Comment: Complex vs Simple Multimedia

Chandni Chowk - Photo © Tewfic El-Sawy-All Rights Reserved
I received an email from a friend and veteran photojournalist, who participated in one of my earlier Introduction To Multimedia Storytelling classes. His comments are in response to my earlier post POV: Complex vs Simple Multimedia.

While I don't usually publish or publicly react to the frequent comments I get, I decided to make an exception here because (i) the wise commentary is from a working-in-the-field photographer, and (ii) because of my personal and professional respect for this photojournalist. (Some phrases have been redacted from the email).

"I appreciated your comments in your blog post. Dhiraj Singh's project was an excellent example for your advocacy of keeping things simple.

Being a member of the last generation of newspaper staff photographers, I find the changes even at my own newspaper fascinating, yet sometimes frustrating.

Granted, "...big name newspapers and mainstream media have teams of photo editors and sound engineers that create these multimedia slideshows for publication, and use sophisticated software (Final Cut Pro and a myriad of other applications...)"

Photographers or now "visual journalists" for mid & small-size newspaper are producing video and multimedia projects without the benefit of editors, production staff or even training, and do it with daily deadlines.

Soundslides is a great, fast and simple application, but people who work for publications with an on-line presence must also be able to produce video. .

Ergo, final cut... an expensive & complicated software package that has a steep learning curve and, especially for an Apple product, not very intuitive. I probably only use about $25 worth of final cut's $1000+ price tag, as I probably only use $25 worth of Photoshop CS4.

I am continually amazed by the work people have done using SoundSlides. and I always enjoy the opportunity to use it when video isn't part of the story. Unfortunately, we have weekly video quotas, whether video is the best way to tell the story or not".

The above bit about small size newspapers requiring its visual journalists to produce video is jarring...so let's re-read it once more, and get electrocuted again: "...are producing video and multimedia projects without the benefit of editors, production staff or even training, and do it with daily deadlines."

So once again the message to photojournalists is crystal clear. Get on the multimedia band wagon, adapt it to your workflow, work with SoundSlides (or whatever software you prefer) and/or Final Cut Pro (or Express) and learn how to intelligently and creatively juggle stills, audio and video. There is no alternative.

David Hagerman: Food & Travel

Photo © David Hagerman-All Rights Reserved
David Hagerman attended the Foundry Photojournalism Workshop in Manali, but I only met him during the final evening during which all participants showcased their projects. Most participants were extremely busy working on their projects and, apart from a chance encounter on the streets, they found it difficult to meet other participants in other classes....so networking was most active during these social events.

We had a couple of conversations between the presentations, and while exchanging complaints (and business cards) about the warm Kingfisher beers in our hands, I discovered that he lives and works in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia where, with freelance writer Robyn Eckhardt, produces the well-known EatingAsia blog, which is mainly about Asian food and the people who produce and cook it, and Asian culinary cultures and food traditions. They couldn't have chosen a better city to write and document Asian food.

David is also a travel photographer...his galleries on his website are of food, people and places. I liked how his lovely images are displayed in large sizes without the need of using any form of navigation. One just opens his website and waits...the images will appear in succession.

David lived in Asia for over 13 years, and his images have appeared in publications such as The Wall Street Journal Asia, Saveur, Budget Travel, Travel & Leisure SEA, The Chicago Tribune, South China Morning Post, Time Out KL, and Lonely Planet guidebooks. Naturally, he has a blog titled SkyBlueSky, which I encourage you to visit.

The above black & white photograph is of a stone house in old Manali, and appears on his blog.

Nikon Photo Contest International 2009

Photo © Maung Maung Gyi-All Rights Reserved

Photo © Danny Ghitis-All Rights Reserved
The Nikon Corporation recently announced winners of the Nikon Photo Contest International 2008-2009. This year's theme, "At The Heart of the Image," drew over 51,000 entries by over 18,000 entrants from 153 countries and regions.

The judges were professionals working internationally in various photographic fields, most of whom were from Japan, with Ami Vitale, Alptekin Baloglu and Claudia Hinterseer. The judges selected a total of 34 winners: one Grand Prize winner and one NIKKOR 75th Anniversary Award winner, in addition to the 1st, 2nd and 3rd Prize winners for each category.

The Grand Prize was awarded to Maung Maung Gyi of Myanmar for his work entitled "Cave Of Hope," of a Buddhist cave some 40 miles south of the city of Mandalay, however I preferred Danny Ghitis' photograph of an elderly woman bathing in the Ganges during Makar Sankranti.

