On World Press Photo; An infinite search for a worldwide recognition of your work or How (...)

*Original title: On World Press Photo; An infinite search for a worldwide recognition of your work or How the legends of a so-called holy grail of photography made us all lost raiders of the ark of photojournalism.

Photograph taken by Joost van den Broek / Used only for purposes of illustration/nonprofit.

That´s right. Some people call it the Holy Grail of photography, some “the highest status you´ll ever get as a photojournalist”, others “a circle of friends” but recent history admits that World Press Photo is one of most respected and important contest nowadays in terms of recognition, professionalism, prestige, art and vanguard within a context of photojournalism at its finest.

Photograph taken by Seamus Murphy / Used only for purposes of illustration/nonprofit.

Photograph taken by Corentin Fohlen / Used only for purposes of illustration/nonprofit.

It all started back in 1955 when it was founded as an independent and non-profit organization based in the Netherlands. The Dutch photojournalists´ union had a well known national contest called The Zilveren Camera, but they wanted to create an international contest to not only be able to get in touch with their colleagues around the globe but also to promote a new awareness of photojournalism that encourage other people and photographers to look at the world as it really is, with no filters whatsoever, with all the beauty, conflicts, fights, revolutions, and the growth of our societies.

Photograph taken by Ed Kashi / Used only for purposes of illustration/nonprofit.

Photograph taken by Andrew McConnell / Used only for purposes of illustration/nonprofit.

From the beginning, the organization aimed to a higher goal. They didn´t want to become another regular photo contest, they made it clear that besides the contest itself, the exhibition and the awards, they wanted to set a new vision of what photojournalism was all about. The nature of Press photography was discussed with an opened mind and because it was built as an independent organization from the very beginning, their vision was not compromised at all.

Photograph taken by Wolfram Hahn / Used only for purposes of illustration/nonprofit.

The decades of 60´s and 70´s were the time when World Press Photo took its real form as it´s known today. The contest became well known across the world and the exhibitions plans of the winning photos started to add more and more countries to the list. Today, the logistics of the prizewinning photographs is quite complex. The photographs are assembled into a traveling exhibition that is visited by over a million people in 40 countries year after year. If you´re lucky, you can buy a yearbook of the photos while you´re at it. It is published annually and in six languages.

Photograph taken by Hungarian News Agency (MTI) / Photo: MTI / Used only for purposes of illustration/nonprofit.

Photograph taken by the african media entrepreneur / The Fortalezza in Maputo, Mozambique / Used only for purposes of illustration/nonprofit.

Photograph taken by the african media entrepreneur / The Fortalezza in Maputo, Mozambique/ Used only for purposes of illustration/nonprofit.

World Press Photo entered in a new phase around 1987. They made a huge effort to stay independent but as long as the contest became more and more demanding the organization had to employ hired staff and set up an office to handle all the responsibilities of the contest and educational resources. A financial help was needed for this, and the first corporate sponsors came on board in 1987. Now I’m checking out my yearbook of WPP 2010 and I can see the logos of the TNT channel, Canon, and some kind of “super cool” printer for your photos. Adjustments were necessary, and like Bob Dylan sang years ago; the times they are a-changin´.

Photograph taken by Davide Monteleone / Used only for purposes of illustration/nonprofit.

Photograph taken by Stefano Unterthiner / Used only for purposes of illustration/nonprofit.

Besides the famous “World Press Photo of the Year”, which is the main prize fo the contest, the following categories are well appreciated: Spot News, General News, People in the News, Sports Action, Sports Features, Contemporary Issues, Daily Life, Portraits, Arts and Entertainment, and Nature.

Photograph taken by Daniele Tamagni / Used only for purposes of illustration/nonprofit.

Photograph taken by Omar Feisal / Used only for purposes of illustration/nonprofit.

Photograph taken by Gustavo Cuevas / Used only for purposes of illustration/nonprofit.

This time the WPP of the year was awarded to Jodi Bieber. A photographer from South Africa that took a portrait photo of Aisha, a young woman from Afghanistan that was punished by her husband for fleeing away from home. She ran away from domestic violence and escaped to her family´s house but according to the taliban law, that simple act of betray to her husband have to be followed by a punishment, in this case, her Husband cut off her ears and noise. Aisha was rescued by a group of soldiers and they took her to a safe shelter, she now lives in US.

