What makes a successful humanitarian photo coverage

Nikon D5, Sigma 24-105mm f/4 DG OS HSM Art Lens, ISO 32000, ƒ/14, 1/100

All the trips I have done overseas have been for humanitarian work. Humanitarian work is concerned with or seeking to promote human welfare.

This past trip to Nicaragua there was a lot of opportunity for taking care of basic healthcare needs. Now the difficult thing sometimes to do as a humanitarian photographer is to capture and compel the audience to act.

In the homes they didn't have a medicine cabinet with your basic bottles of Tylenol, Ibuprofen, Aspirin, cough medicine and bandaids. If they needed an aspirin they would go to the city and buy not a bottle but just a few pills. That is all they could afford. I needed to capture the medically trained indigenous volunteers checking blood pressure or giving an IV, because handing a person a small ziplock bag of ibuprofen doesn't read quickly to the audience medical care.

Nikon D5, Sigma 24-105mm f/4 DG OS HSM Art Lens, ISO 1250, ƒ/4, 1/100

The gravity of this moment with medical missionary nurse practitioner Traci Warner isn't as clear to the audience visually as I would have wished. Dominga is the lady in the middle with the IV above her head. Her sister is to the left and had just paused a moment from waving the fan to keep her sister comfortable.

Dominga is dying from cancer. After we visited Dominga would die later that night.

Nikon D5, Sigma 24-105mm f/4 DG OS HSM Art Lens, ISO 1600, ƒ/4.5, 1/100

Missionary nurse practitioner Warner has a lot more to offer than her medical skills. During this part of life that we all will go through Warner took the time to read Psalms 23.

Verse 4 really speaks to me:

4 Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil: for thou art with me; thy rod and thy staff they comfort me.

This photo really captured for me why I like working with missionaries. They are caring for the whole person and not just their physical needs, but their spiritual as well.

Nikon D5, Sigma 35mm ƒ/1.4 DG Art,  ISO 200, ƒ/1.4, 1/100

If you are taking photos of humanitarian work you need to keep shooting. Sometimes when you are taking photos and thinking something better will come along is a mistake. You shoot everything you can and then later pick the moments that best capture the work going on and the soul of the story.

Here Warner is checking a skin condition on a lady with the Nicaraguan medical volunteer learning about the fungus condition.

I hope you are realizing at this point of my writing that the words are paramount to understanding what is going on in each of these photos. Take notes and be able to describe what is going on in a photo and why they are doing something.

Nikon D5, Sigma 24-105mm f/4 DG OS HSM Art Lens, ISO 100, ƒ/4, 1/160

I really like this photo of the young girl here. Now without text it is still a very compelling photograph. In context of the photos above the photo can take on even more meaning, but requires the words to help the audience feel even more impact than the visual can do alone.

This is the young granddaughter of the lady in the very first photo. The lady having her blood pressure taken has high blood pressure that they monitor. Due to the medical team not just giving her some medicine to help lower the blood pressure they helped her through educating her on her diet. Today she is no longer needing the blood pressure medicine, but just needs to monitor it.

By saving the grandmother we saved the care taker of the granddaughter. Now she has someone to watch her and take care of her as her parents are both out working trying to make ends meet for the family.

Many young girls like her are raped and abused due to lack of adult supervision. Who would think that humanitarian aid through medical training and some blood pressure pills would help save this young girls life?

This is why I love traveling the world and helping make people's lives better. How do I make things better when I am not a nurse practitioner? I help tell these stories and get people like you to give and go to make a difference.

Here are two opportunities this year for you to do the same thing and learn how to do it as well.

First we have two openings left for our Storytellers Abroad workshop in Togo, West Africa.

• Togo, July 26-August 11, 2016 - $3,670 

Next opportunity is traveling with Gary S. Chapman and myself to Honduras, Central America.

Honduras, October 29 – November 5, 2016 – $2,600 

Nikon D5, Sigma 24-105mm f/4 DG OS HSM Art Lens, ISO 450, ƒ/8, 1/100

This is not a classroom class only. When you are done you will have had the opportunity to produce a complete project that will do exactly what you would be doing if you were capturing the story yourself. The difference is you have teachers/coaches to help you navigate all the hurdles of storytelling.

