August 12, 2008 by pmelcher.

- Misconception No1: Photojournalism is not being killed by celebrity photographers. In fact, photographers that cover the celebrity scene, weather red carpet or street photographer have the same ratio of good to bad photographers than in news. It takes some of the same skills to cover news and celebrity. Regardless. Time or Newsweek have not increased their celebrity photography coverage. They just have just lessened their news coverage.

- Misconception No2 : Editorial photography is dying. What is dying are the daily and weekly print publications. Newspapers, magazines, and old brands. They cannot compete with the speed of  news anymore. What is dying is the image that is formatted for a print support with a rectangular format. What is dying is the photography taught in school and colleges today. There is a new medium for editorial photography that has never existed before, that knows no boundaries will it be in size, amount, artifact and pricing ( the Internet). What really is dying here is an old mentality.

- Misconception No3:  Video will replace stills. Take a look at the amount of video images coming out of the Olympics. Hours and hours of footage. Now, tell me who will sit down and edit film pumped out at 25 frames per seconds to find the right image ?While you think, look at this great gallery done by Stern magazine and see what can photographers can do.

- Misconception No4: Anybody can shoot great images these days. Why would anyone say that when pro photographers have always used the same equipment as amateurs. This is not like dentistry or chemistry where the tools are hard to find, let alone the knowledge. Photography has always been easy to learn and the equipment always available to anyone. The only part that has changed is how easier it is these days to share. But really good images created by amateurs have always been around. Not as accessible, that is all. Its not the equipment that matters in great photography, it is the person holding it

- Misconception No5 : If you produce a lot of images, you can make a living with your photography. A rule of thumb more in the stock photography world than in the editorial one. It was true for a while when it was expensive to distribute images to clients. Today, it is a dangerous thought. Quantity will slowly be replaced by quality as the market will no longer be able to support myriads of photographers hoping to make a living. Image buyers will no longer be capable of keeping up with offer and start closing doors.

- Misconception No6: A photo editor knows a lot about photography. A photo editor only knows a lot about the photography used in their publication. He or she works, breath and sleeps in a very confined universe. Their ability to make one publication look great almost never  translate in making any and all publications look great.  That is why very successful photo editors never leave the publication they work for. They grow into them.

- Misconception No7 : Blogs about photography are useful. Besides posting press release they never read or repeating something they read elsewhere, they actually do not help much. Only a very few escape the ego narcissistic trip of the popularity contest and give out extremely valuable insight. They are extremely rare. The rest are operated by hit counters.

- Misconception No8: Every Magnum / VII photographer is a great photo editor. Why do thousand of photographers flock to have their portfolio edited by another photographer? It would vaguely make sense if one would want to be that photographer or replace him/her. And even so, photographers are the worst editors of their own work. But what makes a successful photographer a better editor than a non photographer ? If anything, if they see a great portfolio, wouldn’t they  try to dissuade that person from stealing their job?

- Misconception No9 : There is still room for a news agency. With AP, AFP, Reuters, Getty, EPA, DPA and other wire services employing some of the best photographers in the world while controlling most of the sales channel, it does seem obvious. There is no more oxygen. The best one can hope to do is represent a small pool of extremely talented photographers and help them get assignments, but even that is not a given. If they are extremely talented, they really do need much help. So what makes all these agencies try to cover events like the Olympics with 1/10 of the resources the others have with medium to mediocre photographers( crumb photographers)? Hope ?

- Misconception No10: Free photography will save the world. or a new pricing.or a association of good willing people. There is only one thing that will save photography, if it actually needs saving. It’s photography. great photography

Posted in magazine, celebrity, Magnum, Newsweek, commercial stock, newspaper, TIME, news, editorial, wire service, photojournalism, getty | Print | 4 Comments »

July 29, 2008 by pmelcher.

Genius juxtaposition of images, endearing story, human, lively, photographically compelling, wonderful storytelling, the Mediastorm team does it again .

See it now before someone tells you about it:

The only negative is the music that always seem to be the same on all multimedia these days: a  lonely piano with an echo followed by a lonely string acoustic guitar. But who cares ?  When you look at it, it seems that all the pieces were made to fit prior to assembly. It looks so easy to do. And it is not. Makes you wonder how further photography can go beyond the traditional magazine layout. This is also what photo editor should learn to do if they want to keep their job relevant.

Posted in mediastorm, magazine, technology, multimedia, newspaper, editorial, photojournalism, news | Print | No Comments »

June 29, 2008 by pmelcher.

