POV: Multimedia: Words of Wisdom

© Tewfic El-Sawy-All Rights Reserved
The first words I uttered to my students at my Multimedia Storytelling class for the Foundry Photojournalism Workshop in Mexico City a couple of weeks ago were these:

"Learn how to become a visual storyteller because being a still photographer will no longer get you a job or a gig."

Vincent Laforet, a freelance photographer based in New York, and formerly a staff photographer at the New York Times, has written an excellent article in Sports Shooter, which is a must read by photographers of all disciplines and styles.

As far as multimedia and audio slideshows are concerned, Vincent writes the following:

Photographers will have to think of themselves as visual storytellers - not just as still photographers. Photographers will becomes much more adept at producing multimedia content - not just boring slide shows with music - but ones that are truly engaging and original - basically they need to invent the next generation of storytelling - something we haven't seen before (i.e. they need to differentiate themselves from HBO Documentaries, and the other broadcast giants - not try to compete with them...) And this is key: Photographers need to brainstorm new ways to connect with their audiences and find new and original ways of generating income with these new "connections." Photographers need to be ACTIVELY involved in thinking up new ways of generating income in a fashion that will be acceptable to their modern, hip audience."

Note that he differentiates between multimedia content and "boring slide shows with music". Many so-called multimedia productions are nothing but slide shows with borrowed music...I was critical on this very issue while reviewing The New York Times' The Virgins of Albania a few days ago.

Thanks to Eric Beecroft for the heads-up on Vincent Laforet's article.

Here's another pro-multimedia article titled Photojournalism For the Web about Brian Storm of MediaStorm, which appeared today in the Wall Street Journal

Rant: G8's Shameless Behavior

Here's a rant that has nothing to do with photography, but has everything to do with lack of decency and disgraceful behavior.

As we know, the leaders of the so-called G8 nations are having a summit on the Japanese island of Hokkaido. While the G8 summits are usually conspicuous by their meaningless proclamations, this one was touted as an important meeting to discuss the world's current food shortages.

So as reported by the Times of London, we learn that the G8 summit has cost almost $600 million, enough to buy 100 million mosquito nets for the African nations whose population are still afflicted by malaria. This is bad enough, but I think the most repulsive is the news that the G8 leaders discussed the international food shortages during a sumptuous eight-course dinner banquet, having already eaten a five-course lunch.

What is the matter with these people?

Times of London's G8 Leaders Feast

Olivier Boëls: Holy Ashes

© Olivier Boëls/Zone Zero-All Rights Reserved
Holy Ashes is a photo essay by photographer Olivier Boëls, with the cooperation of anthropologist Lena Tosta’s and of their joint experiences with Hindu ascetics or sadhus.

Sadhus are ascetics who have renounced on the pursuit of the three main Hindu goals of life: kama (enjoyment), artha (practical objectives) and even dharma (duty). Sadhus are only dedicated to achieve moksha (liberation) through meditation and contemplation of God. They often wear ocher-colored clothing, symbolizing renunciation.

Viua Zone Zero, here's Holy Ashes

Wang-Fu Chun: Natives of NE China

© Wang-Fu Chun/Zone Zero-All Rights Reserved

Wang-Fu Chun is a freelance photographer, who moved to Beijing from Harbin in 2002. He has photographed the following topics, "Chinese On The Train" , "People of Northeastern China", "Northeast Tiger" and "Chinese Stream Locomotive", and was a winner at the 17th China Photographic Art Exhibition and a winner of the 3rd Gold Statue for Chinese photography.

Via Zone Zero, here's Wang-Fu Chun's Natives of Northeast China, an ethnographic gallery beautifully embellished with Chinese calligraphy.

Tyler Hicks: Kabul, Afghanistan

© Tyler Hicks/New York Times-All Rights Reserved
The New York Times brings us a nicely done (and very well edited, I thought) slideshow narrated by its accomplished photographer, Tyler Hicks.

Tyler Hicks' first trip to Kabul was in 2001, as Northern Alliance soldiers were fighting Taliban gunmen in and around the Afghan capital. There was a power vacuum at that time, and no restrictions on what could and could not be photographed...something which Tyler found to be very liberating.

He has returned every year since, and found Kabul to be a city in transition.

In the print edition of the newspaper, the section Week In Review carries the feature, and I must say that the layout of Tyler's two black & white photographs (one of which is above) that lead the article is superb...overall, an excellent photojournalism layout and a throwback to the days of LIFE. I'm also told that Tyler used a film camera...with B&W film.

Tyler Hicks' The Other Front:Kabul