Okay, a lot less technologically advanced. The Holga is a plastic toy camera with minimal controls. The shutter is a simple wire spring and the film moves from one reel to the next and can’t be rewound without using a dark bag. Exposure and focus are mainly left up to guesswork. I’ve used it for one other story at the YHR, shooting dreamy images of the state fair in 2007, and explain what it brought to that process here.

For this shoot, I decided to shoot 35 mm film. Both because I’d never tried it before and because it’s easier to process. I could just take it to a photo lab. Because the Holga is designed to shoot 120mm film, I had to modify the film holders a bit, using the high-tech method of stuffing packing peanuts around the reel of film and jiggling it to make sure it will stay in place. I adjusted the 120 film reel with some rubber bands.

I did a little bit of research and found out that 1.5 rotations of the film winding knob will give plenty of space between exposures, and (after ruining a test roll), covered the red window on the back (used to wind 120 film) with a couple pieces of cardboard and lots of black tape. Then I just packed a dark bag and several rolls of film and set off to shoot.

One of the limitations of shooting with this was the limitations of exposure. 400 ISO film is great for daylight, but didn’t give me much indoors. I found myself wishing I had toted along my tripod to shoot the face of the reactor, which I could have “built up” an exposure by exposing the film over and over and over without winding the film or moving the camera. I also could have used a flash on some of the smaller spaces I shot inside and that would have helped the contrast of the image.

Lastly, I converted the digital files from the flatbed scan to black and white. I did this for two reasons — it seemed to fit the historic flavor I was trying to convey with the story and also the color bars on the bottom of the film, above and below the sprocket holes were too visually distracting. Converted to black and white, I felt they contributed to the image, but in color, they just dominated the image.

This was a fun way to tackle this story and a simple way to have some photographic fun. If you’re interested in giving it a try here are the resources I used:

I bought my Holga at Freestyle Photographic Supplies, the simplest version of the camera cost about $28.

You can buy film and get it developed at many local shops if you shoot regular color (not slide, not b&w) film.

I had the negatives scanned at ProPhoto supply. I just mailed them in a stiff cardboard mailer and paid over the phone. They scanned them and sent them back in about a week. Their price list is on their website.

There are also tons of Holga galleries out there and work on Flicker as well, so you can always find inspiration!

We’ve got a couple of different ways of dealing with the year in/year out monotony of covering the same events. If possible, we try to have a different person photograph this year’s event than photographed last year’s event. If there’s an story which accompanies the photos, perhaps we can take a different tack on the story which would, in turn, would most likely provide different photos.

But sometimes neither approach works. When that happens I think the best approach to shooting the same event in consecutive years is to first have a good cup of coffee and then take on a good attitude about the assignment (“it’s not a problem. It’s an opportunity disguised as a problem.” Or some such management-speak)

Also, it helps to know what photos were published from previous coverage.

Given the opportunity/challenge/opportunity to shoot an education awards ceremony I  had a grande, non-fat, extra-hot Starbuck’s latte to put me in the proper frame of mind. I still remembered the photos I shot of the ceremony last year so I knew what to avoid shooting. And with Starbuck’s help I was able to take up the challenge with a good attitude.

The photo from this year’s awards ceremony:

Dave Walter, center, was all smiles after receiving a Crystal Apple Award from the Yakima School District Tuesday, April 27, 2010. Walter, one of five Crystal Apple recipients this year, is the director of Instrumental Music at Eisenhower High School. At left is Steve Wright, assistant principal at Eisenhower and right, Chris Walter, Dave's wife. The awards are given annually to outstanding educators in the district.

Last year’s photo:

"Wow! Ohmigosh!" exclaimed teacher Christina Carlson after learning from Dave Dion, right, she was receiving a Crystal Apple Award for outstanding teaching in the Yakima School District. Carlson was surprised with the award at a Tuesday, April 28, 2009 meeting. She is a fifth grade teacher at the Discovery Lab School. Dion is a co-chairman of the award committee.

