where you are, check out this nifty calculator.
Nina_Jump

Photo courtesy of Nina Scholl.

  • Check out blogs. Alexis noted that she checks out renown photography blogs on a daily basis for inspiration. Some of her favorite were Lens of the New York Times, Framework by the LA Times and NPR’s Picture Show.
  • Practice. Photography is mostly a skill. So get out there and experiment with it. Before you know it, this art will become instinctive to you.