ACRL College & Research Libraries News
INTERNET RESOURCES: Photojournalism on the Web: A guide for practicing and student photo journalists
by Paul Cammarata and Clo Cammarata
“Photojournalism is the profession of recording and reporting news by means of photographs.”1
The Internet has made it possible to access images seen in newspapers, photojournalists’ own Web sites, and compilations of photo- graphs from history. The following is a selective list of Internet resources available to both prac- ticing photojournalists and students of photojour- nalism.
Starting points
• Atlanta Photojournalism Seminar: Photojournalism Resources.This nonprofit organization “promotes the highest standards of photojournalism through an annual educational conference and a photography contest judged by working photographers.” The “Resources & Links” section is an annotated list of sites concerning photojournalism and photography. Access: http://www.photojournalism.org/searchh.html.
• PoynterOnline—Photojournalism Bibliography.As stated on the Web site, “The Poynter Institute is a school for journalists, future journalists, and teachers of journalism.” This site allows you to do a subject search for photojournalism, where you will find links to current news items, seminars, and trends in the industry. Featured is a bibliography that includes online resources. Access: http://www.poynter.org/ subject.asp?id=29.
General
• Americanphotojournalist.The site advertises itself as “for photojournalists, by photojournalists.” The site, which is maintained by contributing members, began in 2002 and offers news, features, information, and portfolios from working photojournalists. The news section is an outstanding resource for current events in photojournalism. Access: http://www.americanphotojournalist.com.
• Behind the Viewfinder: A Year in the Life of Photojournalism.This Web site documents one year in a photojournalist’s life. Each photojournalist keeps a diary that illuminates us with the various duties, emotions, and stories that he or she encounters. We experience their pitfalls and triumphs, which allows us to look inside the world of a practicing photojournalist. Access: http: / / www. digitals tory teller, com/YITL/.
• Editorial Photo.Known as EP, Editorial Photographer is a Web site for the practicing photographer, but is also valuable to the student. EP has information not found at many other sites, such as copyright information, contract reviews, educational seminar information, and the EP Estimator—which is a pricing tool for editorial assignment. There are formal links to the events calendar, education, forum, business resources, assignment resources, and “Know Your Profession.” Access: http:// www.editorialphoto.com/.
About the authors
Paul Cammarata is reference librarian atthe Thomas Cooper Library at the University of South Carolina-Columbia, e-mail: paulc@gwm.sc.edu and Clo Cammarata is information services librarian at Richland County Public Library in Columbia‚ e- mail: ccammarata @richland. lib.sc. us
• International Photojournalism Festival. This site presented by Visa PourL’Image celebrates and encourages press photography. The site archives past festivals, beginning with 1989, and includes galleries, interviews, and profiles. Access: http://www.visapourlimage. com/anglais/.
• NewsInPictures.com. This is a site that is dedicated to pictorial news stories. You can search under the following subject areas: news, sports, disasters, entertainment, history, science, and miscellaneous. Access: http:// www.newsinpictures.com/.
• PDN Online (Photo District News). This is an informative online resource for the working professional photographer. PDN brings you the latest trends, news, portfolios, and event calendars. Access: http://www. pdnonline.com.
• Picture Editor. The site states, “PictureEditor.com was founded in 1998 to provide a place for documentary photographers to share their images and stories.” This Web site has links to news, forums, articles, galleries, and resources. The site is for the practicing photographer and photo editor. Access: http:// www.pictureeditor.com/about.html.
• World Press Photo. The mission of the World Press Photo is “to promote a free and unrestricted exchange of information and to encourage high professional standards in photojournalism.” This site is for both the student and the practicing professional and includes links to seminars, contests and awards, and galleries. The link to “The Winners 2003” is set with the following subject headings: wpph of the year, children’s award, spot news, general news, people in the news, portraits, sports, the arts, science and technology, nature and the environment, and daily life. Access: http:// www.worldpressphoto.nl/index.jsp.
E-journals and magazines
• The Digital Journalist. This premier online photojournal is published monthly by photojournalist Dirck Halstead, who is the creator, editor, and publisher. The site features documentary work, editorials, columns, commentaries, product reviews, and illustrations of photographs in both still and video formats. Access: http://digitaljournalist.org/.
• Eight: photojournalism. This is the Web site to the magazine, which is in print format and published quarterly. It is based in the UK and has interesting photo stories concerning our world. The Web site itself gives subscription information, of course, but also contains a section for diaries, links, and reviews. The resources under the links category include agencies, photo festivals, publishers, photo collections, photographer sites, online journals, and organizations. Access: http:// www.foto8.com/.
• EPN World Reporter. “EPN World Reporter” is an online magazine for journalists, editors, and photographers. The journal covers news and events from around the world and is dedicated to the foreign correspondent. There are links to news, security, and an international job board. It actively encourages members to contribute opinions, advice, and news. Access: http://www. epnworld-reporter.com/news/sectionfront.php/ section/44.html.