–Gordon King

So, sometimes it’s helpful to take a step back and have a good laugh at something photo-related.

Go here for a really good laugh and then go out and make some good photos.

–Gordon King

So it’s easy to become discouraged as newspapers lose their position in American society.

I came across this video a couple of weeks ago. It offers a different way for us to approach our job as photojournalists.

Celebrate What’s Right With The World

Lazarus! – The Resurrected | MySpace Video
The video gets a little syrupy at times but don’t lose the message in that sweetness.

And if you’ve lost your job or you’ve just finished a five-assignment day and have an overbearing editor looking over  your shoulder this video is not going to make things right. But it does, at least, offer another perspective on how to approach  life and work differently and how, perhaps to make it better.

–Gordon King

YH-R news producer TJ Mullinax and photographer Sara Gettys and former staff photographer Kris Holland judge entries in the monthly photo contest organized by the National Press Photographers Association.

It’s always good to see the photos being shot by other photojournalists in other parts of the country (much easier now than it used to be, thanks to the internet).

Judging this photo contest reminded me of the ingredients needed for good photojournalism (among those ingredients are “moments,” content, composition, lighting and emotion) and the need to incorporate into my photography.

Looking at the contest entries also gives us a yardstick by which our photojournalism can be measured. Inevitibably, during the judging process, we make comments like “I could have made a better photo in that situation” or “That photograher did a great job. I don’t know if I would have done as well.”

To see the winners of the monthly photo contests, go here.

–Gordon King

But we the H-R and the New York Times do have common ground when it comes to issues of photography, technology and the changing role of photojournalism.

Michelle McNally, an assistant managing editor and former Director of Photography at the Times, answered readers’ questions last week. It’s a fascinating read and I’d recommend that anyone interested in photojournalism read the Q and A article.

–Gordon King

http://lens.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/05/15/good-morning/

This is the New York Times photo department Web site titled Lens. It’s a great site.

When you want to get right down to business, scroll down just a little ways to the
to the underlined link which says “let’s start looking at pictures.” That link takes
you to the pictures of the day and photo editors’ comments about those
photos. There’s tons more stuff on the site. Take a look. A long look.

–Gordon King

I groaned silently when I got the e-mail from the managing editor. We were to cover the a local school district’s annual educators’ excellence award press conference . This was to be the 22nd such presser and it seems like I covered half of them. Probably not that many, but it seems like it.

Unaware they’d gotten the award, recipients are lured to the press conference under false pretenses and once they arrive, they are told of the award. There are hugs, perhaps big smiles, a lot of handshakes but not much else.

Some years, we’ve skipped the press conference and relied on mug shots of the winners provided by the school district. But when the ME says do it, well, we do it.

Of course, all photojournalists should approach each assignment with enthusiasm and the idea that each assignment is a chance to make a fresh photograph, one that is better than the last photograph from that same assignment. This is theory – very good theory – but it’s sometimes hard to put that theory into practice.

So, with somewhat-equal parts of enthusiasm and lack of enthusiasm off I went to the press conference.

The first recipient:

Ismael Flores is hugged by his wife Sylvia Flores after he learned he was one of six recipients of the Yakima School District's annual Crystal Apple Awards on April 28, 2009. The award is given annually to educators to recognize outstanding work. Flores is the assistant principal at Washington Middle School.

A nice hug from his wife. Nice emotion, but not great.

The second recipient:

The second recipient, Ernesto Sanchez, learns of his award but doesn't show much reaction. The award co-chairman, Dave Dion, left, applauds Sanchez.

The greeters have nice expressions and show emotion but Sanchez gives us only a smile (but at least a big smile).

The third recipient:

Jerry Cole, center, is applauded by Dave Dion, left, and Pat McCarthy after Cole learned he was the winner of one of the Yakima School District's annual Crystal Apple Awards for outstanding teaching April 28, 2009. Cole is an English as a Second Language teacher at Davis High School while Dion and McCarthy are co-chairmen of the awards. Cole is one of six recipients of this year's award.

