Photojournalism- The Social Responsibility

The Start

Are you the one finding stories in every frame of yours? Are you the one who desires to create images which tell the tales you fail to tell through words? Photojournalism is the perfect genre of photography for you. It has no borders, no limits and no bars. You may travel all around the world to bring out cultures and depths from various corners of the globe. A photojournalist is like a reporter. He must carry the equipment with him all the time to curb missing some essential images. Photojournalism is only bound by the moral principles of the photographer. It is the person behind the camera who has to decide what to click, when to click and how to click. There are a few legal considerations such as taking care of the Right To Privacy of the subject. There is a constant ethical tiff between the person clicking and the media publishing it. This is the genre which demands strenuous hours of working in the field along with a huge amount of courage.

The Ethical Call

History has witnessed a number of incidents such as 2006 Lebanon War photographs controversies where photojournalists have misled the public, creating ruckus afterwards. The viewer places a sense of trust in these images and this weight is on the photographer’s shoulders. No manipulation is allowed. One has to bring out the truth as it was. The advancement in digital photography has provided numerous methods of manipulation to the photographers who often, in the greed of fame and money use these unethical methods. It is the field of responsibility which should be borne with utmost honesty.

Where to Learn Photojournalism?

There are courses offering a number of techniques to teach the student with skills required in photojournalism. They cover digital workflow and basics of camera, light, lenses etc. They also teach methods to cover news, spot news, sports, environmental portraits, photo story and of course ethics and law.

Capturing Real Into Reel

This is an opportunity to serve public, to tell public about the facts they had a right to know but was still hidden from them. Ultimately your images speak for you. Feed them with the right words and savour the fruits of success.

The P-Square for budding photographers

Patience, Perspective, Persistence and Practice are the Primary requirements. Observing people and following them around may often land you in trouble of police complaints and charges such as stalking, hence photojournalism is an art which is learnt in due course. One has to go with ease and gel into the environment of the subject. It is a visual documentation of what is going around in front of your eyes in the real time. Robert Capa, one of the most famous photojournalists who covered a number of wards once said, “If your pictures aren’t good enough you’re not close enough”. They say “A picture is worth the thousand words.” and photography provides you with the decision of which words to choose. It is you who chooses the frame and the story your image should tell. Choose it wisely.

Fashion Photography and Glamour of Industry

The Novo Approach

Delineating the beauty of a subject in an image is not a cakewalk. It takes perspective, patience and practice. It is often said that first 10,000 photographs of yours are your worst. Learning the technicalities only assists you in knowing your gear and that is all. Then it is you who explores the world through your camera but of course, for such exploration, one must be well rehearsed with one's equipment.

Beginning with Fashion Photography

Fashion Photography is the genre of photography in which one displays the beauty of items such as garments and accessories. It is usually conducted to tap on business opportunities by advertising in fashion magazines or related areas. To savor success in this genre, one must be well equipped with the desired skill set as there is a neck to neck competition in the market these days. Ambition, dedication, time and pressure management are the primary requirements. The secondary requirements consist of knowledge of the fashion world, networking and communication skills, knowledge of studio operations and equipments, such as compression curve and studio flash lighting.

All these skills are imparted in students through a number of Fashion Photography Courses and Portrait Photography Courses in Mumbai. They teach almost everything from basics of design and composition to Digital fashion techniques, photographing fashion accessories, dealing with studio flash lighting, light sources, creating silhouettes, post processing, colour management work flow etc. The work of a fashion photographer is not just taking images of a garment to publicize it but also to interpret and bring out the themes of that season, the ideas of the fashion designer and also the entire clothing range. Fashion photography can be both in the open field under natural lighting and beneath the roof under studio lighting, hence a fashion photographer must know the right hours of the day which can bring out the desired result. Eye-catching images of clothes and accessories are expected; just the way the designer himself sees his fashion range.