It is not going to get better. In fact, it is only going to get worse. With the price of gasoline rising everywhere in the world and political freedom slowly being burned out, journalism and  twin sister photojournalism, will continue to suffer a slow and painful death.

First, there are the newspapers, that cannot compete against the web anymore. While it was just  against the speed and visuals of television, newspapers still had a few weapons of choice : The written word, the photographs and the ease of location. Unlike a TV set, newspapers could be carried around everywhere. Against the web, none of these advantages exist anymore. We can get news as faster and in even more locations than any physical newspapers can provide. No need to find a newsstand, the news is on our phones, or laptops. We can select what we read where we want. And we get images, if not videos. The medium itself is dying.

News Magazines, at least weeklies, are not doing much better. They have to put all their efforts into exclusive reporting in order to continue to compete with the web’s immediate delivery. But with the rising cost of staff writers and photographers added to the ever rising cost of travel, it is very fast becoming a negative income proposition. If you cannot send your own team on location, you will not get any exclusive coverage.

As for the Web, well, it is obvious. Newspapers, magazines, TV stations, everyone is competing for attention while delivering the content for free. In a way, news outlets are cannibalizing themselves, eating away at their very own core.

Here is the dilemma with journalism today:  It is still trying to be a profit center when obviously it cannot be one anymore. News used to be for sale and people would gladly pay for it. They even went along with the fact that their attention was sold twice, to them and to advertisers.

The past and present news empires are a testimony of its success. Organization owned the news because they were the only ones capable of gathering it  and distributing it for profit . Not so anymore.

Because the cost is rising and because we are dealing with profit businesses who need to cut cost , more and more news outlet are not even selling their own news, but news and photographs bought at wholesale prices and sold at retail . AP, Reuters, AFP and others are some of these news wholesalers. They can spread out their cost of reporting to thousand of clients. But for us, readers, we only get a washed down version of an event. We see the same photographs over and over. We do not feel any connections to our favorite publications ever since the competing one has the same exact content.

Why should I pay for something that is everywhere ? To anyone, something that is everywhere is either very cheap, or free. News is not considered as it should be a paid  item anymore. It has been devalued to almost nothing. News outlets played a deadly bidding war against each other not by increasing the quality of their reporting but rather reducing the amount of money spend on gathering it.

Aggregation, shut downs, mergers are certainly are only elements of this downward spiral. In its insatiable thirst to remain profitable, the news industry is killing itself by cutting costs. They rely on Britney Spears to pump up the sales: cheap to cover and rather entertaining. Wrong idea.  A single guy with a desktop and no notion of anything but himself can outdo any organization with no money : Perezhilton.com. With free images nonetheless, as he allegedly stole photographs from photo agencies.

So what is the solution ? Cut the middle man. For the readers to directly pay for the news by making news a public service. Before you start spitting on the floor while throwing your fist to the sky and cursing my name, let me explain. Currently, you are already getting a lot of publicly funded news. AFP, for example, widely distributed in the USA by Getty Images, is a government-owned company paid for with French taxpayer’s money. DPA, grand master behind EPA ( European press agency),  is also partly funded by the German government.

Some of the best reporting, currently, is done by  non for profit companies. In the US, channel Thirteen does some of the most amazing news coverage. It has the time, the resources and the will. Because it is not trying to sell you anything, it focuses on the issues. I know, you will say that you do not want to read or see propaganda. That is like saying that all public schools are brainwashing your kids, that firefighters are bias when they put out fires or that public beaches are secretly bugged with microphones.

Of course the temptation will be great, for a government to want to censor the news, if they feel they own it. But like other public institution, like libraries for example, there are many ways to protect the editorial content. And in a way, government interference might be more welcomed than any current hidden big business agendas ( think Newscorp and Murdoch for example). At least I can vote them out. I would much prefer my tax money goes to help fund journalistic investigations than helping killing people.

Just think of it : openly public funded news outlets with finally the right amount of funds to properly cover the news. Journalist and photo reporter will  not be under the pressure of being fired all the time. Foreign governments might just be that much more careful if they know that the journalist are government employees.

We would finally get some news. Any and all news.  Some regular updates on Darfur even if only less of us care.We would enjoy original and in depth reporting, great original photography and a much, much better understanding of our world. Would you really mind knowing that the New York Times is own by the US government ? Or by public funding ? That it serves the public needs rather than a private group of investors ?

