Shooting News

[ann]

I'll take the opportunity here to say I have local pride regarding fotoDogue and ann in Long Island's efforts to cover News on Alamy; it's an uphill battle for all the practical reasons given. (And thanks to RedSnapper for his honest, knowledgeable remarks.)

 

Yes, Alamy is an international stock agency . . . but for News you would be better off working from a small village in one of the shires than submitting images from this side of the Pond . . . unless of course you have special access.

 

To cover News in the Digital Age, you have to be super-fast. A few years ago I went out to do some local shopping, and on my corner a swarm of bumblebees had nested on the post box. There were a couple of bee people there, and I snapped some pics. I bought some cheese at the local deli and went back home. The bee swarm was already online. Old News.

 

Edo

Thank you, Edo!

 

New York was the epicenter of U.S. Presidential primary election campaigning in the weeks leading up to the April 19, 2016 NY Primary, and I covered several campaign events here on Long Island.

In case someone's interested in starting to cover similar types of events, here are some pointers from a couple of them:

 

To cover John Kasich event, I needed:

• to know it existed in time
• to arrive at the event early enough -- "RSVP'ing" does not necessarily guarantee (good) access if venue fills up

To cover Hillary Clinton event, I needed:

• to know it existed in time
• to represent a valid media outlet
• to arrive at event ready for my equipment and myself to be checked thoroughly, including by police dog, agents, security equipment....
• to bring my 200-500mm lens, along with usual 24-70 (to get solid close-ups when rather close to stage)

For U.S. national elections, fundraiser events are planned weeks in advance, but other campaign events often have a lead in of a couple of days.

 

To cover any sort of events known throughout NY state or more, I -

• regularly send out requests for Press announcements and Press access
• aim to have necessary credentials and equipment (long) before I might need them
• sign up and check for updates from relevant social media sites, news outlets, campaigns, venues...
• let people 'in the know' know I need and appreciate leads - whether they're family members, volunteers, official staff....

----> And, as already mentioned by others, it's crucial to get your photos on agencies with editorial clients who might reasonably license your news photos.

So, for example, if you photograph car shows, google relevant shows and see what photo agencies licensed photos to media outlets.

 

- Ann