Photojournalism At My School

[Hein0100]

I start my photojournalism at the start of the next semester. (We are still in the first semester). I have a weird feeling that it will be dull and fairly uneducating. But, I am willing to go in there with respect to the kids who shoot on Auto mode.. Haha. I think that it will mostly cater to people with P&S cameras or people with a DSLR but don't know much about using it. So we shall see what kind of class it is..

[ChristopherCoy]

High school or TCC?

[toverman]

It might be good, especially if it's a class on how to see the world differently rather than focusing on equipment. The best examples of photojournalism (in my mind) involve being in the right place at the right time ... with some kind of camera!

[Hein0100]

It is at my Highschool.

[dwilliams35]

As much as we occasionally cuss "auto mode", it comes in pretty handy for developing an eye for the subject: especially with photojournalistic stuff: it's really easy to get so tied up in f-stops, exposure values, bracketing, dof, etc. that we miss what's going on in front of the lens.. Today's auto modes are a heck of a lot smarter than they were when they first started showing up on cameras...Heck, they're smarter than I was at the time as well: as far as whether they're smarter than I am now, I'll plead the fifth.. Or open and pour from it, whichever seems appropriate..

[CaptainTom]

Matt
Good luck with the PJ class. You'll only get something out of it if you have the right attitude and contribute. It's quite likely that many in the class will be there to satisfy a credit requirement and others will want to take yearbook pictures.
Whatever the motivation, remember that keeping your mind and your eyes open are the most important tools you can work on.


and having a sense of humor will keep you from smacking one of them up side their head...

[venchka]

Producing a coherent photo essay is one of the toughest things there is to do well. I hope your teacher is ruthless and you learn something. There are Magnum photographers covering wars with high end P&S cameras because they are reliable and disposable and today's media doesn't require the ultimate in image quality. 10 MP is plenty. 4 per trip is the usual ration.

Magnum is an agency of photojournalists. They do OK.

You have much to learn Grasshopper.

[janikphoto]

Originally Posted by Hein0100

I start my photojournalism at the start of the next semester. (We are still in the first semester). I have a weird feeling that it will be dull and fairly uneducating. But, I am willing to go in there with respect to the kids who shoot on Auto mode.. Haha. I think that it will mostly cater to people with P&S cameras or people with a DSLR but don't know much about using it. So we shall see what kind of class it is..

I am very much confused... what does a photojournalism class have to do with people shooting in auto mode with p&s cameras?!? I would assume the two would never be connected to each other, since everyone in the newspaper industry that I know shoots in manual.

Originally Posted by venchka

There are Magnum photographers covering wars with high end P&S cameras because they are reliable and disposable and today's media doesn't require the ultimate in image quality. 10 MP is plenty. 4 per trip is the usual ration.

I have a friend, david, who won a Pulitzer for his coverage of the Iraq war. He said that his gear filled up with sand and that it was a losing battle. I think he had something like two video and one still camera bodies die on him from sand. I'd assume that the cheaper the better in that type of situation, since even the toughest gear was getting destroyed by the sand.

[Hein0100]

Originally Posted by janikphoto

I am very much confused... what does a photojournalism class have to do with people shooting in auto mode with p&s cameras?!? I would assume the two would never be connected to each other, since everyone in the newspaper industry that I know shoots in manual.
.

Everyone I know of that has a P&S at my school shoots on Auto mode. And some people are going to buy a DSLR just for that class so they will be going into it not even knowing how to work it... I don't think EVERYONE will be using auto mode. But I do think a bunch of people will.

[venchka]

Some day y'all might learn a thing or two. Why are they buying gear before they know anything? Is there a hardware list for the class? You could get a decent grade in the class with a box of disposable cameras from Walmart. Exposure mode has little or nothing to do with quality work.