Ethics
Ethics is an essential topic when it comes to photojournalism. Most newspapers have ethical guidelines printed on their Web sites. Below is a link to the monthly column that appears in the “News Photographer Journal,” entitled “Ethics Matters written” by Deni Elliott, director of the Practical Ethics Center at the University of Montana, and Paul Martin Lester, professor at Department of Communications California State University-Fullerton.
• Ethics Matters. This column concerns itself with ethics and photojournalism, which is becoming a hot topic since many photographs are now being digitally enhanced. You can look, copy and distribute, for educational purposes, archival articles from this site. Access: http:// commfaculty.fullerton.edu/lester/writings/ nppa.html.
Awards and notable photographs
• Alfred Eisenstaedt Awards for Magazine Photography. These awards are administered by Columbia University under a grant from LIFE. The awards are for excellence in magazine photography and are named in the memory of Alfred Eisenstaedt, who was a pio- neer in photojournalism. The awards are given in 13 categories. Additional awards are also given for new talent and legend. Access: http:// www.life.com/Life/eisies/.
• Capture the Moment: Pulitzer Prize Winning Photographs.Newseum, the in- teractive museum of news, hosts this exhibit. The exhibit brings together Pulitzer Prize-winning photographs from 1941 to the present day. There is a Shockwave version that includes narration by the actual photographers who have won the Pulitzer. Access: http:// www.newseum.org/pulitzer/index.htm.
• Pulitzer Prizes.Winning photographs can be searched by either category or year. Pho- tographs are available for journalism winners from 1995 to 2002 only. Navigating the Web site can be difficult. Access: http://www. pulitzer.org.
Associations
• American Society of Media Photog- raphers (ASMP).ASMP was founded in 1944 to promote the interests of photogra- phers, which it continues to do today. The site gives you information under four specific cat- egories: community, culture, commerce, and publications. There are links to business, legal, support, galleries, and industry. The site can be used by the casual viewer, but is more of a resource to anyone in photography from stu- dent to professional photographer. Access: http://www.asmp.org.
• National Press Photographers As- sociation (NPPA).NPPA, founded in 1946, sponsors this premier site for photojournalism. There is information and resources for NPPA members and the general public. A login is required for access to member-only services, such as the Membership Directory and the job Information Bank. The Members Gallery is a directory providing links to the work of members, students, and other working pho- tographers. Access: http://www.nppa.org/.
• NPPA Listserv.This electronic list is dedicated to photojournalism. To subscribe, send the message: subscribe NPPA-L to LISTSERV@CMICH.EDU.
• VisCom Resources.The visual communications division of the Association for
Education in Journalism and Mass Communication is devoted to study and discussion of all forms of visual communication. The division’s members represent photography, graphic design, film, broadcast, and multimedia. This site includes links to special collections such as September 11, 2001; photo competition sites; personal presentation sites; and large sites, such as Masters of Photography and American Photography: A Century of Images. Access: http://jmc.ou.edu/viscom/.
• White House News Photographers Association.This site features a member’s gallery, contest information, and links. The links section is an excellent compilation of photojournalism associations and informational Web sites. Access: http://www.whnpa.org/.
Historical resources
• American Memory.This site is part of the Library of Congress Web page. On the Collection Finder page click on “photos & prints.” Each link retrieves a list of American Memory online collections. A significant collection is the Farm Security Administration-Office of War Information Collection (http://memory.loc.gov/ammem/ fsowhome.html). Access: http://memory.loc.gov/ ammem/collections/finder.html.
• International Center of Photography.As defined by the Web site, “The collection spans the history of the photographic medium, from Daguerreotypes and real photo postcards to iris prints.” You can view current exhibitions such as “Bronzeville: Black Chicago in Pictures 1941–1943” and some of the recent exhibitions, as well. Access: http://64.94.245.222/index.htm.
•LIFEMagazine Covers and Photo Essays.Some of the most famous photographs of the 20th century were taken for LIFE magazine. Photographs can be viewed in the sections entiled Life Books, Classic Pictures, Cover Collection, and Features. Access: http://www.life. com/Life/.
• PBS’s American Photography.PBS created a documentary called “American Photography: A Century of Images,” detailing the history of photography in the United States. Information related to the documentary can be found on the PBS Web site; the following informational paths are included: art, photography and war, digital truth, presidential image making, persuasion, social change, and cultural identity. This site is especially helpful for the student of photojournalism and for the general public wanting to know more about the impact of photojournalism in America. Access: http:// www.pbs.org/ktca/americanphotography/.
September 11
Listed below are some metasites of photograph collections of September 11, 2001.
• 11 September 2001—Visual collections.This link is on the University of Iowa Communication Studies Resources site. Access: http://www.uiowa.edu/ %7Ecommstud/resources/visualsites.html.
• Photojournalism and the Terrorist Attacks.This is a special selection of sites from the Journalist’s Toolbox. Access: http:// www.journaliststoolbox.com/newswriting/ photojournalism.html.
Notes
- Ken Sexton, Photojournalism in American Journalism: History, Principles, Practices, eds. W. David Sloan and Lisa Mulhkin Parcell (Jefferson, North Carolina: McFarland & Company, Inc., Publishers, 2002), 335. ■