If you want to do coverage like I am doing overseas, then here is your chance. The students we have finish the Storytellers Abroad Workshop have now shown to the missions agency ABWE their skills and also let the organization get to know them. Many are asked to tell more stories of missionaries around the world.

Sign up today and I will see you in either Togo or Honduras very soon.

Dear Humanitarian photographer asking for money to complete your project

Nikon D4, AF-S NIKKOR 28-300mm f/3.5-5.6G ED VR, ISO 400, ƒ/8, 1/100

We all love to have cool experiences. I am an adrenaline junky, which is a person with a compulsive desire for excitement and adventure. Now I can tell you early in my life they were saying "a bit of an adrenaline junkie, he appears to have no regard for his own safety" about how I lived life.

Numerous trips to the hospital as a young boy where I was getting stitched up on a regular basis or having a cast put on a limb that was broken. I even broke my neck and had to wear a body cast.

Today like many who have learned a lesson or two from being an adrenaline junky I too enjoy adventure. I love to travel and see different places of the world and encounter new cultures.

Nikon D4, AF-S NIKKOR 14-24mm f/2.8G ED, ISO 100, ƒ/7.1, 1/500, off-camera flash with Nikon SB-900 triggered with the Pocketwizard TT1, ACS and TT5

As long as you have sufficient funds to do such traveling then just enjoy yourself. I also try to give my children these experiences because I think it helps them navigate this world much better than without those experiences.

Asking me to fund your experiences

I continue to come across many people who think they are doing something for a good cause and in reality it is a disguise for just them having someone else pay for "THEIR EXPERIENCE."

Don't be that person.

Nikon D4, AF-S NIKKOR 28-300mm f/3.5-5.6G ED VR, ISO 900, ƒ/14, 1/250

Too many are that person that are doing missions and non profit work.  I think we need a TV Show like the Shark Tank but for those wanting funding for their non profit. This would help educate how many people are coming up with some pretty lame ideas.

What is very popular these days is for people to put up requests for money through things like gofundme.com. There are some excellent ideas that really do need funding and I am not slamming everyone asking for money.

Even others have written about how lame this is for many photo projects. Here is one blog post on it.

Point us to Why?

The key to having something that will most likely be fully funded and something that will not is most likely to do with the purpose of the funding. Too many people are asking us to fund them shooting and having fun. These projects should never be given money.

Which of these two statements for the purpose of a gofundme project would you support?

1. Help us wipe out poverty in North Georgia
2. Please help us with the film where we are raising the awareness of poverty in North Georgia

Your why is really stating of the problem that you are helping to solve.

Tell us your solution

The next important thing missing in many gofundme projects is the action plan for the audience. For storytellers using their skills to help inform people about a problem and then pointing them to the solution most of the time you will point them to an organization. This will help them see how for example a food program for school age children during the summer when they no longer have access to the free breakfast or lunches they have in school can make a difference in their health and help them get out of poverty.

A vetted solution

As a storyteller using your skills to help point the audience to how they can get involved it is important that you have done your homework and point them to a viable solution. Too many are having people give directly to the people who do not really have the skills to take that money and make wise choices. You might as well hand the guy on the corner begging a $20 bill and let them go and buy alcohol or drugs.

Giving to an organization that has a good track record and reports their budget as required by all 501 c 3 organization for example allows people to know how these organizations handle those resources.

One of the more successful programs that I have watched a few of my humanitarian friend photographers shoot for and help tell their story is Toms. Buy a pair of shoes for yourself and you buy a pair for a kid in a country that needs them. Buy a pair of sunglasses for yourself and give a pair of glasses to someone around the world in need. Simple tagline for what they do: One for One.

Check out Toms and study how they promote their idea and get people involved. They use a lot of videos and photography to tell their story. 

Notice how they have it in their menu how your purchases are helping and give you more ways to participate. They started with just shoes and now have expanded. The reason is simple, their concept was brilliant for nonprofit.

By buying their products with their logo prominently displayed on them you showed you were supporting their cause and created more people finding out about them.