An image of the first two recipients, Sanchez and Flores, would work but I wanted more. Something with more emotion, more feeling.

Then came Christina Carlson. Her subdued entrance didn’t bode well for me.

Christina Carlson is first greeted when she enters the press conference. She doesn't yet know she is receiving an award for teaching excellence in the Yakima School District.

But things get better – in a big hurry.

Christina Carlson first learns she has received an award for teaching excellence in the Yakima School District. She was surprised with the award at a press conference.

This photo would work. But she just kept giving me more, better images.

Christina Carlson points to a member in the audience after she's surprised to learn she received the Crystal Apple Award for teaching excellnce in the Yakima School District.

Still more emotion:

Christina Carlson hugs her husband Dave Prentice.

And finally, the money photo. This is the photo which led our local section this morning.

"Wow! Ohmigosh!" exclaimed teacher Christina Carlson after learning from Dave Dion, right, she was receiving a Crystal Apple Award for outstanding teaching in the Yakima School District. Carlson was surprised with the award at a Tuesday, April 28, 2009 meeting. She is a fifth grade teacher at the Discovery Lab School. Dion is a co-chairman of the award committee.

It’s always great to people get excited about something and especially great to photograph that excitement.

My lesson for the day was a reminder; that we, as photographers, should always approach every assignment, even the seemingly routine ones, with enthusiasm and a commitment to produce the best photos possible. And who knows? Maybe there will be a Christina Carlson there to help you out.

–Gordon King

"Wow! Ohmigosh!" exclaimed teacher Christina Carlson after learning from Dave Dion, right, she was receiving a Crystal Apple Award for outstanding teaching in the Yakima School District. Carlson was surprised with the award at a Tuesday, April 28, 2009 meeting. She is a fifth grade teacher at the Discovery Lab School. Dion is a co-chairman of the award committee.

It’s judging time for a couple of the country’s biggest photo contests, and on a slow afternoon I like to cruise through the winners. The pictures offer fresh glimpses of news events, from the Olympics to the presidential campaign, and also a look at great work that hasn’t had a large circulation yet — stories like women victims of acid burning in Pakistan, female circumcision, and the story of people bringing their relatives’ body from L.A. to Mexico for burial. For me, it’s a reminder that there are a million stories out there to tell and that an individual vision can make a difference. When the daily grind wears me out, the contests offer both inspiration and a reminder that there is a larger photographic community out there and that the bar of excellence is high, and worth reaching for.

Pictures of the Year international (POYi) has already been judged and the winning images are posted here.

Best of Photojournalism (BOP) judging of still images will take place March 22-27. You can see this year’s winners after that date and until then, go to the BOP website for last year’s still image winners as well as this year’s video winners.

NPPA monthly clip contest is just kind of a nice way to see what daily newspaper shooters all over the country are shooting, month to month. We are region 11 and it’s also nice to check out what “local” photojournalists in Seattle, Portland, Wenatchee, Tri-Cities, and Spokane are up to.

I find it almost impossible to pass up a beautiful book filled with lovely reproductions of work I find inspiring. And when I’m feeling a little uninspired, sitting down for a bit with a big book of photos never fails to perk me up. Right now I’m spending evenings with a recent birthday present — Annie Leibovitz’s “At Work,” which is the perfect antidote to the unending news about the economy’s nosedive and the state of newspapers. Seeing as neither are likely to look up in the very near future, I’ve compiled a list of inspiring reads from among my favorites. Enjoy!