Photograph taken by Jodi Bieber / Used only for purposes of illustration/nonprofit.

The jury decided to award this photograph with the main prize of the contest because it shows how far can go our believes within our culture and still consider them very reasonable, needless to say, it is important to show the world not only the victims of the violence againts women but it is more important to work on ways to stop this aggression.

Photograph taken by Jodi Bieber (LEFT) / Used only for purposes of illustration/nonprofit.

You folks can check out the official site here and enjoy the whole gallery of winning photographs, it is worth it! I hope you enjoyed this post as much as i did, have a good day "compadres" and i hope i`ll see you on the road riders!

Take good care friends!

Bye!
Written by Jesus Rodriguez
Feel free to comment!
jrphotojournalist@gmail.com

Stanley Kubrick: the youngest photographer to be called a "veteran" or how the world gave birth the first “visual poet”.

Self-portrait of Stanley Kubrick with a Leica III/ Used only for purposes of illustration/nonprofit.

Stanley Kubrick for a long time was just a filmmaker for me. I’m pretty sure that to a lot of people he still is just “that”. But way back in my college years I found out that he wasn’t just the greatest filmmaker for me, he once was a boy wandering in New York City with a camera, and guess what? He was a freelance photojournalist.

Photographs taken by Stanley Kubrick / Used only for purposes of illustration/nonprofit.

But being a photojournalist ain´t exactly a walk in the park. Everyone can buy a camera and take pictures, that´s for sure, but to cross from amateur skills to the PRO status, well… that’s something everyone ain´t willing to do.

Stanley Kubrick was born on July 26, 1928 in New York City. His father brought him a camera when he was 13 years old and from that moment on he developed almost an obsession and fascination for still photography. Needless to say, once he learnt how to use his camera, he was the official photographer for his High School for a year.

Photographs taken by Stanley Kubrick / Used only for purposes of illustration/nonprofit.

He also made some contacts and sold various photos to Look Magazine while he was trying to make some money playing chess in New York. But it wasn’t until 1946 that he became officially a photography apprentice at the Magazine and later a full time staff photographer. A remarkable achievement for such a young man.

Self-portrait of Stanley Kubrick / Used only for purposes of illustration/nonprofit.

At some point Kubrick knew that cinema was somehow his truly passion. Photography was sort of like a vehicle to him to improve his technical perfectionism (which the audience was about to enjoy a few years later) but what I think Kubrick really understood right behind the camera, right there as a photojournalist, was basically how to make or find his own visual style and from there he started to work deeply in elements in photography that depends entirely on the photographer, such as the light or absence of it, composition and what I consider his recurrent theme, and most important; the search for a subject that truly matters to him and through that show a palette of human characteristic such as emotions, fears, frustration, bravery, hope, sadness and joy.

Photographs taken by Stanley Kubrick / Used only for purposes of illustration/nonprofit.
*This picture of a newspaper vendor reacting to Roosevelt's death was considered the one that turned the amateur photographer into pro. Kubrick sold it for 25$ to Look Magazine. Years later, according to some people, Kubrick said he staged the photo.

One of Kubrick´s heroes was "the eccentric tabloid" Arthur Fellig, known as "Weegee". Weegee usually often arrive at crime scenes before the NYPD. He was well known for his "shocking photos" but certainly he was a one of the greatest photographers at seizing the unguarded moment, which was awesome for a new photographer like Kubrick. It´s no surprise to know that this maybe was one of the first influences on Kubrick, who "emulated his patience and invisibility, spending hours on the subway surreptitiously photographing fellow passengers, or quietly capturing the apprehension of toothache sufferers in a dentist's waiting room".

First picture: Portrait of Photographer Weegee /second: Photograph taken by Weegee/ Used only for purposes of illustration/nonprofit.

His film career and how he started is a matter for a new post, but I tell you that once he felt the need to start making motion pictures, he began frequenting film screenings at the museum of modern art and of course, watching movies at the cinemas in New York.

