Photojournalism... Back >>>
- Photojournalism Practitioners -
I’ll be the first to admit that I love photography; I had neglected my camera recently and looked forward to blow off the dust and get out there with my camera again.
Firstly I decided to look at some photographers that I admired to see if I could glean any inspiration from their photos.
Benjamin Krain... Benjamin Krain is a photojournalist from America, I stumbled across his images looking for photojournalists to explore and I fell in love with his photography. Krain emphasises colour and most of his photos are focused on a subject (blurred backgrounds) A lot of his pictures are also very ordered, he definitely uses the rule of thirds to draw your eye from one part of the picture to another.  This is one of my favourite images as there is just so much to look at. The colours are all really sharp and defined, and I like the use of lines. |  Krain seems to be mainly an opportunist photographer, taking photos from an observational point of view and then waiting for the opportune moment to take a photo. For example this picture doesn’t seem to have a ‘purpose’ it looks like Krain was just hanging around in a neighbourhood, met some kids and then took a photo. I assume it isn’t posed because of the angle of the photograph, and the motion that is in it. I could say that he is purely documenting his surroundings. I can relate to this from when I did a ‘365’ (a photo every day for a year) Relating to this means that I have a clear idea of what I can do in my photo essay. I can take some of my experience of documenting a year of my life and change it to documenting somebody else’s life, or my surroundings. |
Gerik Parmele...
Gerik Parmele is a Columbia Missouri based photojournalist.
I love the very slight motion in this picture (on the head) he must have had a very fast shutter speed. I also like that he has brightened the colours, this makes for a very stark and bright image.
This picture is a perfect example of decisive moment; he would only really have one chance to take this picture so it’s completely down to pressing the button at the right moment. I also like the framing, her head is in the centre, whereas the rest of her body is to the right, this makes the eye follow her body.
This is a really beautiful image and one of my favourites of Gerik’s; this is a perfect example of observational mode. I hope that I have enough of an eye to notice moments like this that would make a great photograph. Again Gerik has used the rule of thirds, this time quite literally, each section is perfectly divided and this brings out a structure to the picture.
Andrew Moore...
Andrew Moore is a photojournalist from Detroit. Most of his images are those taken of his surroundings, rather than close ups of people. These kinds of photos usually appear in newspapers or books. I looked at his work on Times Square.
I really like this photo of a derelict cinema, the emptiness is emphasised by the light in the middle right of the photo, the light also emphasise the scratches and paint on chairs, this boosts the feeling of abandonment. For some reason it really reminds me of The Shining because of the emptiness and the paint looks like blood.
This picture really utilises the rule of thirds, and it has been taken with a slow shutter speed to capture the motion of the taxis and people, I like the high contrast in this picture too, as it brings the colours to life. In editing I have noticed that I am always increasing the contrast, I love bringing out the colours in pictures. Andrew’s work has shown me that I can increase the contrast and bring out the colours in my photojournalist work too.