WORST CHARITIES

There are watchdog groups who monitor those who raise funds for a charity. The bottom line is what people say they are raising those funds for need to primarily go to fund that since you are saying this is what you are doing. Take a look at these charities that are rated worst charities.

* Watchdog groups say no more than 35 percent of donations should go to fundraising costs. There is no standard for how much should be be spent on direct cash aid.

Fundraising costs are things like photography, multimedia and video projects.

The END GAME

Don't ask me to fund a process without you explaining the END GAME. The END GAME is the final stage of an extended process or course of events. If you are a humanitarian photographer then what you do is help tell stories and in so doing you help solve a problem by getting the audience involved.

If you cannot help me understand how your storytelling is going to help the people in the story then GO FUND YOURSELF!

Advice to the Humanitarian Photographer on Getting Published

A young boy in the village of Konadouga, Burkina Faso where the native language is Senara and the formal language taught is French. This is just a mile or so from the Ivory Coast boarder where rebels had been fighting.

Photographers for the most part are some of the most compassionate people you will ever meet.  They want to help organizations they encounter, but often find most of their photos never seeing the light of day.

Pretty often I am getting emails of photographers returning from overseas and having a collection of photos they want to share. They want to get the stories in front of people.

A typical email will look something like this:

"I would like to ask for your advice. I want to send the photos to different magazines and newspaper with the hope that the photos will help generate interest and donations for the organizations I covered. How should I approach these media outlets?"

Here is my advice for anyone wanting to do humanitarian photography and want to help those organizations by getting their work published.

Remember throughout that your purpose is to connect the audience to the subjects. If at anytime you forget one of these you will be unsuccessful. Why should your audience care? Why do the subjects need their story told?

Letzia stays at home and her husband works in the fields in Akil in the Yucatan region of Mexico.

Before your go

The time to connect with media outlets is before you go and not after for many reasons. The major reason is that had the media outlet knew you would be doing the coverage they could have given you valuable direction that would increase the chances of being published.

If you can write or do video as well then be sure and offer these skills as part of the package. I know many humanitarian photographers who offer some of these skills for their clients:

• Twitter feeds while on the field
• Blog posts when they return for the client 
• Multimedia package
• Audio recordings for the web

Very often an editor might direct you to cover a certain angle that would appeal to their audience. If you are really interested in getting interest for the organization then you do what you can to get the organization in front of the audience.

The story will change before you even go if you take time to reach out to as many media outlets as you can. It is quite possible that they may have a story for you to cover while you are there as well.

These boys are enjoying the stream just outside the village of Konadouga, Burkina Faso.  They were a little surprised at seeing the white man with the camera taking their photo.  In just ten miles we went through 30 different languages spoken by the tribes in the area. 

While you are there

It is rare that I have ever been on an overseas trip that the story we thought we were going to do doesn't change after we arrive. In some form or another they will tell you that you just missed it or that doesn't happen while you are here.  This doesn't matter if you did all your research to perfection. Often people heard something different than what you said, or they just didn't want to risk telling you the truth and you not come to help them.

Be sure you get names of people in the photos, the places you were when you made the photos and a good description of what is going on in the photo that isn't always understood when looking at the photo.

Types of photos

Everyone smiling and looking at the camera are snapshots and memory joggers. For the most part this is not what the media is looking for at all.

I have written on the three types of photos: 1) "Literal" Snapshots; 2) "Artistic" Snapshot and 3) "Expressive" images that are taken for others and not yourself. for more about those three styles you can read this earlier blog post:

Visual Storytelling: Three Stages of Composition

Feb 27, 2011

We all start with the literal snapshot and often revisit this stage of photography. These literal snapshots are primarily taken for the photographer. These photos are "memory joggers." They help you remember the moment.

http://blog.stanleyleary.com/

Here are some major mistakes photographers make while doing what they call is "humanitarian photography."

I wrote about them before but I think this warrants repeating here again.