Photographs taken by Stanley Kubrick / Used only for purposes of illustration/nonprofit.

Pretty much all his work as a photojournalist for Look Magazine has been published in the book Drama and Shadows released in 2005 by Phaidon Press. But also, if you are a Kubrick fan, you can check out some of the special features on the special edition on DVD of 2001: A space Odyssey, not only you´ll be purchasing a cult movie but also you´ll find out more about what I’m writing here.

Cover photo of book Drama and Shadows / Photographs taken by Stanley Kubrick / Used only for purposes of illustration/nonprofit.

Here are a few more samples of Stanley Kubrick´s work as a photojournalist for Look Magazine:

Photographs taken by Stanley Kubrick / Used only for purposes of illustration/nonprofit.

And finally, if you like Charlie Rose and Stanley Kubrick, what better video than this? i let you a round table interview with Martin Scorsese, Christiane Kubrick, Stanley Kubrick´s widow, producer Jan Harlan and some clips of the documentary Stanley Kubrick: A life in pictures.




On my next post, i will talk about Arthur Fellig. Better known as Weegee... the famous street photography of crime scenes and emergencies, but he also made photographs of social events in New York, for those of you who don´t like that kind of stuff :-)

I hope you liked it! see you on the road amigos! take care of yourselves!

Bye!
Written by Jesus Rodriguez
Feel free to comment!
jrphotojournalist@gmail.com

My Multimedia projects are uploaded!

Screenshot /Used only for purposes of illustration/nonprofit.

Hi fellas!

Usually, i don´t post here anything related to my own photojournalism work, but now that i joined Vimeo, a great site for videos, i let you know that i uploaded 3 multimedia projects i made a few months ago, and finally, yes finally!! are online!

i know this blog is a place where i share experiences and i talk about photography from a personal anecdotal point of view, but since this is my first upload in Vimeo, and ive never been posting my own work, i just thought it would be nice to share it with you friends!

These multimedia projects are very different from each other. one is about a dancer, a young dancer working and teaching tango lessons in Caracas.
The second project is about a street Preacher, an unique "teacher of god´s word" and the last one is a long term project i made with photographs i took from 2006 to 2010. Its basically a journal that shows part of the public life of the Venezuelan President Chavez.

You can click on the screenshot to check them out! or click here!

Well, i hope you enjoy those videos!

See you on the road Amigos!

Bye!

Written by Jesus Rodriguez
Feel free to comment!
jrphotojournalist@gmail.com

ELVIS WHO??

Photograph by Alfred Wertheimer / Used only for purposes of illustration/nonprofit.

I remember the first time I heard an Elvis Presley song. I was maybe 9 or 10 years old.

It was a pretty damn hot summer afternoon and we had an old mixtape cassette that somehow ended up in our house. And let me tell cousin, it was a "precious", almost like the precious of Gollum from Lord of the Rings.

It’s hard to believe or even remember the first time you do something. Memories usually are always trying to deceive facts and sometimes they don’t seem to sit well with you at all even when you do your best to memorize your whole life.

Photograph by Alfred Wertheimer / Used only for purposes of illustration/nonprofit.

As an adult, I personally don’t try to remember all my movements, - I don’t even remember what I did last weekend - but clearly I still can remember when I said to my mother that I was listening a song of “Elvis I-don’t-know-what”.

To be honest, I didn’t like too much the songs of the cassette. The first one was Elvis Presley´s famous love song "Love me tender". It was a hell of a song! But of course, I didn’t know it then. It wasn’t my style, it was too slow, kind of romantic and I thought it was music for girls! - Later with years, I guess I can say my thoughts were not too far from reality.

Photograph by Alfred Wertheimer / Used only for purposes of illustration/nonprofit.

Love me tender and Love me do (Elvis Presley and The Beatles) are the only songs I only remember of the tracklist, ain’t that a shame? - But those were the ones I listened the most. Specially Love me tender, which I used to hum it all day long.

After that, I listened a bunch of Elvis songs, such as Heartbreak Hotel, In The Ghetto, That´s All Right, Blue Suede Shoes, Jailhouse Rock and my mother´s favorite Suspicious Mind. All greats and all easy to dance, hum and listen in any given afternoon.

