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Chicago Sun-Times Fires Photo Staff, Will Train Reporters to Use iPhones For Photos
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Photography has been turning more into hobby that anyone can pick up for years... It's a shame, and professional photographers will still be necessary, but as someone else mentioned that's life...
From a budget perspective this is a no brainier.... And it's a newspaper not a magazine... iPhone photos will do just fine.
From a budget perspective this is a no brainier.... And it's a newspaper not a magazine... iPhone photos will do just fine.
This post nails it. It's the bottom line. If the consumer isn't willing to pay more for the better photo - or isn't more likely to buy the paper with the better photo over the one with the worse photo - then this makes economic sense even if it hurts journalistic quality.
So that's the question - how many us will either pay more for the paper with better photos or will buy the paper with better photos over the one with worse photos?
Based on what other news sources around Chicago reported yesterday, this is the majority of what they will be using.
True, but the Suntimes is supposedly looking to expand the online selection as well, so high quality photos and videos are a must. I'd love to have high quality photos and videos from a local news source. Chicago barely gets that on the TV news -- more cell phone videos than I'd like to admit.
Photography is an art, and not that many people are good at it. But the vast majority of what newspapers print, and what the typical news customers will pay to see, is not art.
...but Ad revenue is way up for snapshots of cats taken with iPhones.
...but Ad revenue is way up for snapshots of cats taken with iPhones.
What the hell.
Studies have shown that people are more likely to read an article in the newspaper if there's a photo to go with that story. The better the photo, the more people read the story, and online that means more page views, which in turn means more ad revenue.
Studies have shown that people are more likely to read an article in the newspaper if there's a photo to go with that story. The better the photo, the more people read the story, and online that means more page views, which in turn means more ad revenue.
Yeah, I just went to see Star Trek and thought Pfft. My friends and I could make that on our iPhones over a weekend.
That settles it. From now on I'm getting all my news from Life Magazines published during the 50's and 60's.
I've been a staunch supporter of the iPhone as an amazing camera since the beginning, and it's only gotten better with every model.
I'm even a co-instructor of some popular online courses in how to take better images using a mobile device. The future will most definitely require journalists to be both reporters AND photographers, and I think upcoming models of the iPhone will definitely be the right tool for the job.
That said, I just don't think we're quite "there" yet, and I agree this is a dumb move (at least right now). Not only does the iPhone's camera capability need to be a little more advanced than it is currently, but you can't just expect non-trained journalists to have the necessary photographic eye to take the RIGHT kind of pics, and do it well. It's one thing to BE THERE where a story is unfolding with a camera in hand, and it's a completely different thing to know how to best CAPTURE that story in a clear, concise manner that gets the full meaning of the events across.
One of the mobile workshops I teach is actually a documentary/journalism class -- and even students who've had previous practice with regular cameras aren't always able to easily capture a "news" story well with an iPhone. It takes a lot of skill. And while it CAN be done, a trained photographer with a more professional camera is STILL going to take photos that are infinitely more appropriate, compelling and attention-grabbing.
I DO think training people to be both reporters AND photographers is inevitable, but it needs to happen more naturally and not be as forced as this.
I'm even a co-instructor of some popular online courses in how to take better images using a mobile device. The future will most definitely require journalists to be both reporters AND photographers, and I think upcoming models of the iPhone will definitely be the right tool for the job.
That said, I just don't think we're quite "there" yet, and I agree this is a dumb move (at least right now). Not only does the iPhone's camera capability need to be a little more advanced than it is currently, but you can't just expect non-trained journalists to have the necessary photographic eye to take the RIGHT kind of pics, and do it well. It's one thing to BE THERE where a story is unfolding with a camera in hand, and it's a completely different thing to know how to best CAPTURE that story in a clear, concise manner that gets the full meaning of the events across.
One of the mobile workshops I teach is actually a documentary/journalism class -- and even students who've had previous practice with regular cameras aren't always able to easily capture a "news" story well with an iPhone. It takes a lot of skill. And while it CAN be done, a trained photographer with a more professional camera is STILL going to take photos that are infinitely more appropriate, compelling and attention-grabbing.
I DO think training people to be both reporters AND photographers is inevitable, but it needs to happen more naturally and not be as forced as this.
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I thought it was stupid, but after thinking about it, it's a newspaper!
How good does a photo have to be for a newspaper?
Am iphone is good enough.
How good does a photo have to be for a newspaper?
Am iphone is good enough.
Most of my non-Mac news comes from the CNN news app on my iPhone, which generally has a single picture at the top of each article that I don't even bother looking at. Pictures in newspaper, much like color or HD or 3D in video, really aren't necessary.
Menus are another story. I can't stand ordering food without having pictures of what it should look like. No idea why, it's something I realized about myself a few months ago... if a description sounds good but there's no accompanying picture, I won't buy it, and if the menu has no pictures in it, I tend to make poor choices for myself. Presentation is a surprisingly huge part of food.
Menus are another story. I can't stand ordering food without having pictures of what it should look like. No idea why, it's something I realized about myself a few months ago... if a description sounds good but there's no accompanying picture, I won't buy it, and if the menu has no pictures in it, I tend to make poor choices for myself. Presentation is a surprisingly huge part of food.
