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Author Topic: So... You wanna be a photographer?  (Read 20448 times)

Slobodan Blagojevic

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So... You wanna be a photographer?
« on: May 30, 2013, 01:51:45 pm »

Chicago Sun-Times cuts entire photography staff

From the article:

"The Chicago Sun-Times and its sister suburban papers have eliminated their photography staff and will ask the papers' reporters to provide more photography and video for their stories..."

bill t.

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Re: So... You wanna be a photographer?
« Reply #1 on: May 30, 2013, 02:00:17 pm »

What's-her-name at Yahoo was right.

edit...when she said, “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.”
« Last Edit: May 30, 2013, 02:01:52 pm by bill t. »
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Slobodan Blagojevic

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Re: So... You wanna be a photographer?
« Reply #2 on: May 30, 2013, 02:02:42 pm »

You mean when she said there is no such thing as "pro photographer" anymore?

EDIT: Typed at the same time ;)

RFPhotography

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Re: So... You wanna be a photographer?
« Reply #3 on: May 30, 2013, 02:12:33 pm »

Pretty short-sighted.  The quality of the still/video work will drop.  The quality of the reporting will drop.  Guess I'll be reading the Trib next time I'm in Chicago.
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bill t.

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Re: So... You wanna be a photographer?
« Reply #4 on: May 30, 2013, 02:43:15 pm »

You mean when she said there is no such thing as "pro photographer" anymore?

At least we can gloat that she had the poor judgement to apologize just before this new revelation.
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Rob C

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Re: So... You wanna be a photographer?
« Reply #5 on: May 30, 2013, 06:11:00 pm »

I would imagine that the reality behind the fact is possibly sinking sales. Salaries...

Something always has to go; for me it meant cheaper cars (that still cost a lot more in real replacement prices) and inexpensive restaurant fare. The fun vanishes quickly in times like these.

Rob C

louoates

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Re: So... You wanna be a photographer?
« Reply #6 on: May 30, 2013, 09:12:07 pm »

The cuts were expected as part of a plan to survive. The company says it will still use freelancers. It reminds me of the shift from law office stenos to the lawyers doing their own typing. And ad agency art directors doing their own typesetting with word processors. Time marches on. Photo journalism will survive with freelancers.
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bill t.

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Re: So... You wanna be a photographer?
« Reply #7 on: May 31, 2013, 12:16:05 am »

That's "freelancers" as in "smartphone owners."
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EduPerez

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Re: So... You wanna be a photographer?
« Reply #8 on: May 31, 2013, 02:52:38 am »

About six years ago, my wife was interviewed for the biggest newspaper here in Spain; and the image that illustrated the article was done by the same reporter that did the interview, using a P&S camera...
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Rob C

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Re: So... You wanna be a photographer?
« Reply #9 on: May 31, 2013, 04:37:18 am »

I suspect that the movie industry will not be far behind, either. Should af become good enough, cameras light enough and sensors fast enough, the damage to the employment figures could be severe...

Rob C

LoisWakeman

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Re: So... You wanna be a photographer?
« Reply #10 on: May 31, 2013, 07:06:14 am »

The quality of the reporting will drop. 
It already did when they fired all the subs years ago. UK broadsheets and news sites like the BBC are full of typos, the wrong correctly spelt word, howling grammar errors and impenetrably written copy. Now the pictures will be going the same way :(
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WalterEG

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Re: So... You wanna be a photographer?
« Reply #11 on: May 31, 2013, 07:56:45 am »

There were 40 photographers retrenched by Murdoch in Sydney a couple of months ago.  The remainder are now 'pooled' to service all the publications, from dailies to local over-the-fence rags and glossy magazines.

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kaelaria

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Re: So... You wanna be a photographer?
« Reply #12 on: May 31, 2013, 09:25:14 am »

I think the bigger question is - who cares?  The answer is a very, very small set of the population, dwindling daily.  Newspapers are just like the yellow pages.  Sorry if that pisses some of you off from the biz, but it's reality and fact.  Newspaper websites are no better.   They won't be the last to drop the photo staff, that's for sure. 
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Rob C

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Re: So... You wanna be a photographer?
« Reply #13 on: May 31, 2013, 10:13:02 am »

I think the bigger question is - who cares?  The answer is a very, very small set of the population, dwindling daily.  Newspapers are just like the yellow pages.  Sorry if that pisses some of you off from the biz, but it's reality and fact.  Newspaper websites are no better.   They won't be the last to drop the photo staff, that's for sure.  




That's very important, and I think your view is correct: not many!