Street scenes in Tikul in the Yucatan, Mexico

Some clues that you have crossed the line into narcissism:

• When asked why you are doing the photography your motivation is about you having a good experience.
• When your conversation is all about the gear you are using. This is an indication of self-indulgence.
• When you are evaluating a trip if you have that country stamped in your passport.
• When you cannot tell the stories of the people you just met on the trip.
• When you cannot explain how your photos are helping further the work of the people in the photos.
• When you are taking people’s pictures and rarely have ever asked permission or care to ask permission.
• When you ask people to look at your pictures.
• When you evaluate the photos based on how artistic they are for your taste.
• When you are pushing all the time to go with teams on trips.
• Have a mentor and ask how well you are doing.

You really need to pause and be sure the reasons you are doing the coverage are for the people that need the help. The more you serve them it actually is more rewarding than serving yourself.

Mexican side of the border in Agua Prieta, Mexico which borders Douglas, AZ.

How to keep a healthy ego

• You know your purpose for photographing on a trip.
• You know the subject really well.
• You have taken the time to get to know the people you are photographing.
• You are asking permission to photograph people.
• You always have in mind your audience when making photos.
• You have people calling you to be involved in their project.
• You are concerned that the photos you made are making a difference.
• You are concerned about exploiting people and their situation for your personal gain.
• Have a mentor and asking what you can do to improve.
• You know when someone else would do a better job and you step aside for now.
• You know you need to improve and feel the burden to improve for your client's sake.

Night time along the Mexican and US border in the town of Douglas, AZ.

When you get back

Contact those who were interested in running your work. Maybe a quick photo as a teaser and then short message that you just returned. You will be getting your work to them by a certain time.

Some editors will have given you a deadline before you go. Always try and not only meet the deadline, but exceed it and get the material to them before they asked for it.

Be sure to explain if the coverage had to change and why. If they have traveled at all they will understand. What they may not understand is if it is not at all along the lines of what you talked to them about and in this case it might not run in their media.

You can always go back to all those editors who turned you down, which I highly recommend, and let them see what you have. They may change their mind.

Photojournalism has given me better perspective and focus

Job 42:5
My ears had heard of you but now my eyes have seen you.

What a privilege

I am reminded over and over as I do my job as a photojournalist how really cool it is to be invited into people's lives and get to see how they live, work and play.

Sometimes I have been invited into people's lives during tragedy as I was years ago to photograph the Newberry family. Their son Philip contracted spiral meningitis and due to this Philip lost both hands and feet to the disease.

What was a devastating experience became such a walk of faith by a family. How powerful of a story to see a family transformed in such a positive way.

When I get invited into homes I do not see the poverty as much as I am seeing a person sharing the most intimate space of their lives. What impacts me over and over is how most people with so little are so happy in life.

While in West Africa in Burkina Faso I met a husband and wife with their newborn child. This one room hut with a dirt floor was filled with the love of a mother and father for their child.

When I traveled to the Yucatan I was invited into the home of a family where they all lived in one room.  I thought it was so cool to see how they made use of space using hammocks at night for sleeping. During the day those hammocks can be moved to give room for the kitchen or work they might do in the same room.

Early I would be so hesitant to ask to photograph families in their homes that showed such poverty. Today I realize they are as proud of their homes as I am of where I live. Here a teenager is proud of his own room.

Comparing his situation to the families living in the space he calls his room lets me know he is better off than many people around the world.

I was excited to be invited to photograph Almond Standard who built his log cabin home in his late 60's. He was so proud of being able to use his skills to build this home from scratch all by himself. The only thing he didn't do himself was the roof.

Perspective Shift

Meeting people from all walks of life and seeing how they live around the world makes me appreciate my situation so much more. I also realize that I live so much better than most of the world. Had I never traveled to distant places my perspective would be based on living in the suburbs of Metro Atlanta. I would see how so many live better than me and that I was more towards the bottom of the socio economic scale.

Now having more of a broader perspective I know I am living way above most of the world in my lifestyle.

While you may be able to take vacations that are designed to see exotic locations I recommend you go and experience the world from another perspective. Get involved with a non-profit and volunteer your time. Travel with the non-profit to another part of the world and help give back. You will start to broaden your horizons and this will change your life forever. It changed mine.

New Focus

I want my time to count now days after the experiences I have had in life. I want to live a life of doing something positive. I hope to use my camera to help those who are voiceless and marginalized by the world.

I want you to know these people so you too can feel more in touch to the world and not just in touch with your neighborhood alone.

