I learned photography from a wide range of sources, but none was more pivotal – more essential – to my development than my mentor, Jonathan Cohen. Jonathan is the university photographer at my alma mater; before that, he was a working photojournalist who has had work published in some major publications.
Jonathan had just taken the job at the university when I began trying to learn photography. He took me on as his intern, a position I held for that full year, officially. Unofficially, I continued to drop by and help out for the rest of my time at university. For my final 8 months there, I worked for the department as a long-term freelancer.
It was this internship that got me out of auto mode and onto the road of really becoming a photographer. I could fill dozens of posts going over all the things I learned that year, all the lessons and tricks and tips. But for right now, I just want to pass along a few of the ones that stick out the most in my mind:
* There is no excuse for fuzzy, blurry photos. Don’t blame it on camera shake, or the bad lighting, or your limited gear. Find a way to get the shot, and get it sharp and in focus. (The only exception to this is artistic, meaningful motion blur – that’s okay, in limited amounts.)
* A photo without cutline info is worthless! It’s worse than no photo at all. If this info is not included, no one will publish the image. Identify the people in the photo, identify the location and the time, and quickly explain what’s going on. That’s what metadata fields are for.
* Do not return without a photo. If you are sent out on assignment, return with something. No matter what happens, do not come back empty handed. Find an angle, find an element, find a way to illustrate it, or as a last resort, find something else worth while.
* Archive your work as you go. Nothing is worse than having to sit down and archive four months of photos at once. Keep up with it as you shoot; it’s miserable, but less so than having a backlog.
* Push yourself. Having techniques and styles that work is great, but don’t become too dependent on them. When you see that you’re shooting the same way time and time again, try something new.
* Ethics matter – don’t compromise yourself, you work, or the story.
* Don’t get tunnel vision. Every assignment needs establishing shots, general shots, and detail shots. Give your editor options – they like this.
* Each photo should tell the story of what is happening – you should be able to look at it and, just like a news article, know who, what, where, when, and why. That’s the mark of great photography.
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A final point – if you want to learn photography, if you seriously want to be a photographer, find a mentor. Find someone who has worked in the business, who has been successful, and who is willing to take the time to teach you. Be willing to carry their gear and hold their lights and run errands if in return they impart their collective knowledge to you. There is no substitute for excellence, or for experience. The best way to learn this business is to learn it from someone who does it.