Look at tv lists and it's very difficult to plot an evening's watch - mostly, on a good night, there may be two programmes worth the watching. And the repeats; dear God, the repeats! Top Gear is on every week, and the shows are so old it's not even funny. It's not really funny even when they are new, unless men being silly is entertaining. Poor old Richard Wilson is cursed to an eternal drive around old English roads of the 50s - a motoring Flying Dutchman, poor sod. And at his age, that can't be fun. I hope he gets repeat royalties for his pains. I've seen so many shows about historical Rome that I could probably write my own film; Henry VIII hasn't a secret left, and his wives' heads have been on and off so often I'm sure they can do it by themselves now. As for railways - ex-politicians feather nice nests from using them; that guy Georgie Bradshaw should have been lynched or been put onto a train on a circular track with no way off it.

Rob C
« Last Edit: May 31, 2013, 10:16:43 am by Rob C »
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Slobodan Blagojevic

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Re: So... You wanna be a photographer?
« Reply #14 on: May 31, 2013, 10:58:19 am »

I think the bigger question is - who cares?...

I, for one, care.

And here is why (metaphorically speaking):

When the Nazis came for the communists,
I remained silent;
I was not a communist.

When they locked up the social democrats,
I remained silent;
I was not a social democrat.

When they came for the trade unionists,
I did not speak out;
I was not a trade unionist.

When they came for the Jews,
I remained silent;
I wasn't a Jew.

When they came for me,
there was no one left to speak out.

"First they came…" is a poem attributed to Pastor Martin Niemöller
(1892–1984) about the inactivity of German intellectuals following the
Nazi rise to power and the purging of their chosen targets, group
after group.

So... group after group, profession after profession, factory after factory, town after town... are laid off, downsized, closed... families devastated, schools emptied, towns turned into ghost towns.

The latest reports claim that Americans have not recovered even a half of the wealth lost in the Great Recession. Jobs lost have not returned and perhaps never will. The unemployment stats are dropping, but mainly because millions of long-term unemployed are dropping out of statistics, giving up hope they will ever find work again.

And yet... corporate profits and cash reserves are at a historic high. Wealth of the wealthiest is higher than ever.

The old cynic (realist?) in me says, like you did: "Who cares? Thats how the world works. Deal with it."

The young at heart in me says: "Something ain't right here!?"

kaelaria

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Re: So... You wanna be a photographer?
« Reply #15 on: May 31, 2013, 11:33:23 am »

I think that's taking things way too far.  The bottom line is - this just doesn't matter. It's not useful, it's not important.  Otherwise - it would still be in demand.  They aren't dropping the staff because they have tons of money and just feel like it or want to be mean or oppress anyone.  There is no demand.  They have no money.  It's a failed business model, no matter how many (few) people want to be nostalgic about it.  It's no different that wailing about 'oh noes, they discontinued my favorite film'.  Frankly I'm shocked newspapers are still even around, period.  Every media owner KNOWS there is no turnaround, they are just riding the company to the grave prolonging it to eek out any meager 'profits' left.
« Last Edit: May 31, 2013, 12:41:09 pm by kaelaria »
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Jim Pascoe

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Re: So... You wanna be a photographer?
« Reply #16 on: May 31, 2013, 12:09:04 pm »

I think that's taking things way too far.  The bottom line is - this just doesn't matter. It's not useful, it's not important.  Otherwise - it would still be in demand.  They aren't dropping the staff because they have tons of money and just feel like it or want to be mean or oppress anyone.  There is no demand.  They have no money.  It's a failed business model, no matter how many (few) people want to be nostalgic about it.  It's no different that whaling about 'oh noes, they discontinued my favorite film'.  Frankly I'm shocked newspapers are still even around, period.  Every media owner KNOWS there is no turnaround, they are just riding the company to the grave prolonging it to eek out any meager 'profits' left.

I think you have got it right here.  Though when you mentioned whaling I thought you were talking about the lost whaling industry - until I realised you meant wailing! ;D

Jim
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Slobodan Blagojevic

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Re: So... You wanna be a photographer?
« Reply #17 on: May 31, 2013, 12:10:12 pm »

... They aren't dropping the staff because they have tons of money and just feel like it or want to be mean or oppress anyone.  There is no demand.  They have no money.  It's a failed business model..

Agree. They are just acting in their best self-interest.

However, I was looking at a bigger picture. What we are witnessing is a variant of the Game Theory's "prisoner's dilemma", where everyone is acting to further their own self-interest, yet, as a whole, everyone ends up worse off. "Everyone" defined as "significant majority".

Isaac

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Re: So... You wanna be a photographer?
« Reply #18 on: May 31, 2013, 12:18:58 pm »

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32BT

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Re: So... You wanna be a photographer?
« Reply #19 on: May 31, 2013, 12:26:44 pm »

yet, as a whole, everyone ends up worse off.

How so? How do you figure we are worse off?
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