I should point out that Maung Maung Gyi is a medical doctor, not a full time photographer, while Danny Ghitis is a working photojournalist.

TIME: Paula Bronstein's Gitmo Detainees

Photo © Paula Bronstein/Courtesy TIME-All Rights Reserved
TIME magazine recently featured a series of portraits of released Gitmo detainees by Paula Bronstein. The stories of how these men were captured and eventually detained in Guantanamo are chilling, and underscore how impervious the American government and military were to the articles of Geneva Convention and international law, including habeas corpus.

The portrait above is of Haji Nasrat, an Afghan farmer who at 77 was Guantanamo's oldest prisoner. Partially paralyzed for more than 15 years and illiterate, Nasrat says he does not know why the Americans detained him. Let's ponder on the reaction in Nasrat's village when he returned; jubilation at first and then rage at his being unjustly detained....a rage felt for a variety of reasons by thousands and thousands of Afghanis...Pashtuns and Hazaras.

Coincidentally, I read in The New York Times that a new Army handbook was published to guide our military on building relationships with Afghan village elders, and how to build trust among village residents. Shouldn't that have been done 8 years ago?

Another question: Am I the only one who thinks that TIME magazine's photographic galleries are in dire need of a facelift?

Emilio Morenatti: Injured In Afghanistan

Photo © Associated Press/Emilio Morenatti-All Rights Reserved
The New York Times's LENS blog reported that Emilio Morenatti, a 40-year-old photographer for The Associated Press was badly wounded Tuesday in southern Afghanistan when the vehicle in which he was riding was struck by a roadside bomb. Morenatti's work from the Middle East has been likened to artwork. He currently is on his way to world class treatment in a hospital in the UAE.

All media (mainstream and blogs) reporting these news are unanimous in their praise for Morenatti's remarkable talent, his sensitivity and commitment to photojournalism. May he be well soon.

Larry Larsen: Gnawa Photo Expedition

Photo © Larry Larsen -All Rights Reserved
I organized the Gnawa (or Ganoua) Photo Expedition in late June, which was joined by a number of talented full-time and part time photographers, whose principal objective was to photograph the legendary Gnawa musicians during the 12th Essaouira Music Festival.

Photo © Larry Larsen -All Rights Reserved
This is the fourth of a series of posts which showcase a sample of the participating photographers' work, and it is by Larry Larsen, a Seattle-based artist and photographer. Larry's biography tells us that he was a boilermaker welder for 30 years, but now retired, he's following his true passion in fine art. He learned how to turn on a computer in 2000, began learning Photoshop, and acquired a digital camera and never looked back. He learned that digital photography is very liberating and wide open for experimentation. He has made Photoshop composites and he has played with HDR.

Photo © Larry Larsen -All Rights Reserved
Despite the difficulty of street photography in Morocco, Larry was able, in his unobtrusive way, to make a number of interesting spontaneous photographs, which are on his website. Have a look at his first image in the Morocco series; for those who read Arabic, you'll understand its tongue in cheek humor. For those who don't...ah, well, you'll have to ask Larry.

100Eyes: Bangladesh x Bangladesh

I'm surprised that it seems I haven't yet mentioned 100Eyes ...along with one or two other similarly oriented photography magazines, it's one of the best on the internet. This issue is all about Bangladesh and Bangladeshi photographers.

100Eyes is Andy Levin's brainchild. Andy was a contributing photographer with the original Life Magazine, and started his career as a staff photographer for the Black Star agency in 1985, where he completed contract assignments for magazines including National Geographic, Time, Newsweek, and Fortune. He was awarded numerous awards and recognitions, and is now involved with various projects in New Orleans.

There is no question that there is a Bangladeshi school of photography, which was strongly influenced by Shahidul Alam, the photography icon in the country. The photographers whose work are shown here are Munem Wasif, Andrew Biraj, Tanvir Ahmed, Abir Abdullah, Monirul Alam, Shehzad Noorani, Saiful Huq Omi, Khaled Hasan, Murtada Bulbul, Mohammad Kibria Palash and Azizur Rahim Peu....many of them well known in international photography circles.

Andy reasserts (a fact that many of us have recognized) that indigenous photographers are able to achieve an deep intimacy with their subject, as follows:

"If there is a message in the emergence of “indigenous photographers” it is that these photographers are able to achieve an intimacy with their subjects which enhances their humanity rather than objectifying and reducing the disadvantaged to stereotypical images of suffering."