Helping hurts when communication is overlooked

I believe photographers’ need a good PR agency and since no one is volunteering to do it for us, we must step up and take on this responsibility.

One such area I want to address is a photographer who wants to help use their talent to help humanitarian organizations or faith based organizations.

Please bear with me as I walk through understanding the elements and then trying to put together an action plan for photographers.

Stanley working in Africa.

The Humanitarian Photographer

If you were to Google the definition of what is a humanitarian photographer, you will not find a definition is the normal places like Webster dictionary, Wikipedia or Google.  It is a new term used to describe not so much a style as the humanitarian organization for which photography is done.

When you Google “humanitarian photographer,” I have a few friends that will pop up to the very top of the lists: Gary S. Chapman and Esther Havens both do humanitarian photography.

You will see every style of photography being done for humanitarian organizations that primarily distribute aid.

Three ways that humanitarian organizations distribute aid

1. Relief
2. Rehabilitation
3. Development

In the book When Helping Hurts: How to Alleviate Poverty Without Hurting the Poor . . . and Yourself, they say “A helpful first step in thinking about working with the poor in any context is to discern whether the situation calls for relief, rehabilitation, or development. In fact, the failure to distinguish among these situations is one of the most common reasons that poverty-alleviation efforts often do harm.”

They go on and say, “One of the major premises of this book is that until we embrace our mutual brokenness, our work with low-income people is likely to do far more harm than good.”

Relief is the easiest of the three things humanitarian organization do. It is easier to raise money and distribute materials things in the time of a disaster than to do the more in depth rehabilitation or development. However all three can hurt those trying to help and those receiving the service.

Do you know where I am going with all this? Will I be addressing how entitlement programs are the problem? Maybe I am going to talk about how we need income distribution to solve the problem?

What is Poverty?

Wikipedia definition—Poverty is the state of one who lacks a certain amount of material possessions or money. Absolute poverty or destitution refers to the deprivation of basic human needs, which commonly includes food, water, sanitation, clothing, shelter, health care and education. Relative poverty is defined contextually as economic inequality in the location or society in which people live.

In the book When Helping Hurts, “Development expert Robert Chambers argues that the materially poor are trapped by multiple, interconnected factors—insufficient assets, vulnerability, powerlessness, isolation, and physical weakness—that ensnare them like bugs caught in a spider’s web.”

The book goes on to say, “Poverty is the result of relationships that do not work, that are not just, that are not for life, that are not harmonious or enjoyable. Poverty is the absence of shalom in all its meanings.”

Based on this definition everyone suffers from poverty in some way.

Where the photographer can help

If broken relationships are what is the core issue in poverty, then to rebuild these relationships communication is key. With the broken relationship between two people they must come together and listen to one another.

Often counselors can help with the facilitation of restoration. When it comes to groups this is where I believe the professional communicator refines the role of the counselor and helps each group to better communicate and therefore move groups closer together.

Leaders of humanitarian organizations and their donors are often to blame for the failure organizations goals.

Donor and CEO Problem

A philanthropist decides to give a huge amount to an organization with strings attached. “I want all this gift to go to something and none of it to go to operating costs of the organization” is one such type of gift.

The organization often will take the gift and totally reorganize just so they can use the gift. This is where the organization fails to educate the donor. A good CEO will educate the donor.

I see way too many humanitarian organizations focus on the relief. We can give food or we can teach them to fish. Teaching to fish is a larger investment in time, but not necessarily money.

Photographers need to understand relief, rehabilitation and development and how this applies to the organization. They need to have the strategic vision if they are to help an organization achieve their strategic vision.

Way too many photographers just want to go and travel to take photos. They are in it for themselves and are hurting and not helping.

Photographers need to know as much as they can about the area a humanitarian organization is addressing. What other groups are working in this area? Are they duplicating efforts? Is their approach helping the long-term goal of no longer being needed?

It is common that once you start becoming strategic and not just a button pusher of the camera you will help in ways beyond your camera. You may help leaders of different organizations know about each other. You may help them network due to your work for different groups.

PR for the photographer

Blogging

One of the ways I am watching photographers with PR for themselves is to tell stories through their blogs and being sure they are letting humanitarian organizations leaders know they are blogging.