The demand for a fashion designer across the industry is never ending. They constantly need fashion photographers who understand fashion trends and give them spellbinding images for which they are ready to pay truckloads of money.

Creating Portraits (Portrait Photography or Portraiture) 

Portrait Photography is the art of capturing the facial features and expressions of a figure.  Often known as portraiture, it is one of the most common and practiced area of photography. Usually the subject is well rehearsed with the photographer but there are four approaches in portrait photography, the constructionist approach where the photographer controls the surroundings of the subject, the candid approach where the subject is not in knowledge of the fact that he is being clicked, the environmental approach where the images are subject to environment of the subject such as at its workplace and the creative approach where digital manipulation is involved in post processing.

All this is taught in various portrait photography courses and model photography courses with minute details and practical methods along with all the key lighting in the studio.

Exploring your photography passion - Journey from an amateur to a pro!

Anne Geddes once said, “The best images are the ones that retain their strength and impact over the years, regardless of the number of times they are viewed.” And to create such images, there are certain things one needs to be mindful of. After being thorough with the basics of photography, one needs to learn almost everything about the equipment being used and once both of them are clear, the first step towards professional photography is taken.

Branches Of Photography

There are various areas of professional photography such as street, nature, fashion, video direction, wildlife, food etc. and one has all the freedom to explore each and every field before choosing one of them for self.  To aid the person further, there are a number of courses specially designed to teach the technicalities and peculiarities about one’s chosen branch of photography.

The Photography Courses

One can learn wildlife photography all across Mumbai through a number of workshops taken by a variety of academies. In such courses, students are taught various ways and methods to capture mesmerizing images by using the natural light of the sun at different hours of the day and also methods to create artificial lighting for under-the-shade images. They also teach students with techniques to capture moving subjects such as birds and wild animals.

The Landscape photography courses and workshops focus on imparting knowledge by taking the students on field trips to various spots so that they can explore almost all the areas and challenges faced during nature photography. They capture various sceneries with a number of different perspectives, which helps them have a clear idea about how different objects look in different temperature images and with different metering. They can also experiment with the exposure triangle by playing around with the aperture and shutter speed. They face a number of challenges created by nature such as partially lit objects or backlit sightings which also at times buttress in creating some spellbinding images.

Then there are food photography courses also which focus on teaching the students to create visually appealing images of food items and beverages by using various props and external lighting equipment. They are trained to create artificial effects with help of food colors, froth, foam, steam and smoke etc. They explore the methods to capture various food items all across the nation and learn how to set the dishes to capture presentable images to tap on various business and trade opportunities.

Other Important Lessons

These courses also teach students ways to experiment with light by laying hands on light painting and shadow capturing. Students are also equipped with techniques aiding them in capturing still life, glass reflections etc. They work with objects having numerous structures, shapes and sizes. Students are given knowledge about various light sources and ways they can create more lighting effect in dull lighting. They are also taught post processing software to help them correct inevitable errors done by them in the field.

The charisma of digital photography and learning the art of capturing digital photos

The Evolution

Tracing back to 17th century, Thomas Wedgwood was the first person who thought of combing the two well know phenomena, first being the alteration of vision by light and second being the camera obscura. Although he miserably failed at his practical attempts but his successor, Nicéphore Niépce tasted the fruits of success in this technique. Gradually, the technology went through many changes and in 1839 William Talbot carved the niche for modern cameras by giving the world paper-based calotype negative and salt print processes. From then, new innovations reduced the camera from a huge bulky box to a handy mobile which was impossible without Digital Photography.

The Revolution

In the 19th century, the arena of photography underwent a revolution and digital image processing was introduced. Russell A. Kirsch and his team, in the year 1957 developed a binary digital version of the then existing technology and it was called wire photo drum scanner which aided in transferring various alpha-numeric characters and diagrams into digital computer memory. This finally provided an edge to the modern day digital photography in which camera contains arrays of electronic photodetectors which helps in capturing images focused by lenses attached to the camera. The captured photographs are then stored as computer files which are also compatible with further processing by using various software.