It would be a real boost for photojournalists around the world and the quality of reporting because, let’s face it : It is not because of the lack of quality and interest that photojournalism is dying, it is because of the current inadequate economics behind it.

Posted in newspaper, multimedia, magazine, TIME, photojournalism, news, editorial, wire service, getty | Print | No Comments »

June 19, 2008 by pmelcher.

When Brian Storm speaks, the world of photojournalism learns. The Poynter Institute, a journalistic school, has a 26 minute long interview with the founder of Mediastorm. The interview, being held in front of a boring backdrop by a girl who obviously needs some more courses in broadcast interviews could have used some visual pointers to go along Storm’s amazing insight.

Posted in multimedia, mediastorm, magazine, technology, newspaper, photojournalism, news, editorial, msnbc.com, corbis | Print | No Comments »

May 1, 2008 by pmelcher.

A photo agency does 90 % of a photo editor’s work. Yet, there is always been a love hate relationship between the two. why is that ?

Let’s step back for a minute, would you ? The fundamental role of a photo agency is to already have images that a photo editor needs. Whether it be news, sports, entertainment, lifestyle or anything else, a photo agency should work as a repository of any and all photo editors wish. An never ending land of succulent fruits for the eyes, a garden of Eden of photography where one just needs to reach to get that perfect image.

In the process, Photo agencies weed out the good photographers from the bad. They create a quality filter that guarantees that images come from top notch photographers. Furthermore, they act as the sounding board for the photographers creative ego, shielding photo editors from the relentless waves of complains and curse words.

Photo agencies like to be flexible. For a premium, you can get an image for your publication or campaign only, called an exclusive, or just specify which competitor you would like to blind. In case of a catastrophe, earthquake, terrorism or plane accident, they do all the grunge work of locating the latest images so that photo editors do not have to get their hands dirty and can just wait by their phone.

Most of the time, this works perfectly well. Some magazine, websites and newspapers are entirely illustrated with photographs that fell off the Photo agency trees. In any other profession, where someone would do half your work for you, for free, that woud be well received.

In our world, not at all. It differs by country and culture. But as a photo agency in the USA, try to call a photo editor and tell them you just received this great set of images that could be great for their publication. You will probably be able to avoid insults, a slammed phone, but the reception on the other side will be  colder than the deepest  hole on the north side of the Mars ice cap. You are not welcomed.

It’s funny, because in Europe for example, they cannot wait you to show them your new material. They thrive on it. They will even buy the article along with it. It the US, you might as well jump of a bridge first.

Part of that is people do not like when you pretend to know their jobs better than they do. They take offense to that. But it is mainly due to the fact that in the US, most photo editors are gophers and do not make any editorial decisions. The editor in chief decice what articles will be published and the photo editors are ask to go out an illustrate them. Never the reverse. In Europe, however, they have equivalent powers. If they see a great photo story, they will run it, regardless of where it comes from. They are actually asked to provide stories and sit hand in hand ( figure of speech) with the editor in chief, deciding on the content.

So maybe part of the reason for the unqualified  reception photo agencies received when they pitch a story is due to the fact that each time they do that, in the US, they just push the knife deeper into the photo editors’ wound and make them remember how powerless they are. They only become almighty when they are granted a budget to go out and produce a photo shoot. And for that, theygo throught extra efforts to locate photographers that do not belong to a photo agency or if they do, try to circonvent that relationsship by all means possible.

It’s a convoluted relationships the one between photo editors and photo agencies. One made of trust and mistrust, of need, necessity and resentment. There are a lot of real friendships in this industry between buyers and sellers, as well as some real hate. Neither are photographers but they do battle on them, for the rights of possession. It is a continuous balancing act where neither can afford to be mad at the other while the photo editor still like to keep them at a reasonable distance.

In an editors eyes, and mind, photo agency people are not real photography people. They are like a subset of creepy creatures crawling in your garden. They can help sure, but only if there is no other way. A necessary evil.

Sometimes you wonder why they even credit a photo agency at all. Portfolio, the new Conde Nast business magazine, only puts the photographers name next to the images, adding the photo agency’s credit way back in a remote corner of the magazines’ last pages, as if to show that all the images where assigned. The Economist does not credit at all. Some others, which I find the most offensive, only put the agencies name. As if to clearly show that an image is just an illustration taken from a photo bank.