If you have a blog you may want to ask some of those organization leaders to do a guest blog for you. 

Newsletter

You can create a printed or online newsletter that you send out to your distribution list. This method is different than the blog; it is pushing your message. A blog pulls people to the content.

Gallery

You can put your coverage up in a gallery and invite humanitarian organization leaders to come to the show. You can also encourage the humanitarian organizations to also have a gallery where you could be there as the artist at the opening to help bring in donors.

Social Media

Get involved in groups. Many humanitarian organizations have active group discussions where a photographer could easily be part of the discussion. Give some tips of your own or maybe you offer links that you have discovered as a good resource. Be a part of the discussion.
Hold organizations accountable

I would encourage all of your discussions to always be trying to be sure the organization is helping the problem and not hurting. Sometimes it is just asking a question with an attitude of innocence. Sometimes you may need to call attention a little more forthright. Remember your purpose is to be part of the solution and not hurting. Ticking everyone off is not the best solution since you will quickly discover yourself no longer a part of the discussion.

How to become a humanitarian or missions photographer

New church and well being built in Becanchen, Yucatan, Mexico. Nikon D3, ISO 200, f/8, 1/100, 24-120mm

"I feel God calling me into missions photography ..." or "I want to be a humanitarian photographer and would like to meet you," are two things I am hearing almost weekly now. 

To make this dream a reality is to engage your head and your heart in this journey.

Reasons not to become a humanitarian/missions photographer

  1. The field is overcrowded. If you live in a major city like Atlanta you are very much aware of traffic jams.  Another great comparison is going to Universal Studios or Disney World.  You are going to stand in a very long line because this is a very popular job. This field is not just crowded, every day more and more people are wanting and trying to become photographers.

Fernanda washes clothes and makes hammocks for a living in Akil.  Her son Roberto Carlos has finished school and wants to go to college. They live in the Yucatan in Mexico. Nikon D3, ISO 200, f/5, 1/8, 24-120mm

  2. Most photographers do it for free.  Translation--it is very difficult to make a living. How will you compete against others who will not only do it for free, but pay their way to cover a cause around the world?

Mayan family at their home in the Yucatan, Mexico. Nikon D3, ISO 200, f/5.6, 1/250, 24-120mm

  3. It requires a large financial investment.  You need cameras, lenses, flashes, memory cards, computers, software, and training to use all this.  Did you notice the list was multiples? Everything requires a backup because equipment will fail and you must still deliver.

  4. It is a business. Since the 1970's staff jobs are actually dwindling.  More and more photographers are freelancers who must pay higher taxes and higher healthcare insurance than their staff counterparts.  Don't forget you need camera insurance and liability. You must first be a business person and then a photographer. 

David Woods stopped on our drive to BoBo from Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso for our lunch. You need to be able to eat a variety of food when you travel. Nikon D2X, ISO 100, f/8, 1/320, 24-120mm

 5. You have to be outstanding and not average. If you watched American Idol then you have a good comparison to this industry, but the numbers are greater.  Everyone owns a camera and many think they can make great photos. American Idol auditions hundreds of thousands to get it down to 25. If you go back to past seasons not all of those 25 finalists are making a living at it. The odds are similar in photography. There are many great photographers, but they didn't have the complete package to make it.

  6. Everyone owns a camera and can make a photo. Think about this for a while. Why pay you to photograph something when they can take it themselves?

  7. 95% of your time you are not making pictures. Even the most successful National Geographic Magazine photographers spend only a fraction of their time shooting. Most of the time you are researching a topic or an organization trying to find ways you can help them achieve their goals.

Clenence is holding Azer who is sick and 3 years old.  Her husband is Jacob Tarnagda a leader in the church and is 40 years old.  Jacob converted from Islam to Christianity.  His home is in Soumagou, Burkina Faso. Nikon D2X, ISO 100, f/7.1, 1/60 24-120mm

  8. It's not about you. If you want to take pictures because you have an interest in something, well unless an audience is willing to pay you to see your work there is no career for you.

The most successful photographers today are not focused on telling a story with their camera--they are focused on connecting the subject with the audience to achieve a goal.

