A beginner's guide to Photojournalism

‘A picture is worth a thousand words’ is an English idiom that is labelled by some as a Chinese proverb and attributed to the philosopher, Confucius. One of the most noticeable innovations of the current era is the ability to use media such as pictures and videos, which has been fostered by the world wide web and led to the birth and remarkable success of entities like Instagram, Flickr, YouTube, and DailyMotion.

The contemporary photographer is a storyteller and a publisher. What is captured by a camera and published, therefore, has the potential to change perspectives and evoke emotions. As a consequence, photographers have a great personal and ethical responsibility to address issues of unscrupulous and deceitful image creation. To take this ethical responsibility upon one’s shoulders and pursue photojournalism, whether as a hobby, for professional reasons or to achieve a personal goal, is an admirable undertaking. Regardless of the motive, it requires the combination of skill, passion and hard work to truly make it into the world of capturing images.

Regardless of the puzzlement and the hullabaloo surrounding photojournalism, photographs are the universal language of the modern age as they allow us to express ourselves and speak directly to our feelings. Images are much more than mere records; they speak to the most liberal part of human nature. Moreover, photographers accentuate our awareness towards things we miss in our everyday lives and, thanks to the power of technology, they call our attention to events and people at large distances from us. While vocabulary may be short of words to express certain emotions, photography portrays a visual language for some of the most difficult sentiments.

This post will guide amateur photojournalists, or photographers, to set their foot on the door to this fascinating world of immense opportunities.

According to some of the best photojournalists in Pakistan, photojournalism and photography have their differences.

Ali Awais, a photojournalist and visual artist from Lahore, Pakistan, believes that photography is an art, where certain things in the images can be altered, where the photograph itself can be staged. However, in the case of photojournalism, it conveys a message or news to people, which cannot be staged.

Khaula Jamil, a documentary photographer and photojournalist from Karachi, Pakistan, describes photojournalism as a branch of photography. She said: 'I’d say it’s a genre, like there’s fashion photography, food, commercial, and event photography. So, photojournalism is like a whole genre. To make things easier, I would say it’s something with a more natural component. In that, we’re actually telling a story and writing about it.’

Now that we’ve distinguished between the two, here are some tips to get you started with your first photographic assignment.

Research and Planning

Danial Shah, a photojournalist and travel writer based in Karachi, Pakistan, brought attention to the fact that the approach to beginning a project differs each time because “each project is different, with different people and at different places.” However, the first step to undertake any project is research and planning. For example, it would be best to start by researching about the place, its people, likely problems or the weather, to name a few.

Shah also noted the importance of investing some time with the people before one can start shooting. "I never shoot from the beginning. I talk to people, let them know that I’m around, get to know them, and then tell them what I am doing or working on, and why I am taking the pictures, and ask for their permission."

Be Prepared

It is crucial to be prepared for the unexpected. There are two things which could come your way during your assignment; the weather and equipment failure.

Anything unexpected that happens weather-wise, Shah advised that it is, in fact, really good because it opens more possibilities for photojournalists to document. "There’s never bad weather. It’s always a good picture, even if it’s raining, cloudy, if there’s a thunderstorm, or it’s sunny."

So, do not fret if you find that the weather was not what you expected, because there is no such thing as a bad picture!

However, anything unexpected that happens equipment-wise, there needs to be a backup plan in place. If something were to happen to the equipment, it is okay to take pictures with your phone, for instance. "I think a mobile picture does not have the same quality as a good digital single-lens reflex camera (DSLR), but it’s a very good way to document things very instantly and not revealing too much of it", says Shah. "Just take pictures which are printable and publishable, and I think you’ll be fine."

Ethical Issues

It is highly important to be aware of the ethical boundaries a photojournalist shall not exceed and the principles which are needed to be followed.

Khaula Jamil believes that you have to draw your own ethics. However, for a photojournalist, there are the basics. For example, making people understand that their picture is going to be published, and making sure they are okay with it, is the foundation of a photojournalist’s work. Also, when you’re taking a story from the people you photograph, it is equally crucial to make them understand the value of ‘why’ it’s important they share their part of the story, and what the purpose is.

She provided an example of when, in Pakistan, photojournalists are required to travel to marginalised and rural areas for their work, such as Balochistan and Sindh, it would take a lot of time explaining to the people there what they were working on and why. Since the literacy rates in such places are quite low, it is rare that those who reside there would easily understand the concept of photography, news, and publishing.

"I wouldn’t simply take stuff said at face value. You cannot just invest 5 minutes and say you got the quotes that will get you the hits. That’s not the story. Just because someone may have said something quite click-worthy, it does not necessarily mean that they understood the question." Instead, it’s best to keep digging. Jamil insisted that she would ask the same question in 10 different ways in order for her to answer them and "if all 10 are answered in the same way, great, that’s the story." However, she pointed out, that more often than not, she hasn’t answered it because she hasn’t understood what was asked of her in the first place.

"It’s about ethics and what you want to walk away with. Do you want to walk away with something that’s click-friendly and sensational or do you want to walk away with the actual story?"

Focus

Focus, is what is going to keep you going. Along with conducting research and planning, educating yourself about the ethical boundaries which need to be maintained, it is important to be passionate about photojournalism. Also, this is a profession where you get better with practice. The more you click, the more you learn, and the better you get!

#Photojournalism #Guide #AliAwais #DanialShah #KhaulaJamil