Photojournalism Class Portfolio

So over this class, I think I have learned a lot. I had not done much in the way of photojournalism nor street photography. But I think it is something I would like to do more of and grow in technique. My favorite part of photojournalism is the genuine feelings and expressions. You don’t see that in a lot of other parts of photography.
   First off I like this picture because of the seeming up close and persona look of the photo. While the technical aspects of the photograph is a little off….such as it being a little blown out and out of focus, I feel that the feeling of this avid hiker makes up for it and shines through.

I like this photograph (Below) because of the seeming causual-ness and yet slightly absurd look to it. At the same time, I also feel like it is a good example of comic-con life.

I like this next photograph because it has an interesting pose and somewhat dynamic composition. It also seems as if it is telling a story.

 

 

I like this photograph because of the mysterious and yet casual feel to it. The hooded eyes and long coat and yet holding a simple coffee cup, adds up to get this feeling.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

This next Photo is one of my favorites because of its seeming magical-ness to it. The pastels and the softness of the objects in the photo help lend to the seeming magic of it.

This photograph (below), I think is good because of its dynamic composition and pose and yet how it both embodies the character (Deadpool) as well as the geek lifestyle in general.

Photostory: Lifestyle of Geeks, Otakus and Cosplayers

So my photo story is about a lifestyle. A lifestyle that I am deeply involved in: geekdom. Otakus, geeks, nerds…we come with many names. While some people go crazy over football and other sports, we get excited about anime, superheros, comics, Star Wars, Dungeons & Dragons etc. It is an outlet by which to show our creativity and a great stress relief.

Dead pool cosplay at Saratoga comic con, May 7th, 2017 – Photographer: Charity Smith

A nerd’s lifestyle is just that, a lifestyle. While some may just read a comic or two, most geeks integrate it into their lives, be it buying clothing with their favorite character on it, or going to comic cons.

anime t-shirt, May 2017 – Photographer: Charity Smith

Fans at Saratoga Comic Con, may 2017 – Photographer: Charity Smith

reading manga, May 2017, Photographer: Charity Smith

watching anime, may 2017, Photographer: Charity Smith

There is a stereotype that nerds and geeks are anti-social but quite to the contrary, most of us love to interact with people and share our passions.

Pikachu cosplayer, May 2017 – Photographer: Charity Smith

Hug, May 2017 – Photographer: Charity Smith

furries, May 2016, Photographer: Charity Smith

Many nerds include whole families. I have seen parents and children to who cosplay, watch tv series and enjoy the geek lifestyle together. It can be a great way for families to connect and do things together.

dad and son, may 2017 – Photographer: Charity Smith

Mom and baby, May 2017 – Photographer: Charity Smith

Cosplaying Family, May 2017, Photographer: Charity Smith

Issues in Photojournalism: Photo Manipulation

So I read an article from the New York Times (https://lens.blogs.nytimes.com/2015/02/17/world-press-photo-manipulation-ethics-of-digital-photojournalism/) about digital manipulation in photojournalism. It brings up the ethical issue of how much editing is too much editing? While it may seem obvious in the extreme cases…what about all the grays in between? I am sure we can all agree that covering over a person or object to make them disappear from the the scene is unethical…but what about cropping? Is that too much as well? What about darkening shadows…or over exposing a photograph? Is it the intent rather than the actual actions? Or should there be absolutely NO editing at all?

“Cloning isn’t acceptable. Taking something out of the soda can while leaving the background clean is not cool. But neither is cropping.”

                                                                                                           — Anonymous Photographer

     If we allow a little altered work, will that open the door for more and more digital editing? In most cases, if you give someone the chance to be unethical, they will take it if it causes them to gain something. I think that when it comes to photojournalism, we need to have rules for what is acceptable editing and what is not. Photojournalism is supposed to be documenting the truth and sharing it with people…not  making it harder for them to differentiate it from lies.

“It’s a dangerous and slippery slope to travel down when altered work is lauded.”

                                                                                                                  — Melissa Lyttle

     But at the same time the rules for editing isn’t just so that the public is not deceived. It is also for the photographers themselves. Sometimes they do not know that they are over stepping the bounds of editing because, as mention earlier, this issue has a large gray area.