There is no AAA roadside assistance in Burkina Faso. My host David Woods repairs the truck that just lost a belt on the side of the road. Nikon D2X, ISO 100, f/2.8, 1/2000, 24-120mm

Here are some questions you need to answer


1) Why do you want to be a photographer?

If your answer is I like to take pictures and meet people, then keep on doing this as a hobby.  If you want to tell the stories of some people you have met, you still need to keep this a hobby.

Humanitarian and missions photographers are goal focused. When I am photographing an orphan I am wanting to help them find a parent. Some who will see my photos may give money to cover their housing and food until they find a parent and this good, but my goal is to move people's hearts to take this child in.

My goal is not to tell the orphan's story. Do you see the difference?

Dr. George Faile, family practitioner is making his rounds at the Baptist Medical Centre in Nalerigu, Ghana. Yes that is two children from two different families sharing a bed in a hospital. Nikon D2X, ISO 800, f/2.8, 1/40, 18-50mm

2) Why should you be the photographer?

If the goal is to do something, why are you the best selection and not a professional photographer who has given their life to not just taking pictures, but to the cause?

If the goal is to get a orphan adopted why would anyone want to have a photographer shoot it that has never helped anyone get adopted verses the photographer that does. Think about it why not hire William Albert Allard who made the famous photos of the little shepherd boy who lost his heard to a reckless driver in Peru? Allard's photos moved the readers of National Geographic Magazine to replace his herd and then some.

A mass of people wait for medical treatment at the Baptist Medical Centre in Nalerigu, Ghana. They are all waiting for Dr. George Faile to see them that day.  Nikon D2X, ISO 400, f/2.8, 1/25, 18-50mm

3) What are you doing to be the very best photographer?

Organizations that want to achieve their goals are not going to let just anyone photograph for them.  Actually they want to keep most photographers away from their projects.  Many photographers will do more harm than good.  Too many photographers are just trying to build a portfolio rather than help.

I am called to be a photographer

Just like a professional musician you will need to study the craft and find a teacher/mentor.  Even in Star Wars Luke had to find Yoda to help teach him the skills to become a Jedi Knight.


My suggestions:

1. Take classes in the following:

    a. Business and marketing - You need to understand how to price your work, how to negotiate with a client and most importantly how to find a client.

    b. Psychology - You need to be able to work with a variety of people from all walks of life. You need to be able to get to know people in the most intimate way possible in the shortest time possible, because you will be telling their story as an expert on their life.
    c. Photography - You need to know how to make your camera do what will work in any situation. You need to be able to not just capture something, but help capture it in a way that sets the mood as well as captures the moments. To do this you will need to master: Aperture; Shutter Speed; Hot Shoe Flashes; Studio Strobes; Available Light; Composition and much more.

We ate in a coffee growers home in El Aguilia, Mexico. Nikon D3S, ISO 12800, f/5.6, 1/60, 14-24mm

2. Study the masters - You will need to become a master.  Remember the organization will hire the person they think is best suited to help them achieve their goal. You need to become the expert they want on their team. The best way to do this is to study all the great photojournalists that have gone before you. You need to know why their work was so successful.  

3. Study with a master - Take a workshop with someone who is known for storytelling that also is known to help organizations meet their goals.  I am teaching such a class in Tibet August 5th - 15th.  I will be teaching you how to photograph in another culture, how to tell the story and reach your audience with the message.

4. Go to seminars and workshops to get inspiration. I recommend going to seminars like the Southwestern Photojournalism Conference in Fort Worth, TX February 23 - 26. Here you will be able to hear successful photographers talk about their work. The room is often filled with past speakers and current masters of humanitarian and missions photography.

5. Get critiqued to learn - Don't show your work to just get pats on the back. Show you work to people who can point out the basic things you are missing early in your career and as you grow can teach you about the nuances. If your purpose is only to show your work and have everyone applaud only - well then you need to keep this as a hobby, because even the masters of the craft look for ways to get even better. If you go to the SWPJC you can enroll in the 2 minute show. You can show everyone at the conference your work in 2 minutes. Hey this is one of the best ways to get critiqued and discovered.