Photograph by Alfred Wertheimer / Used only for purposes of illustration/nonprofit.

The second real and strong encounter with Mister Presley in my life I remember it loud and clear. My mother took me to the movies to see Forrest Gump back in ´94 or ´95. And if you watched Forrest Gump, you know exactly what I’m talking about.

Screenshots of the movie Forrest Gump / Used only for purposes of illustration/nonprofit.

Although an actor was impersonating Elvis Presley, I found it fantastic! And in the words of Forrest himself; “That´s all I have to say about that”.

Portrait of Alfred Wertheimer / Used only for purposes of illustration/nonprofit.

Alfred Wertheimer was a struggling twenty-six year old free-lance photojournalist in New York City. He was hired by RCA in 1956 to shoot promotional images of a recently signed 21-year-old recording artist named Elvis Presley.

Legend said that Alfred Wertheimer is one of the few people in the world that had the luxury or benefit to say “Elvis Who?” when he heard about his assignment. After those words…that´s pretty much where his journal began.

Photograph by Alfred Wertheimer / Used only for purposes of illustration/nonprofit.

Heartbreak Hotel was the number 1 hit back in ´56 and the music label wanted Wertheimer to delivers some nice and promotional backstage photos of the young guy with a baby face. Of course no one thought they were in the presence of the future “king of Rock and Roll” or The Tiger (Karate name), Elvis The Pelvis, Alan (Codename at Graceland), Big E! or simply; The Hillbilly Cat.

Photograph by Alfred Wertheimer / Used only for purposes of illustration/nonprofit.

Anyway, whatever nicknames Elvis was about to receive a few years later, what brings us here today it´s the fact that between March and July of ´56 Wertheimer took about 4,000 photographs of Elvis in a way nobody else could ever match in terms of intimacy, innocence, childish behavior, grace, hope and somehow we are able to see a naughty and daring Elvis, especially with girls. Soon after, “Colonel” Tom Parker, Elvis’ manager, restricted media contact with Presley.

Wertheimer has shown the Elvis Presley's life on the road in 1956 on a book called Elvis At 21: New York To Memphis.

Cover of the book of Alfred Wertheimer / Used only for purposes of illustration/nonprofit.

The most famous of Wertheimer's photographs is "The Kiss", a flirtatious encounter Elvis had with a young woman backstage in Richmond, Virginia before a concert. "I was more interested in the moments just before or just after the decisive moment," explained Wertheimer.

Famous photo known as "The Kiss" / Photograph by Alfred Wertheimer / Used only for purposes of illustration/nonprofit.

Here´s a piece of an interview made to Wertheimer:

How did you first meet Elvis? I got this one assignment from RCA.

I was thrilled because I was going to work closely with Tommy Dorsey and I was asked to work with Elvis Presley. At that time I had never heard of Elvis. I first met Elvis in his dressing room in CBS TV Studio 50 where he was preparing for his fifth appearance on the Dorsey Stage Show... Elvis looked kinda bored. He was yawning. There was a ring salesman and Elvis had just ordered diamond ring with a horse shoe and horse's head. Elvis continued to wear that ring for a long time after.

Photograph by Alfred Wertheimer / Used only for purposes of illustration/nonprofit.

What is the story behind that famous Wertheimer print of Elvis Tongue Kissing the Girl on the Stairwell?

It took place in a dark alcove behind the stage of the Mosque Theatre (Richmond, Virginia) about two minutes before Elvis went on stage to perform before 4 thousand people, on June 30, 1956. This female fan said to Elvis. 'I'll bet you can't kiss me, Elvis so there" "I betcha I can", retorted Elvis.

The whole episode took about a tenth of a second. A minute later Elvis was on stage. Just then I was coming down from the men's room and saw this scene. Of Elvis and the girl flirting, kind of having this private moment. I said to myself, "If I shot this... Elvis may have me fired and I lose my job" But then I said to myself, "What the heck I'll take the chance..." While I'm having this internal conversation I put the camera to my eye and see These two figures in silhouette with a window background.

Photograph by Alfred Wertheimer / Used only for purposes of illustration/nonprofit.

