What is Photojournalism?
Photography captures all aspects of our lives, so it’s no surprise that different types of photography cover different times of our lives. We see photojournalism, documentary photography, and street photography almost everywhere, capturing people and events in our lives, but how are they different?
Photojournalism is an ever-growing field changing alongside the world and its inhabitants, and although it is capturing people in a situation, it differs from documentary and street photography. Speed and timing is key in photojournalism. Photojournalists tell newsworthy stories that capture one particular moment or event, such as the aftermath of a natural disaster or a political debate. Documentary photography on the other hand, also tells a story, but it is a story of life over a period of time. It requires the photographer to become emerged within a culture or lifestyle and represent it through their photos. Finally, according to Nieman Reports, street photography is very similar to photojournalism in that it captures a moment in time, but the story content is different—it captures an everyday, commonplace moment that still tells a story but might not necessarily be newsworthy.
Earning money can be difficult in any career. In photojournalism, earning money means essentially selling yourself through your work. Steve McCurry is well-known photographer who has made his living by this method. He sells himself through prints of his personal work in addition to contributing to National Geographic. He has shot several book and magazine covers in addition to selling his own books and showing work in exhibitions. Through his work, he has sold himself and created a personal brand. There is a certain photo quality and humanity element expected with his name, and he has created that through his work.For photographers there are several ways to go about entering the working field. One of these is a photo agency. Two popular agencies are Magnum Photos and Redux Pictures. Magnum members earn membership through a nomination period and eventually earn full membership, which grants corporate voting rights. They also give full members the opportunity to head a photo company. Agencies are beneficial for photojournalists starting out their career and those less known photographers. Agencies list photographers for easy access, which helps photographers find jobs easier.
At the dawn of digital era, technology has boosted creativity in almost every job field. Photography has seen the dawn of its own “Golden Age” with the development of digital and color processes. BusinessWeek defines The “Golden Age” of photography as the period following the late 1980s. It has brought to light the works of established photographers such as William Eggleston and Bruce Davidson as well as newcomers like Sarah Anne Johnson.
The high quality of the “Golden Age” photography can be seen easily in National Geographic. Both the online and printed versions of each magazine contain top quality photos and cover such a vast variety of topics and subjects. They use both staff and freelance photographers specialize in specific areas and are experts as telling a story and evoking emotion through their photos.
On particular photojournalist/documentary photographer that I’ve come to idolize is Steve McCurry, whose work I find to be extremely fascinating. In his photography, McCurry has shot documentary style and photojournalism.
His portrayal of humanity is displayed in such a unique and heartfelt manner. You get a sense of his and his subjects’ personality in every photo, and I hope to one-day produce work as well as him.
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