There should be a middle ground. Photo editors should have more power in the editorial decision process. A la New York Times. They should be granted and given the right to bring in photo stories. However, photo agencies can help. After many, many years of working with a publication, they have a good idea of what could be of interest. And because they work with thousands of eyes and ears worldwide, they have great stories that should be published . It would certainly beat rehashing what is on CNN on a print version, or sticking with what has sold in the past. It would make photographers more creative if they knew that publications would listen to what they have seen. I cannot say how many great photo essays gather dust on lonely hard drives just because there is no ears to listen.

As much as the photo agency business has to re invent itself, as much as photo editors have to shake the cages they are in if they want to keep being making photography quality go up.

Posted in Cnn, technology, magazine, newspaper, editorial, photojournalism, news | Print | 2 Comments »

April 16, 2008 by pmelcher.

I did not pick this image. I actually have no idea what it will be before I publish this entry. Why ? because it is a sort of semi “intelligent” algorithm in the background that will do it for me. A bit like Google ads scans a whole web page for keywords and post the relevant ads, this system, delivered by Dailylife.com, does the same.

It will scan the page for keywords and post the most appropriate image. Like an automated photo editor. And because it is looking thought the feeds of Reuters, GettyImages and AP, I believe, it selects from a pool of already very tightly edited images. One could also foresee a Flickr API, a bit like I did with the yahoo pipes.

I am guaranteed a good and hopefully, relevant image . This is the future of news photo editing on the web. At least for sites that do not care so much about the image and use them as an illustration of  a written report. Why pay some guy to look at a stream of pre edited  images, download one, resize it and post when the whole thing can be automated. And better yet, computers don’t whine, do not take lunch breaks, or holidays and never, never ask for a raise. So why keep a web photo editor, if only to do some “best of the week” gallery ?

Think about it:  the biggest news source of the internet has no photo editor. It is called Google news and it selects images with a similar technology. Indeed, it relies on images previously edited by pro photo editors. For now.

The dailylife link is completely free, with no uncontrolled ads, like a Picapp or a GumGum would like you to swallow. Sure , it has a link for the site itself but the same technology could easily be applied by anyone on their own site.

Finally, Dailylife.com, still in Beta, looks like an interesting destination. It seems they want to be a new Google news but put a heavy emphasis on photography and has a much better and smoother interface. More like a magazine designed for the internet, and not the opposite. Finally.

As newspapers and magazine are suffering more layouts as ad spending is weakening, most of the photo related professional are turning to the internet. However, because of its built in automation, it just seems that some of the jobs will not be recycle but ultimately replaced by machines. We will still need great pictures, thus talented photographers. Not so sure about needing photo editors.

Posted in multimedia, Search, newspaper, digg, magazine, gumgum, technology, keyword, yahoo, editorial, news, slideshow, wire service, google, photojournalism, getty | Print | 2 Comments »

April 12, 2008 by pmelcher.

A few good things are happening in the Photo agency world, at least in the USA.

First and foremost, it is the recent launch of ElevationPhotos. Created by Mick Magsino , ex Corbis, ex ImageDirect, Ex Getty, this new celebrity photo agency based in Los Angeles works exclusively on assignment. Instead of adding more red carpet images to the current flow (A photo editor at In Touch told me recently they receive about 80,000 images a week on spec), Mick applies a more intelligent approach by only covering events for which they are hired for. And it is working well. elevation photo were the official photographers of the Sarasota Film festival. Mick also finds the time to write a blog here.

Expect to see more of them in the near future.

Not too unrelated, is the opening of the Photoshot office in New York. Photoshot is a big agency in the UK, having recently acquired many smaller collection. Their offering is huge and covers the whole range of news, celebrity, nature, travel, sport and creative photography. They are, in a way, a smaller, yet very potent, Corbis/Getty. They distribute Elevation Photos in the UK. This opening is big news since it will offer a third offering to the US market, and place itself above Jupitermedia. Already, a lot of picture buyers cannot wait to have access to this huge pool of yet unseen images. Kris Hook, ex Corbis, heads the US sales operation.

Finally, there is the relaunch of AbacaUSA. The french photo agency has entered a stronger relationship with PA photo (the AP of england) in order to combine their forces and resources in the USA. Both agency also have a very rich library as well as a very active desk. Already in the USA for many years, Abaca has the advantage of knowing the market better than the two previous agencies. Coupled with PA’s firepower and credibility, this could be a killer relationship. Bruno Thiery, ex Abaca France is spearheading the effort.

