Photojournalism and photography in itself early required both effort and time. For example, in Module 4 of the course content, the video on the wet collodion process, exemplified the length and difficulty of developing a photo. Before modern technology, it required countless hours of work in order for a photojournalist to get their photograph published in the news. This does not even take in to count the time it took to develop the image itself. However, as time went on and inventions came about, transmitting these images to news corporations slowly progressed and became easier with the development in computer technology. The largest contribution to the change of photojournalism can arguably be the cell phone. These small devices hold the power to not only transmit and upload photos, but the power to take images as well.
In the 19th century, at the beginning of photojournalism, in order for a journalist to get his/her photo published in the news, they would have to travel to the location in which the print process would take place. This could sometimes be a 15 minutes commute, or several days all depending on the situation, of course. However, as modern science progressed, cell phones were invented and were soon linked instantly to the internet. Mobile phones created instant access to publication for photojournalists. An example of this simplicity, is Fresco New, and their slogan “Get Close. Get The Shot. Get Paid.” Fresco News is an application for smart phones that allows the user to instantly upload their photojournalistic image to a wide network of news corporations for publication. This link has brought controversy to photojournalism, many believe the ease has hindered the quality of content in the field.
When comparing the pre digital and internet era with the modern technology today, they are both means in which photojournalism content is transmitted. The pre digital method, though lengthy, was a solid and direct way for quality content. An example of this length is told about in the article in reference to Robert Capa. The article tells how Capa had to fly from France to England, just to process his images for publication. This is due to the fact that, in that time, only “vetted” photojournalists had contracts with news agencies for publication. Now that the digital era has been upon us, and the wonderful tool the internet is, photojournalist argue that the content of photojournalism is lacking. Almost any individual has the power to publish a photo with a story and be coined as a photojournalist. This technology was both helpful and hurtful for photojournalism. For example, in the article about a photojournalist being a pack mule, Wilkins tells that “staff photographer jobs were highly sought after and difficult to obtain”. This is much different in comparison to now a days.
Photojournalism through the internet via tools such as the computer and cellular devices gives the ability to convey stories from essentially anywhere in the world. A photojournalists simply needs to be in the right place at the right time for the story and snap a decent image. This image can does not even require photography equipment as it did in the past. An iPhone is capable of capturing the moment in time and even transmitting it. Professor Nordell explains in his first video of module 6 that an iPhone 5 camera possesses a 8 megapixel camera, a phenomenal camera being that it is handheld. After the user snaps the photo, they simply have to send the file to an editor or the news cooperation itself. The image is then looked at, edited, and soon after, published. The sheer simplicity of this advancement has allowed photojournalism to grow and prosper.
Photo by: Antonio Perez
Image Source: http://newsblogs.chicagotribune.com/assignment-chicago/2013/07/photojournalism-is-alive-thank-you.html
Photo by: John Thomson
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