” When I was notified that I was disqualified last year [from a photojournalism contest] I was shocked and embarrassed. But then I realized that I didn’t do anything different than I ever did. They said my shadows were too deep and they believed I darkened my shadows too much. They asked for my RAW file this year and my entry this year was not disqualified, as far as I know, even though it was processed in the exact same way.” 

                                                                         -Another Anonymous Photographer

     We need rules that are clear and precise to cut through the grays. That way both photographers and the public know what to do and trust. I personally think that the rules should simply be: No editing past the basics of editing lighting, cropping and refining. Anything past this, gets into bending the truth of what was there.

Works cited:

“Debating the Rules and Ethics of Digital Photojournalism”
https://lens.blogs.nytimes.com/2015/02/17/world-press-photo-manipulation-ethics-of-digital-photojournalism/

Photojournalism – Portraits

In portraits, the idea is to convey something of the person… a feeling….or a hobby….or personality perhaps (as I tried to do so in the following pictures). I took photographs of several subjects of various ages.

Teenage girl contemplating, April 2017 in Chestertown NY Photographer: Charity Smith

Teenage girl, April 2017 in Chestertown NY Photographer: Charity Smith

Trail cordernator , April 2017 in Chestertown NY Photographer: Charity Smith

smiling woman April 2017 in Chestertown NY Photographer: Charity Smith

I took a picture of a cosplayer friend of mine in one of her cosplays, as that hobby is a major part of her life and I wanted to convey that:

cosplayer portrait, April 2017, Photographer: Charity Smith

 

I also did a self portrait:

Self portrait, April 2017, Photographer: Charity Smith

Features: A Day in the Life of a Pastel Goth

A fashion trend you may have heard of in the past few years is one called pastel goth. That may sound contradictory but it is in fact a real style. It blends the edginess of goth and mixes it with vibrant pastels and cutesy stuff animals and accessories. The style is reminiscent of Oshare Kei, Lolita, and Harajuku fashion styles of Japan. If you think about Western icons with a similar style you might think of of Melanie Martinez.

putting on makeup Hadley NY, 03/28/17, Photographer: Charity Smith

My friend was kind enough to let me photograph her in her pastel regalia, and stuffed animals.

Putting on lipstick, Hadley NY, 03/28/17, Photographer: Charity Smith

Pastel goth reflected, Hadley NY, 03/28/17, Photographer: Charity Smith

pastel goth Hadley NY, 03/28/17, Photographer: Charity Smith

Pastel Goth in her bunny ears, Hadley NY, 03/28/17, Photographer: Charity Smith

pastel goth with drawing pad, Hadley NY, 03/28/17, Photographer: Charity Smith

Photojournalism: Sports

Come one, come all. Come see brave knights battle together in a fencing match!

Fencing competitors at Troy NY, Photographer: Charity Smith

So I decided to do something a little different for my sports project; I went to a fencing competition! It was really cool to take pictures of the action, though reflexes really were important for getting a good photograph “Sports photographers are like athletes. They need the aim of a major league pitcher, the reflexes of a basketball guard, and the concentration of a tennis player” (Kobre 97). While some of my photos came out a little blurry, in most cases I think it helped show the action and intensity.

Jester vs. Knight at Troy NY, Photographer: Charity Smith

swordsman at Troy NY, Photographer: Charity Smith

Knight vs. Knights at Troy NY, Photographer: Charity Smith

Jester vs. Swordswoman at Troy NY, Photographer: Charity Smith

“In for the kill” at Troy NY, Photographer: Charity Smith

Photojournalism: NEWS – Genericon 2017

Yesterday I went to a comic con called Genericon in Troy, New York. If you don’t know what a comic con is then I will explain…So a comic con is a convention of all things geeky and nerdy; be it anime, comic books, superheros, science fiction and fantasy. People go to panels (seminars and events) and cosplay as their favorite characters. I personally cosplayed as a character called Natsu Dragneel from the anime and manga series “Fairy Tail”. A lot of my pictures were taken when I was wondering around the vendor room and Artist Alley.

In all of my pictures I tried to capture the person, character or geek lifestyle in general. Some of my photos are a little blurry but I loved taking the photographs in the moment that they happened.