As previously said, the editorial market is still strong and seems to be going the right way by partnering and finding new growth opportunities. Compare to the declining, disonauresque RM Commercial stock industry, this is refreshing news. Is it that the people running editorial agencies are smarter ?

Posted in license, Search, Jupiter, celebrity, magazine, newspaper, photojournalism, corbis, news, france, editorial, getty | Print | No Comments »

April 8, 2008 by pmelcher.

I was fortunate enough to have met both Pierre and Alexandra Boulat. I have been even more fortunate to have seen their images. In their memory and to continue the great photographic work of this amazing family, I am proud to  announce the creation of : The Pierre and Alexandra Boulat Association and Grant and the Pierre and Alexandra Boulat Association.
Formed in the memory of Pierre and Alexandra Boulat by friends and family after the death of Alexandra Boulat in 2007, the Association seeks to keep the spirit of father and daughter alive through making their work available to the public and creating an annual grant for a photographer and sponsoring the education of young photographers.

Membership of the Association and Donations:

To become a member of the Association:

> For individual subscribers: 50 €
> For a company or an organization: 100 €

Additional donations are welcome:

In Europe:

Pierre & Alexandra Boulat Foundation
HSBC UBP – Paris Madeleine, France.
RIB: 30938 00080 00800019113 05
IBAN: 3093 8000 8000 8000 1911 305
code BIC LUBPFRPP
The Pierre and Alexandra Boulat Grant:
We will award a Grant to a photographer to produce a story that must be told but that the photographer cannot find support for from within the Media.
The first Grant will be awarded at Visa pour L’Image in Perpignan 2008, as it was an event very close to the hearts of Alexandra and Pierre Boulat.

The photographer should submit, no later than July 1st each calendar year, a one page proposal with a portfolio of 20 pictures to prove competency. A first committee will make a pre-selection in Paris and the final decision will be made in Perpignan with a jury of 7 or 9 people chosen among the most important photo editors at Visa pour L’image.

Submissions to:

The Alexandra and Pierre Boulat Association Grant
Cosmos
56, Bld Latour Maubourg,
Paris, 75007
France.
Exhibition projects:
-Vannes Festival in April in France is devoted to Alexandra. They will show her video MODEST.
-New York Photo Festival will show MODEST by Alexandra in the new VII gallery in Brooklyn in May
-FotoGrafia International Festival, Rome. Through the Looking Glass, an homage to Alexandra curated by Francesco Zizola and Deanna Richardson. May 8th to June 5th
-Bruxelles: Bruno Stevens who is organizing a major exhibition on War-Photojournalism will show one of Alexandra’s images with her comment.
-Visa pour l’Image, Perpignan September 2008 will show a major retrospective exhibition of Alexandra’s work. It will be in the present Pierre Boulat space.
-To be confirmed: Jean-Louis Atlan Space Ground 00 In Washington will show an exhibition by Alexandra for the first edition of Photo Week D.C. November 2008

Prints:
Alexandra’s prints are available through Bill Hunt Gallery in New York and through the Alexandra and Pierre Boulat Association in Paris.
Pierre’s Prints are available through the Alexandra and Pierre Boulat Association, Paris.
Press: Pierre Boulat is represented by the Cosmos Photo Agency in Paris.
Alexandra Boulat is represented by the VII Photo Agency in Paris and New York

The Board
Annie Boulat – Présidente
Gary Knight – Vice Président
Antoinette Boulat – Secrétaire
Jean-François Leroy – Trésorier

Honorary and consultant members :
Issa Frei, Maryanne Golon, WW Hunt, Olivier Kaeppelin, Antonin Kratochvil, Patrice Lamotte, Caroline Mangez, Alison Morley, Chris Morris, Ariane Quentier, Robert Stevens, Sylvie Grumbach, Patrice Massoteau, Nicolas Saada, Jean-François Gallois, Jean-François Camp, Mete Zihnioglu,Goksin Sipahioglu,Kent Kobersteen.

For further information please contact Annie Boulat: annie(at)cosmosphoto.com

Posted in magazine, Cosmos, newspaper, photojournalism, france, editorial, news | Print | No Comments »

April 7, 2008 by pmelcher.

I will never understand the publishers stubbornness in designing magazine online. They literally replicate their print edition. Not just the content, but the layout. You have a cover/front page. You have sections, you have pages and along all that, a lot and lot of text .

