Dr Joseph

Obe
Dr Joe
Email:
drjoe@josephobe.com
Twitter:@josephobe
Website:
www.josephobe.com
FB: Joseph Obe

Introduction to
Photojournalism

Course Overview
This course kick- starts the career of those who
want to venture into photojournalism. This course
is intended for potential editors, designers, and
other communicators who need to appreciate
photographs in order to use them intelligently in
their work. The class also should interest students
who want to improve their "visual literacy" while
learning some of the history and principles of
photojournalism.
It
will
not
include
the
comprehensive task of taking picture but it will
prepare you to start using camera as a
professional journalist. However, you will be
required to carry out simple photo shooting
exercise around the campus.

 will learn
What you

At the end of this course, students should

be able to:
produce images that tell stories for
newspapers, magazines, books and the
Internet.
appreciate the content, aesthetic beauty
and usefulness of photographs in relation
to news making.
Write and produce intelligent captions for
their photos.
Identify a good photo and the elements
that make a good photo

Class Philosophy
1.I will take lots of pictures
2.I will always plan my pictures
3.I will get close to my pictures
4.I will shoot in the best light
possible
5.I will be creative.

 will learn
What you

At the end of this course, students should

be able to:
produce images that tell stories for
newspapers, magazines, books and the
Internet.
appreciate the content, aesthetic beauty
and usefulness of photographs in relation
to news making.
Write and produce intelligent captions for
their photos.
Identify a good photo and the elements
that make a good photo.

Module 1
Fundamentals of Photojournalism
The development of photography in the 1830s
was one of the most profound changes that has
affected the way we view the world. Photography
brings to life people, places, events and other
things that we would otherwise have trouble
understanding. It has given us a common set of
images

with

environment
experience.

which
that

we

to
do

understand
not

the

personally

Photography is an important part of

journalism. It, along with the words that we
use, is a vital part of telling the story we have
to tell.
Photography gives the audience for journalism
another dimension of information that they
cannot get with words.
It often gives life and form to the words that
journalists use.
It helps to entertain the audience as well as to
deep their understanding of the information in
a story.
Photography is a way of impressing a story

Outstanding Photo
Journalists
One of the first great
photojournalists was Matthew
Brady, a New York portrait
photographer who traveled to
many of the battlefields of the
American Civil War in the 1860s
to record what had happened
there. Bradys images brought
home to people who had stayed
behind the starkness and
horrors of way and helped
change the way that people
thought about war itself.

Outstanding Photo
Journalists
Students to research
about local
Photojournalists like
Peter Obe of the Nigeria
Daily Times

Portfolio Assignment 1: PR
Find an object that projects the
image of the university. It could be
its logo, website, branding, gate
etc. Take a picture of the object
and find out everything you can
about the item. Why do you
consider it as a public relations
tool for the University?
Submission Deadline: 23rd April 2013
@11am. 5 marks

Difference between
photojournalism and
photography
1.Photography focuses on the
aesthetic beauty of an image while
photojournalism focuses on how the
news angle of an image.
2.Photojournalist is concerned about
the
compositional
focus,
or
emphasis
of a picture while
photography is concerned with
clarity, colour and quality of a
picture.
3. Photo journalists must integrate
photography into their thinking about
every story they cover. But that isn't
the business of a photographer.

What a photojournalists
must look out for in Pictures
1.Drama: Pix that will hold
viewers attention.
2.Action: Pix that depicts
movement, keeping viewers in
suspense of what happened
before and after the pix was
taken.
3. Expression: The photo that
captures expression tells a good
story.
4.
Unusualness: capture the
unique or bizarre moments of
peoples lives

Ethics and legal issues in

photojournalism
1.Take the pictures first and decide whether it will be
published or not later.
2.It is a crime to manipulate the pix. Take pix as it
appears. Do not move or photoshop pix for
publication as people believe pix dont lie .

Code of ethics of the National Press

Photographers Association.
1. Be accurate and comprehensive in the representation
of subjects.
2. Resist being manipulated by staged photo
opportunities.
3. Be complete and provide context when photographing
or recording subjects. Avoid stereotyping individuals and
groups. Recognize and work to avoid presenting one's
own biases in the work.
4. Treat all subjects with respect and dignity. Give special
consideration to vulnerable subjects and compassion to
victims of crime or tragedy. Intrude on private moments of
grief only when the public has an overriding and justifiable
need to see.
5. While photographing subjects do not intentionally
contribute to, alter, or seek to alter or influence events.