“Doctor Irritation”, cosplayer at Genericon in Troy NY, 03/04/17, Photographer: Charity Smith

Spiderman cosplayer in the vendors’ room at cosplayer at Genericon in Troy NY, 03/04/17, Photographer: Charity Smith

Mysterious Cosplayer at Genericon in Troy NY, 03/04/17, Photographer: Charity Smith

OHSCH cosplayers at Genericon in Troy NY, 03/04/17, Photographer: Charity Smith

Fan looking at manga in the vendors’ room at Genericon in Troy NY, 03/04/17, Photographer: Charity Smith

Fan looking at art in Artist Alley at Genericon in Troy NY, 03/04/17, Photographer: Charity Smith

Hand crochet Link cosplay at Genericon in Troy NY, 03/04/17, Photographer: Charity Smith

Excited fan at Genericon in Troy NY, 03/04/17, Photographer: Charity Smith

 

Harley Quinn cosplayer at Genericon in Troy NY, 03/04/17, Photographer: Charity Smith

“Eternally Thirsty” table in Artist Alley at Genericon in Troy NY, 03/04/17, Photographer: Charity Smith

A Picture tells a thousand Words: Presentation about Photostories

This is a presentation for my Photojournalism on chapter eleven from the book, “Photojournalism: The professionals’ approach” by Kenneth Kobre

“For many photojournalists, telling the whole stories with pictures is the ultimate professional experience…”  Everyone has heard the phrase “A picture tells a thousand words” and if that isn’t true about every photograph, it is certainly true about photostories. Photostories tell a story through a photograph or series of photographs, as is fairly self explanatory. It doesn’t focus on a text or article (though it maybe a part of one) but rather tells the story of some emotion or situation.

“Sometimes stories can be built in a matter of minutes; sometimes storytelling can take years. Whereas Jim MacMillan of the Philadelphia Daily News photographed his story about a hostage situation in fewer than five minutes, Alan Berner shot his essay about the New West during a six-month sabbatical from the Seattle Times.” (Photojournalism: Professionals’ approach by Kenneth Kobre pg 229) A photostory can be found in many ways… Sometimes they are scripted, and other times a photographer doesn’t know its going to happen until the moment it does. At times a series will be made about a specific topic or trend. It can document specific lifestyle or issue. Sometimes it comes from a personal emotional experience.

All photostories, as a series of photographs, has consistency which could be a person, object, mood, perspective or camera technique. Regardless, it ALWAYS has a theme. In Warren Hsu’s photostory series called “Lifestyle of the Night”, he documents the goth subculture. In one picture Hsu takes a close up of a man with silver contacts, showing how much detail this man puts into his gothic look. Meanwhile there is also a photo of a goth couple, showing the soft side of the culture that most people don’t associate with it. The compositions of his photographs are really good because they focus in and really show the personality of the subjects. He captures the hard and yet soft parts of the culture…how darkness can coincide along side with love and kindness. Warren talks about how he even dressed the part when he took the photos so that he had a insider’s understanding of the culture.

A photostory could record a complication but not a resolution or perhaps the other way round, a resolution but not a complication. While it could have both a complication and a resolution, the point is that is does not necessarily have to contain both. Photostories are flexible; the main point of them is simply telling a story even if that story doesn’t have a resolution.

Photojournalism – Project One

I haven’t done much street photography before but it was fun to do so. I think I would really like to do more of it, and get better at it. I want to really be able to catch people’s expressions and everyday life.

The first photographs were taken on Gore mountain around sunrise. It was interesting to see how the sun rose and lit the people and objects. I love how when you set up your photograph so that the sun is behind them, you can see how the sun’s rays bend around and obscure the person / object.

Gondala on Gore Mountain, Johnsburg NY, Photographer: Charity Smith

Man on Gore mountain, Johnsburg NY, Photographer: Charity Smith

Woman on Gore, Johnsburg NY, Photographer: Charity Smith

Old Gondalas on Gore mountain, Johnsburg NY, Photographer: Chairty Smith

The second set of photographs were taken at SUNY Adirondack in Einstein’s Bros Bagels.  I wanted to see how people interacted with each other and how they went about the sacred duty of morning coffee.  I liked seeing the blurry movement caught on camera and just the everyday life of the students around me