Scrolling, for example, is much easier online. No need to change pages when all you have to do is scroll down. Why fix a limit on how far down you can scroll, when the majority of us have a wheel and can read down for ever?

One reason is that making you change page forces the page to reload, thus displaying new ads. Good for the publisher, not for the reader.

And what is it with this obscene amount of text? Since the launch of Netscape, back in the early 90’s, the web can easily display images, yet all publication use much more text than visuals. Yet the cost is practically the same.

One would have thought that, by now, all the news could have been delivered in a multimedia format. Instead of the linear print magazine format, the web offers video, sound, graphics and of course, photography, to give the readers a more three diminutional vision of a story.

Yet few, if none, use this ability. Its like driving a ferrari at 20 MPH all the time.

Magazine publishers, as we all know, are extremely resistant to change. If anything, they will do more of the same and copy their competition before they will innovate. They mostly believe that their content is so special, it cannot be brought down by the packaging.  They should think again.

With the coming of age of the internet generation, those who grew up in the 90’s and are about to hit college, this will change fast. Right now they are busy absorbing. Absorbing Youtube, Facebook, EW online, myspace. They currently take what is being offered to them. As somewhat passive consumers. But when they hit the work force and take charge, they will certainly create a new medium and certainly affect it deeply.

Online magazine will be more web friendly, mixing text, video, voice over, photography to deliver the story. Navigation will no longer be up and down, left to right.

Interfaces will more like the one use by Brightqube who sadly currently only uses it for delivering  RF images. You will be able to slide your way through a publication that will all reside on one page. Companies like MediaStorm will be able to produce more interactive multimedia, where one would be more involved in its unfolding instead of being a passive listener.  For example, on a report on the Iraq war, one could decide between the short or long version, the unrated or family friendly version, wether to read or listen. And much, much  more.

Magazine sites currently look like scanned magazines. TV sites, look like small tv sets. News site, depending on who produced it, look like their parent. Obviously they want to maintain their brand, and they will. But like microstock to the commercial stock world, they are leaving the door wide open for someone else to steal their readership.

And they will.

Posted in magazine, mediastorm, focus, technology, Piclens, multimedia, Search, msnbc.com, editorial, photojournalism, web 2.0, newspaper, news | Print | No Comments »

April 3, 2008 by pmelcher.

You would think that you could immediately say which news photographer won 11 prizes this year. You would probably think..”mmm, someone from VII or Getty, no ?”.

You could say that but you would be wrong.

This year alone, he won:

3  National Geographic prizes.

4 White House News Photographers associations prizes

Grand prize PDN & National Geographic Traveler

2 Honorable Mentions PX3 Prix de la photographie de Paris

First Place portrait Best Of Photojournalism NPPA

Yet his images have never been shown at Visa Pour l’image, ICP and other venerable photo institution. You will not see his images at the first NY photo festival. Probably because he does not shoot wars, does not have any images of dead people and does not carry a HOLGA. However you have seen his images in Newsweek, TIME, Stern, Paris Match. And you will see more, trust me. You even have seen him published here.

Yes, it’s Olivier Douliery, from Abaca Press . Extremely talented news photographer from Washington DC who does magic with an extremely  difficult subject : US politics. A great example of what photojournalism can do when it does not desperately try to be art, but a communication language. Olivier does not capture faces and places, he gets their soul. From a defeated Mike Tyson before his final match, to a playful Dalai Lama, from a Bill Clinton looking through the shoes of his candidate wife, to a George Bush laughing like a little kid at his inauguration as if he just pulled a nasty trick at another kid in the schoolyard, Olivier photograph with a smart sense of humor that makes you smile and reflect at the same time. There is no politicians in Olivier’s image, but rather players on an empty stage that have their moments of sadness, doubt, happiness, exhaustion, triumph. People with emotions, like you and me. Olivier captures the emotions of the so called powerful. The whole gamut. And makes them human again, with an incredible respect for his subject. A little bit as he was photographing  his cousins at summer family gathering.

There is a sense of time in all of his images, of  immediacy. It would be almost impossible to take any of his image and put them out of context. They would look odd and wrong. That is why he is a great photojournalist. Because he no only captures the person, but also everything that is going in at that time, in that persons life.

And finally, Olivier is great human being. Nice, polite, helpful, he is respected and adored by his peers. I am privileged to know him. He as a great career ahead of him.

More of his images here

Posted in TIME, newspaper, magazine, Newsweek, photojournalism, slideshow, news, france, editorial, getty | Print | No Comments »