A great issue, and not to be missed!

POV: Simple vs Complex Multimedia

Chandni Chowk - Photo © Tewfic El-Sawy-All Rights Reserved
Having now gotten rid of flu symptoms and of my jet lag, I think I settled a lingering thought that made its presence felt during the Foundry Photojournalism Workshop earlier this month.

The class I taught was Introduction To Multimedia Storytelling, and its whole premise was based on encouraging its participants to concentrate on the story, rather than on the application, and how to make quick work of slideshow production by using SoundSlides, by using their own images and audio generated in the field, and to produce a cogent photo story under the simulation of publishing deadlines.

Now, I realize that the big name newspapers and mainstream media have teams of photo editors and sound engineers that create these multimedia slideshows for publication, and use sophisticated software (Final Cut Pro and a myriad of other applications), but let's be real... many of us may not work for (or be published by) such newspapers and media, nor have access to that kind of infrastructural and creative support.

The objective I set forth for my class was achieved by most of its participants and one of them, Dhiraj Singh, even won the top award for photography for his poignant My Name is Dechen, despite strong competition from other multimedia presentations created by other photographers using Final Cut Pro and other software applications.

Is a simple flash-based slideshow making software adequate enough to win awards? It seems so, doesn't it?. Naturally, it wasn't the application's sophistication that mattered, but Dhiraj's creativity...the beauty and poignancy of his work...that counted, not the simplicity or even shortcomings of the software. Simple applications that do the work do not require a photographer (whose primary focus should be in photographing) to sit for hours and days to present a complex multimedia package. And I'm not counting the time (and money) required to learn it.

Is there room for simple and complex multimedia? Of course there is. But keeping it simple frequently trumps the competition from more intricate and complicated applications...especially where speed is of the essence. Yasin Dar, one of my class' participants put a beautiful SoundSlides slideshow together in a single afternoon...from photographing and recording a couple of audio tracks to producing the final photo essay.

Finally, I have no affiliation whatsoever with any software maker, except that I like what I currently use for its simplicity, low cost and ease of use. If I find another application that better serves my purpose, I'll migrate over to it and use it.

So the moral of the story is this: Keep It Simple And Use Your Time To Photograph.

Pop Photo: My Interview

What is it Like to be a...Travel Photographer?

That's the question I was asked by Carolina Hidalgo of Popular Photography, who talked to me a few weeks ago, part of an ongoing project in which she interviews several professional photographers about how they landed their dream jobs.

I often remember Costa Manos' admonishment that I needed to 'complicate' my photographs...to make them less simple, and to have them tell a story. Some 10 years ago in Old Havana where he was teaching a street photography workshop, he was the one who planted the seed of storytelling in my consciousness. I recall my ego being badly bruised at first, but it quickly recovered when I realized he was exactly right.

Popular Photography & Imaging, also called Popular Photography or Pop Photo, is a monthly American consumer magazine founded in 1937 and the world's largest imaging magazine, with an editorial staff twice the size of its nearest competitor. It has a rate base (subscription and single copy sales) of 400,000 with a total audience of 2,085,000.

AFAR Magazine

Candace Feit emailed me saying that her photograph made in the Moroccan Atlas mountains was published as the cover of the premiere issue of AFAR magazine.

Coincidentally, The New York Times (and other newspapers) published articles announcing AFAR's "birth", hailing the courage of the two entrepreneurs who started the venture in the current economic climate, despite their lack of experience.

The founders, Greg Sullivan and Joe Diaz, describe their magazine (based out of San Francisco) as having an emphasis on "experiential travel". While the magazine will carry conventional travel features, it will stay away from articles on luxury hotels and designer golf courses.

AFAR is scheduled to be published six times of year, with a newsstand price of $4.99.

"Intro To Multimedia Storytelling" Class

Three participants in my Intro To Multimedia Storytelling class at the Foundry Photojournalism Workshop (FPW) produced stunning slideshow photo essays, and I thought it would be interesting to write about their contrasting photographic and personal styles.

I taught my class' participants to concentrate on the story, rather than on the application, and how to make quick work of slideshow production (SoundSlides), using their own images and audio generated in the field, and to produce a cogent photo story under the simulation of publishing deadlines.

Except for Dhiraj's slideshow which is already online (see below for link), the two remaining slideshows will appear on The Travel Photographer when Mohit and Yasin upload them on their own websites/blogs.

