PHOTOGRAPHERS KILLING PRESS PHOTOGRAPHY???

There are so many reasons why photojournalism is going so down. The crisis, the new technologies, cheap equipment, large number of photographers, media in the hands of businessmen…
But one of the reasons as well why photojournalism is dieing is because some photographers had been destroying themselves the power of the single journalist photo.

In the last years we had been much exited and we had been listening so many times the word multimedia.
Photographers, photo agencies, some newspapers maybe willing to offer something new and more creative, trying to be the first in doing something new, trying to find the way to make more money, to adapt media to internet format, or trying to find a solution to the crisis started to do ‘’multimedia’’ content.

But mostly of the multimedia that I was seeing was just a mix of video clips, photos and audio. For me that was nothing new. Even some people were acting like they had discovered hot water when at the end of the day was just a video with photos.

Lots of times, especially at the starting, the video content of the ’’multimedia’’ stories was created with little snapshot cameras or little video cameras. That was translated in not so good quality in audio and in video in terms of stability, framing etc. In so many ‘’videos edited with photos’’ the slide single images were good… but as a part of the video were losing the power as a single photo. In the story the photographs were coming and disappearing. Just a few seconds in a big sequence. I had the feeling as well that some of the ‘’video photo’’ stories were filled with photos that were not so good, or were just there to be able to create a sequence. Photos that as a photographer I m sure that would not had been offered to be published or to be part of an exhibition.

I always though that multimedia was when you have a multiple option to see the same story in different media content. I might be wrong but for me multimedia is having a DVD or a web page where you can select to see the same story in video or in photos, or in slideshow with audio or without audio, complemented maybe with text stories, graphics, maps etc.

But anyway I guess that in times of crisis people try to find new things and at the same time it is good to try to experiment. As well I did some videos where I was mixing photos and video. But I didn’t feel I was doing something new. And I felt at the end that some of the photos were wasted and becoming ephemeral as TV content usually can be.

In the middle of this situation suddenly the Canon 5D Mark II emerged. Some photographers were getting very exited about it. Maybe just because of the high definition of the video that you can get. Maybe because they though ‘‘if I don’t sell the photos I can sell the video’’. Even to do a proper video with this camera its not easy because the stability, the audio, the need of changing the lens if you want a variety of frames to build a proper video sequence, the need of buying extra gadgets to try to make the camera more user friendly… But who knows, maybe I see all form the view of TV daily news, and breaking news story. (Of course if you have long time to shoot or the money to pay all the extra gadgets that you need to make the Canon 5D Mark II more stable, more user friendly, and to record proper audio then maybe could be a not so bad option. I always think that if you want to do video just get a video camera.)

And then its when maybe happen a big blow for photojournalism and coming form the same photographers. Suddenly photographers were starting to do video with Canon 5D Mark II and doing frame grab to get photos. I remember when I think was Times magazine used a video frame grab of Sadam Hussein in the cover of the magazine some years ago and to see lots of photographers not very happy about it and thinking ‘’well guys this is the future of the photographers…’’. I remember in the last years to listen so many photographers complaining about how business was going down and how upset they where becoming when magazines were using video frame grab or sending reporters alone on assignment with little snapshot camera.

I think that doing frame grab form video destroy the magic, the spontaneity and the value of the photography. If would have been videographers who had started doing frame grab the press photographic community would have became so upset. I understand that in times where being a press photographer is not easy, is good to try to find alternatives and to have one camera that can do video and photo at the same time. But this way of working is killing even more press photography.

I consider myself photographer and videographer. I like in the same way TV and photo. I just think that producing this kind of stories mixing video and photo and doing frame grab from a video camera makes photojournalism die even faster. And from where are mainly emerging this two ways of working? From the same photo press community.

When I like to see a TV report, documentary or video essay I like to see a proper TV story, with good audio and good video footage. When I want to see a photo work I like to enjoy the magic of the photojournalism where a single image or few images can transmit a powerful moment or story without the need of much explanation.

Of course I have seen excellent stories where video and photo are mixed and work very well. Or great video work with the Canon 5D Mark II. But mixing video and photos trying to pretend is a new way of story telling or it’s the future I think its not a good idea. I think that don’t make much sense from the journalistic and form the visual point of view and the only that makes in long term is to put more down the press photography.

I know that nothing is black or white. We are living as well in a very complicated moment where economy and technology is transforming so much the worldwide media and nobody really knows where we are heading. That’s maybe why I just wanted to share my opinion. The opinion of just one more photographer and video journalist and to try to create a little debate to listen and see other views and other possibilities and alternatives of developing our work.