Starting from the top of the stack, my current read. I’ve just been opening the book and reading whatever section I fall into, and have enjoyed it all. The book is organized into sections of different lengths, from discussions of individual shoots to larger discussions on topics such as conceptual pictures, which gives some background on her portraits of famous folks such as Bette Midler and Meryl Streep. The section I read last night was about group shots and it’s interesting to read how organized and pre-planned each shoot is. For a photo of President Bush and six others, Leibovitz and her team were given the exact height of everyone in the photo so the lighting and seating arrangement could be composed before hand. Many of the people she photographs give her very little time to make pictures, and so the photographs are often days in planning and setting up, then minutes in the actual shoot. I imagine it must be both steadying to have the concept and technical aspects of a photograph worked out beforehand, and challenging to know you have to make the picture work in the 10 or 20 or 30 minutes you are give to work with the subject. As someone who’s often asked to go in someplace, scope it out, light it and make a telling portrait in 15 minutes, her process fascinates me. I’d also recommend reading her “A Photographer’s Life: 1990-2005.” It’s a great book and heartbreaking in places.

Next in the stack: “Sam Abell: The Photographic Life.” Right after this book was published, Sam Abell came to speak at the University of Missouri, where I was attending grad school. He struck me as an insightful, soft-spoken, and thoughtful person. He talked about what photographs have meant to him, both as he made them and years later, reviewing his contact sheets. His pictures, to me, mirror the quiet confidence and reflection of his demeanor during that presentation. They are a considered, integral part of his life. And this format, with the pictures presented alongside his thoughts about the images or the process of making them always remind me that making pictures is a process that is most successful when it stems from somewhere inside ourselves.

Jim Brandenburg set out to make one photo a day for 90 days. One picture, no retakes and no shooting a gazillion frames (like digital photography has allowed us to do). The result is a book full of incredible nature images, and a testimony to self-directed challenges and dedication. It’s like a meditation. A meditation shared by one of the world’s best nature photographers. Simultaneously inspiring and a little bit intimidating.

I discovered Sally Mann’s work when I was taking photography classes at Hollins University, where I did my undergraduate study. She was a student at Hollins at some point, and somewhat legendary at the school. In part, I think all of us aspiring photographers loved how her seemingly simple pictures of her kids could convey such emotion and innuendo. Moreover, the photos are just beautiful. She shoots with a large format camera and, even in her books, the tones and richness of the photographs just pull you in. Now, I look at her work to continue to learn to create richly metaphorical images (when the situation calls for it) and also to assuage the occasional pang of “home” sickness (I only lived there 5 years) for the lush Virginia landscape.

This book, which follows the stories of two gay teens in the early 90s, was shot by Rita Reed, my professor and mentor at the University of Missouri. She tackled it because she was alarmed by a 1989 study that gay and lesbian teens were 2 to 3 times more likely to attempt suicide than their peers, and also alarmed that no one wanted to tell that story. It took her 7 years to research and shoot. When I get dragged down into thinking that pictures don’t or can’t make a real difference, or that a story I think about may be too difficult to access or impossible tell, I pull out this book and think about the challenges she overcame. I wonder what I could do if I devoted the next 7 years to it and whose life I might just be able to change if I did.

This book is like a smorgasbord of great photography. Between its covers, Magnum photographers pick out one of their stories, talk about it, then show the images. Their styles, tastes, and topics are diverse. You’ve got weird British life by Martin Parr and war photography by Alex Majoli. And because Magnum is an international photo agency, there are images from all over the world that are influenced by aesthetics from all over the world. Most of the images are geared toward magazine publication and are therefore a little more compositionally daring than newspaper photography tends to be. Flipping through these pages gets me ready up to head out and try something new.

Lastly, I got this Diane Arbus book 2 years ago for Christmas and it’s interesting to glimpse into the mind of someone who shaped the photographic world. She was a woman who was unafraid of seeing, of looking at other people. My favorite thing about this book is that it includes some of her contact sheets and notes. I go back and forth on how I feel about her pictures — although I always find them interesting, I don’t always think she was a compassionate person, which is one quality I think should be essential to a photographer. Reading her notes I get a glimpse into her life and thoughts that, for me, makes the photos more accessible.

Those are just a few of the books I like to flip through. There are, of course, websites and blogs that I read regularly, and some of those are listed in a previous post Kris and I wrote, so go back in the blog entries to check that out.