Photo © Dhiraj Singh-All Rights Reserved
My Name is Dechen by Dhiraj Singh

Dhiraj Singh is a photojournalist and editorial photographer in Mumbai, whose work has appeared in various international publications including Newsweek, Vanity Fair, The Wall Street Journal, MSNBC among others.

For My Name is Dechen, a gripping tale of Tibetan woman afflicted with psychological problems, Dhiraj received the top student award for photography during the Foundry Photojournalism Workshop's final evening. He worked incredibly hard and creatively to produce this multimedia black & white photo essay. He was already quite comfortable in producing slideshows using SoundSlides, so it was a matter of editing his images, and sync'ing Dechen's audio with the stills.

Dhiraj quickly grasped the flip book technique, and inserted well-paced scenes of Dechen singing and dancing. No one can produce such an intimate photo essay unless he or she possesses the interpersonal skills to gain the confidence of the subject. There's no question that Dhiraj's work with this photo essay underscores his inherent compassion (he confided to me that he teared up more than once while photographing Dechen), patience and kindness.

Here's is the complete multimedia My Name Is Dechen.

Photo © Yasin Dar-All Rights Reserved
Shyam, The Street Barber by Dar Yasin

Yasin is an award winning photojournalist, and stumbled into photography after studying computers in South Indian city of Bangalore. He contributes regularly to the Associated Press and Onasia, an international news agency based in Bangkok. His work appears in leading international publications including Washington Post, New York Times, Time Magazine, and others. He won international and national awards recognizing his work.

He participated in a FPW panel discussing the difficulties of photographing in South Asia, and explained that by living in Srinagar, he was confronted on a daily basis with unimaginable violence and bloodshed. It was therefore very interesting from my standpoint (and presumably, from his) to see him tackle a comparatively sedate and non challenging task as photographing and interviewing a street barber in Manali. Used to dodge bullets, canisters of tear gas, policemen's lathis and demonstrators' abuse, Yasin smilingly told me that this assignment "felt different".

As I wrote in an earlier post, Yasin photographed and recorded his chosen project in an hour or so, basing it on the One in 8 Million series of the New York Times.

Photo © Mohit Gupta-All Rights Reserved

Thankas by Mohit Gupta

Originally hailing from Himachal Pradesh, Mohit Gupta is an independent photographer based in New Delhi, who specializes in travel and documentary photography. He received his tertiary education in one of India’s most prestigious engineering schools – BITS, Pilani, and upon completing his studies in Computer Science in 2001, he joined Adobe Systems. It's a no brainer as who was the man to go to when anyone in our class needed technical assistance!

For Mohit, photography is a serious medium for expression. A self taught photographer, he is mainly interested in documenting culture, traditions, rituals and religion, and has traveled within South East Asia to do just that. He also works with NGOs and helps them documenting their work.

A perfectionist with a keen visual eye for colors and shadows, Mohit spent a number of days improving his presentation. Not easily satisfied, he was constantly refining his audio recordings until he got what he wanted, and then spent hours sync'ing it as precisely as humanly possible.

As I said in my opening remarks at the Foundry Workshop, I learned from the class participants much more than they did from me. I hope it's obvious why.

Functionality & Style

Readers of this blog will perhaps recall my pre departure post in which I agonized over which camera bag I would take with me to the Foundry Photojournalism Workshop in distant Manali. I eventually chose to take my delightfully small (but capacious) Domke F-8 and an IDF Messenger Bag, which I combined into a single (sort of) carry-on by using a couple of carabiners.

In fact, Steven Frischling of the Flying With Fish blog has written an interesting article about combining two bags to create a single carry on for photographers who fly, which is based on the same concept.

The combination of the Domke F-8 and the IDF Messenger Bag worked perfectly, especially for the marathon bus drives from Delhi to Manali and back.

The above was about functionality, but let's address the element of style.



Style to photographers and photojournalists (especially the latter) is very important. Excluding the scarf, which is a must accessory for every self-respecting photographer, what one wears on his/her feet is key to the overall personae.

Hence, my Chelsea boots which -as seen above- may have seen better days some 20 years ago, got an unexpected face-lift when I found an obliging cobbler near the bus-stand in Manali, who stitched all of its tears in a matter of a few minutes and for the princely sum of Rs 40 (less than $1). In London or New York, I would have paid the equivalent of a monthly mortgage payment to have them fixed up.

Having watched how well the Manali cobbler stitched them up, I would wager that he added another 20 years to the boots' lifespan. I'll let you know.