This sums up the entire conversation.
Done.
Over.
Anyone else see the insanity in this post?
I could see them firing their photo staff, and then giving reporters DSLRs but iPhones? Plus a lot of the entry DSLRs are as cheap if not cheaper than an iPhone. Weird.
My local newspaper (in a pretty large market) only has two staff photographers.
The real problem is if every paper does this, there won't be much of a pool of photographs to pull from even from the AP/wire services.
My local newspaper (in a pretty large market) only has two staff photographers.
The real problem is if every paper does this, there won't be much of a pool of photographs to pull from even from the AP/wire services.
Quote from Marissa Mayer
This reminds me of a quote Yahoo! CEO Marissa Mayer made last week during a Flickr press event:
Of course she later responded that the quote was taken out of context and corrected herself.
This reminds me of a quote Yahoo! CEO Marissa Mayer made last week during a Flickr press event:
There’s no such thing as Flickr Pro today because [with so many people taking photographs] there’s really no such thing as professional photographers anymore.
Of course she later responded that the quote was taken out of context and corrected herself.
This is one of the dumbest ideas I've ever seen.
Sure, I get lazy and leave my DSLR at home most of the time, taking pictures on my iPhone instead. But, I'm not taking pictures for a prestigious publication.
Sure, I get lazy and leave my DSLR at home most of the time, taking pictures on my iPhone instead. But, I'm not taking pictures for a prestigious publication.
I can't wait to see what kind of photos run in the Chicago Sun-Times after this considering the quality of the news the average "journalist" puts out nowadays.
Everything has become one giant race to the bottom.
Everything has become one giant race to the bottom.
News photography is rarely high art. So in a way it makes sense.
I think a new market will shortly come up for photojournalist do create their own content. Same stories perhaps but better visuals. They might set up sites, emags who knows.
"...reporters are not prepared to create both visual and written content. He also criticized using iPhones for photojournalism because the smartphone lacks options like different lenses and manual controls, which DSLR's have."
This is antiquated thinking. I know from personal experience that journalist are being taught how to take photos to accompany their pieces. Multimedia journalism(photos, videos, infographics, audio,etc) is the future. TV reporters are required to edit their own pieces. There aren't too many TV news editors around these days.
Also, there are TONS of camera lens accessories for the iPhone and they produce DSLR (if not BETTER than DSLR) quality.
Now, this is not to say that photojournalist have don't have a place in journalism. There are some aspects of photog that you can't teach in a one class session.
This is antiquated thinking. I know from personal experience that journalist are being taught how to take photos to accompany their pieces. Multimedia journalism(photos, videos, infographics, audio,etc) is the future. TV reporters are required to edit their own pieces. There aren't too many TV news editors around these days.
Also, there are TONS of camera lens accessories for the iPhone and they produce DSLR (if not BETTER than DSLR) quality.
Now, this is not to say that photojournalist have don't have a place in journalism. There are some aspects of photog that you can't teach in a one class session.
It's that way now but it wasn't always that way. Also, even if the photos that ultimately end up in the newspaper aren't the most artistic, quite often the photographer takes many more on the scene and it's one of those that you see in a museum later.
With no staff of press photographers you have fewer pro photographers at these important events.
To even say this suggests you..
1) Don't know what really makes DSLR camera pictures so high quality (hint: it's not something you can "bolt-onto" a camera phone).
2) Are completely missing the point that part of what makes the pictures high quality is the talent of the people taking them. This is another something you can't buy for an iPhone.
2) Are completely missing the point that part of what makes the pictures high quality is the talent of the people taking them. This is another something you can't buy for an iPhone.
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You clearly haven't experienced high quality audio. It's one of life's greatest pleasures. Trust me: there's a HUGE difference; to your senses it's like the difference between eating crappy fast food and fine high cuisine. And just as high quality audio, high photography also makes a huge difference. Have you heard that a picture is worth a thousand words? Why wouldn't you want professionals taking them? Not only for aesthetics or artistic reasons, but also for informational ones. A fair amount of times, the picture becomes the story itself.
It seems the new world we want to live in, is willing to settle for crap when it comes to everything. It favors crappy audio, crappy food, crappy music, crappy news with crappy photography, just to save a few bucks and get better profits to hedge-fund stockholders and wall-street speculators.
I agree - it's an idiotic decision. I hope it doesn't become a standard.
When I took print journalism in college, we were all trained in photography and had to purchase an SLR (yes, SLR, no D in front of it).
The people in the photo journalism class were trained much more extensively in photography, and took much better pictures because of it. They didn't write much about city hall politics either, as that was more our specialty.
I think you can cross train people to perform both tasks, but you also need the right tools for the job.
I'd love to see the iPhone pics from the local sports games!
The people in the photo journalism class were trained much more extensively in photography, and took much better pictures because of it. They didn't write much about city hall politics either, as that was more our specialty.
I think you can cross train people to perform both tasks, but you also need the right tools for the job.
I'd love to see the iPhone pics from the local sports games!