Code of ethics of the National Press

Photographers Association (Contd)
6. Editing should maintain the integrity of the
photographic images' content and context. Do not
manipulate images or add or alter sound in any
way that can mislead viewers or misrepresent
subjects.
7. Do not pay sources or subjects or reward them
materially for information or participation.
8. Do not accept gifts, favours, or compensation
from those who might seek to influence coverage.
9. Do not intentionally sabotage the efforts of

Portfolio Assignment 2: News Events

Choose a newsworthy event to cover: a speech, a
press conference, a meeting, a protest, a concert,
bad weather, an accident, etc. Shoot at least ten
pictures, trying to emphasize unusual angles, getting
in close, interesting lighting, etc. Photos must contain
people. Fifteen to twenty pictures.
5 marks
Submission deadline: Tuesday 30th April, 2013
@11am

The 3s of
Photojournalism
The 3s of photojournalism
distinguishes you from just
being a photographer and
being a professional
photojournalist. They are:

the three kinds of photos

the rule of thirds

the three kinds of

photos
Long
range/establishing
shots. These are
pictures taken in a
scene in its entirety.
They give the viewer a
good idea of the
environment of the
subject of the
photograph, but they
do not offer much

the three kinds of

photos
Midrange:These shots
bring the
photographer closer to
the subject and give
more specific
information about the
subject. But they still
show the subject
within a setting so that
the viewer has some
idea about the
environment in which

Good midrange photography

requires the photographer to
move, to change positions, and
to shoot from a variety of
angles. One of the marks of the
rank beginner is that all of the
photos are taken from the same
spot and the same angle. Good
photojournalists move around
their subjects and try to find
interesting angles and
perspectives from which to
shoot. They dont mind getting
on their knees or lying on their
backs or getting on top of
tables, chairs or ladders to take
interesting and informative
pictures.

Close-up: The best and

most interesting
pictures generally are
close-up shots. These
pictures bring the
viewers face to face
with the subject and
allow them to get detail
information about the
subject. Good close-up
pictures cut out all of
the environmental
information about the
subject.

Close-up photography is
what proves the worth of
the photojournalist for the
viewer. Photojournalists
get near a subject when
viewers cannot or are
unwilling to go that close.
These shots give viewers
something
of
value,
something they would not
get otherwise. Getting
good
close-up
shots
requires both skill and
courage.

The Rule of thirds

This is a way in which

photographers think about
the composition of their
photographs so that they
are more interesting and
informative. The rule of
thirds helps direct the eye
of the viewer in a natural
way toward the important
parts of the photo. The
concept and the
application of the rule of
thirds are both fairly simple

What a photojournalists
must look out for in Pictures
1.Drama: Pix that will hold
viewers attention.
2.Action: Pix that depicts
movement, keeping viewers in
suspense of what happened
before and after the pix was
taken.
3. Expression: The photo that
captures expression tells a good
story.
4.
Unusualness: capture the
unique or bizarre moments of
peoples lives

Assignment 3

Architecture and history. Shoot

pictures of buildings with unique
architecture,
or
of
historical
significance.
In
your
written
description, give information about
the architectures origin and its
community impact, or give a brief
historical account (about two
paragraphs) of the building. Make
sure you quote architectural experts
and historians.

Caption Writing
According to the American Press Institute, photo
captions should accomplish four things:
Explain the action: Tell where and when.
Name the principles: Dont leave out anyone whos in
the picture. If their not important, crop them out.
Tell why youre running the photo: Go beyond the
obvious. Try to pull the reader into the story.
Note important detail: Explain all mysterious objects
or circumstances. Allow for a longer photo caption if it
will help the reader understand the story.

General Tips in Caption Writing

Use conversational language. Make it easy to read.
Avoid cliches.
Use present tense when describing action
(Runs, running instead of ran or will run).
Active voice reads stronger (Max is riding the bike
instead of The bike is being ran by Max).
Take out needless adjectives and and adverbs (Ran
fast, strong, skillfully, is running, or looks on).
Dont repeat information that appears in the headline
or body.
Remember to name the source of the photo and the
date it was taken.
Triple check the correct spelling of names.

Examples of Good & Bad Captions

Example of Bad Photo Caption: Young Ms. Riding
Hood walking briskly to her grandmothers cottage
during a dreary fall morning.
["Yes, I can see that, but how young is she? Why is
she walking briskly? Where is her grandmother's
cottage? It doesn't look all that dreary to me."]
Example of Good Photo Caption: Red Riding Hood,
age 9, carries a basket of flowers in Fable Forest to
attend to her sick grandmother in Yorkshire

Examples of Good & Bad Captions

Example: (bad) OUCH! Oxford High School bicyclist
crashes.
Example: (good) DOWN AND OUT. Senior cycling
team captain Bob Everitt takes it on the chin after
cutting the final corner too close in a duel with
Mosby Highs Steve Sherrill at the seasons first
race. After a trip to the hospital and 10 stitches, Bob
went on to win five races for the year and led the
team to an overall second place finish in the region

Examples of Good & Bad Captions

Example: (bad) HES OUT. Chuck jumps

and throws toward first.
Example: (good) UP AND OVER.
Shortstop Chuck Davidson avoids Dan
Gladdens rolling slide and makes the
throw to first to complete the ninth
inning double play which sealed
Oaklands 3-2 win over Birkdale Twins in
the subdistrict playoffs.