Learning Digital Photography

Digital Photography seems like a cakewalk but when it comes to minute technicalities, one may experience a steep bend. The exposure triangle, low light photography techniques, metering techniques and Kelvin graph i.e. image temperature have to be understood which is hard without external guidance which is provided by digital photography courses in Mumbai in various photography workshops and programs. They assist in understanding all the peculiarities about digital photography and modern day equipment. From training one at the very basic level to imparting all the possible professional skills, professional photography courses in Mumbai have complete packages such as Master Craftsman Diplomas for 2 years to short term courses such as Apprentice Diploma and Diploma in Digital Fine Art Photography.

Taking Out The Hidden Photographer

Eve Arnold once said, “If the photographer is interested in the people in front of his lens, and if he is compassionate, it’s already a lot. The instrument is not the camera but the photographer.” Hence, the equipment is important, but not more than what the person behind it can see in the scenery. The photographer needs to understand and be clear about what he wants his image to tell. This comes with due practice and consistency. One is required to change perspectives and practice creating good images in all kinds of lightings. It helps to clear the fog around one's creativity and imagination. The Digital Photography courses also assist in widening the perspectives and using the equipment the ideal way.

With consistent research and development along with neck to neck competition, various companies have imparted a number of commendable features in their equipment. This helps to create beautiful and astonishing images but at the same time, it makes understanding the equipment a tedious job. Here, a reliable academy with a dependable course comes to the rescue.

Exploring The Magic Of Camera For The Love Of Photography!

Aaron Siskind often said that “Photography is a way of feeling, of touching, of loving. What you have caught on film is captured forever. It remembers little things, long after you have forgotten everything.” Any by this he has put into words, the feelings of almost all the passionate photographers in the world. To them, it is no less than enchantment.  It is a fact that one can’t relive the past but going through an old album is no less that tripping down the memory lane which leaves one nostalgic but also happy and contented at the same time.

The camera is used as the tool of exploring the world since photography has no borders. Piercing through time and space, a moment is frozen, frozen in that frame forever and generations after generations can have the glimpse of it and it can be preserved forever. It is often said that one is born with the talent to tell to capture stories in an image, all that is required is to pick a camera, explore the world and revive the talent.

The Shallow Waters of Photography

Amateur photography requires just a camera but to go deeper towards success needs strenuous hard work and zeal. The bubbling energy inside a beginner needs to be channelized by a professional handholding. There are various academies of photography proving with good quality photography classes with experienced teachers who train amateurs with various technicalities by delving into them and helping them to carve a niche for themselves. Since photography is a massive field, there are a number of pitches one may play around, like from digital or film photography, wedding photography to commercial, macro, still life, street, portrait, wildlife and anything else one may think of.

Photography Academies providing Photography Courses and Classes

Short diploma courses from academy of photography consisting handful of photography classes training in camera specifications, exposure triangle and various rules of photography are enough to equip one with the basic knowledge but as one walks into deep waters of photography there are courses like advanced diploma and masters which facilitate one with all the professional skills required to capture mesmerizing images. There are a number of workshops going around carving and discovering talent all over the world by numerous photography academies. One has to be taught about taking pictures of various temperatures and under different lights of the day, specifications of aperture and metering in the beginning. One can learn all the different types from the professional photography institutes in Mumbai among other places.

The ‘P’ Square

Patience and practice are the keys to become a successful photographer. It’s not about taking a picture but about creating one and the story one can tell from the image. They often say that a good photographer knows what to click but the best photographer knows when to click.

Consistent Shooting

Regular practice is important. It is not about going on a trip and clicking 500 images straight on but it is about clicking 5 of your best images every day. Perfection comes with time and practice and so does success. Photography demands hours of patience and dedication. From shooting in different conditions to shooting various objects from different perspectives, every variation is important. Experimenting with lights and shadows, observing the equipment and results along with lots of strength is required.