[Sweet Caroline]

Does the school not have cameras for students to use? My high school did, and that was over a decade ago. Of course, I was in photography as opposed to photo journalism. The first thing we learned was how to shoot in manual. We spent about a week on it to get the basic idea before we started shooting. Do students really need to know that prior to starting the course? If they don't, does that mean they won't be successful? I doubt it. A student with prior experience may be able to get better shots and set the bar for the rest of the class, but that doesn't mean that student won't learn anything. If you are shooting, you will learn.

When my kids were babies, I shot in auto modes for years because it allowed to me to move quickly and not have to think about my settings. I still captured some amazing images that I may not have gotten if I hadn't been able to just grab the camera and shoot. I shoot in manual now because it's easier to get what I want that way. It's much more about the photographer than the mode.

I really do hope the course is challenging and interesting for you.

Caroline

[dminton]

Originally Posted by janikphoto

I have a friend, david, who won a Pulitzer for his coverage of the Iraq war. He said that his gear filled up with sand and that it was a losing battle. I think he had something like two video and one still camera bodies die on him from sand. I'd assume that the cheaper the better in that type of situation, since even the toughest gear was getting destroyed by the sand.

One of my favorite photographer stories ever, is about when he got back from Iraq, he sent all of his DV tapes to a video recovery specialist place. One of the tapes he sent them they sent back with a simple note on it:

"F_¢ked"






On another note y'all, most high school "Photojournalism" classes, have pretty much nothing to do with what we know as photojournalism. They're just named as such because they're lumped in with the yearbook and newspaper classes. Back in high school we have two levels of "Photojournalism" class, and they were just beginner photography classes.

But they did require that you have an SLR and that you had to shoot manual. Nowadays with digital, the teachers check your EXIF to see what mode was used, instead of just forcing the students to use a K1000.

[photojournalist]

Originally Posted by Hein0100

Everyone I know of that has a P&S at my school shoots on Auto mode. And some people are going to buy a DSLR just for that class so they will be going into it not even knowing how to work it... I don't think EVERYONE will be using auto mode. But I do think a bunch of people will.

If I could afford it I would buy a DSLR just for the class even if I didn't know how to use it. Isn't that what the class if for, to learn how to use your camera and be a better photographer. As others have stated earlier, it's not what machine you use or what mode you shoot in. But I understand where you're coming from. As a beginner you should shoot in manual as much as possible to make yourself learn the basics.

[J Eddington]

Classes are very different. It all depends upon the teacher. The first class I took was very basic and I had to take it before i could take any further classes in photography. It was "Understanding Photography". It did not matter what kind of camera you had. You just needed a camera. Mostly it was about the history of photography and and how photographs were used. We would study basic elements and then have to take a photo that reflected those elements. Each assigment was VERY different.
The next class I took was "film development". Again didn't matter what kind of camera. For this class I used my Brownie because I LOVED those big negatives! I won two prizes from this class. One on the local level and the other on a state level. This class required you enter competitions or you fail the class.
Next class I don't even remember the name. BUT I remember it required a class in art first. So you came into this class with an understanding of light, and composition. For the first half it did not matter what camera you had, the second half it required a slr. Every two days we were given an assignment. We had 12 frames to get it right (no digital screen to check and see either). One day to understand what was expected (instruction) and one day to shoot that assignment. This class kicked my butt. I don't think I have ever learned more than in this class. The first part of the class was about the subject and composition, the second half was more about the technical side of photography. We really learned about the camera and how to use it.

So Matt, this was a really long way to say, This class may have nothing to do with your camera!" OR it may have everything to do with your camera. You'll just have to learn from your instructor.

The other is to NEVER judge someone by the camera they are using. It is not about the camera, it is about the skill of the person behind the camera.

[CaptainTom]

I think that we're talking two different things here.
A photojournalism class is different from a basic photography class in the same degree as an Art appreciation class is from a beginning figure painting class.

Learning to be a PJ is more about the story, the flow, the event, than f stops and apertures.

Ever seen technically bad images win Pulitzers ? Every year !!