Press Photography Research

As I will be taking photos throughout the course of my story-collecting stage, I will need to have some knowledge of press photography. Press photographers, like journalists, are essentially people who can work for large companies, media outlets or free-lance, who are hired to go out and take pictures on the scenes of big stories, openings of events, press conferences and stalking celebrities on their holidays to name but a few.

Unlike studio photographers, images are nearly always shot on location with a hand held digital camera. As well as this, the photographer will take a laptop with them, so images can quickly be uploaded to the internet ready to be published in a product by the editor, who has sent them there in the first place. The editor naturally decides which stories will make the newspaper, and the picture editor will make a decision as to the type of shots the photographer needs to go out and get, as well as how many images need to be used.

Typically, the general view of paparazzi photographers by the general public is one of an annoying, intrusive journalist constantly snapping pictures of famous people, eventually getting one shot in which they look miserable, and putting it on the front cover of OK magazine. Despite this, press photographers work to strict deadlines with great pressure on them to deliver good quality images that can be used in a publication. Often, they are expected to present up to five good quality images for each story they cover, so the picture editor has a good choice of image to use to fit around text and other images.
Often, press photographers can have niche specialities, such as celebrities, sport and the royal family, however on a smaller scale, like in my newspaper, photographers will be contracted to do all of these jobs.

With this knowledge in mind, when it comes to taking my own images with an SLR camera, I will take a variety of pictures, as when they are put onto a laptop and don't look very good, there is no going back to take more.