So I got a little closer and closer and before I knew it and start snapping. Now they block my way so I stand up on the railing to get another angle. I get one picture where Elvis is in closel. Then Elvis makes his move... sticks out his tongue…and the rest is history.


Everyone wants to know who is the girl is in the photograph?

To this day I'm still am not sure. Several years ago, I had somebody from the South claiming it was her and she feels I should be paying her royalties. So I asked, "Look after 41 years, how old are you?" She said, "I'm 65"....

However, I suspected that this girl should have been a lot younger.

Photograph by Alfred Wertheimer / Used only for purposes of illustration/nonprofit.

Then I asked her what we were doing the day before and day after this picture was taken.
She said, "Well I flew up to Niagara Falls with Elvis on the plane." I told her, "Your story doesn't jibe with the facts, so are certainly not the girl in the picture" - She retorted, "I'm sure I'm that girl"

Photograph by Alfred Wertheimer / Used only for purposes of illustration/nonprofit.

So I said, "Elvis kissed a lot of girls. You might have been kissed by Elvis but this is not you. Then she set her lawyer on me. As I could prove that she was not the girl in the photo that she claimed to be... but it took me six month to resolve the issue. You must be proud that this photo has since become an icon of Elvis rock n roll era. Yes, but the biggest thrill was when Diane Keaton was the first to ever buy that photo from me. "She later wrote that this was the sexiest picture ever taken in the whole world and the history of man.... and I will admit... I agree with her.

*Source

here´s a video of Wertheimer himself:

Well, now that you know WHO is WHO, I hope you fall (more) in love with the music of The King….honestly, Elvis is one of my childhood heroes and I wish you the same passion for his music and moves that I have being feeling since I was a kid.

Photograph by Alfred Wertheimer / Used only for purposes of illustration/nonprofit.

In case you want to see pretty much all the gallery of photos, click here and enjoy!

See you on the road amigos! Thx for reading and take care of yourselves.

Bye!
Written by Jesus Rodriguez
Feel free to comment!
jrphotojournalist@gmail.com

The man who fooled the devil /// Or how an ordinary man traveled from La(s) Vega(s) to California without selling his soul for fame and fortune.

Bret Easton Ellis / Used only for purposes of illustration/nonprofit.

Last Saturday I was spending the afternoon with my friends Mike and Jean Pierre. Mike, an old friend from my first semester in college, got his name after his famous or should i say infamous impersonation of Michael Jackson´s moon walker dancing steps. His real name is Carlos and if you´d ask me, i would totally say that I’ve never seen somebody quite like him imitating the late Michael Jackson. In other words, Carlos got soul! Even when he ain’t be moon walking for me or my friends anymore. He will never admit in public that he is damn good dancing, but that´s another subject. The fact is that i don’t know whether he got religious or retired, but he made it clear that those days are gone.

I met Jean Pierre, the cousin of my college sidekick Jose, maybe 2 semesters after i met mike. he first became friend with my cousin, but our path crossed somehow i can´t exactly recall (maybe the love for music and movies) and we became friends too.

Justin Reed art from the movie American Psycho / Used only for purposes of illustration/nonprofit.

In college, I think, it’s a lot easier to make friends. i believe that books, movies, television, fast food, mad/crazy teachers, coffees and music make the people come together more easily. Wait! ain’t that a Madonna song?. Anyway, in my case, the friends i made in college is the same people who stuck with me over these last ten years, and hopefully they will be my friends for rest of my life.

Fantastic Man- Bret Easton Ellis / Used only for purposes of illustration/nonprofit.

Anyway, we were spending the afternoon in my place and we started talking about books. Mike brought two books for Jean Pierre and he gave them to him. I was checking out some cool movies mike had in his backpacking and before we knew, we end up talking about the American writer Bret Easton Ellis.

Bret Easton Ellis / Used only for purposes of illustration/nonprofit.

In case you don’t know Ellis, some of his novels are Less than zero, Lunar Park, Glamorama, American Psycho, etc. Mike was talking about Ellis´s new book Imperial Bedrooms and how great the book and the trailer was. (Yes, they made a trailer of that book, can you believe it?) I didn’t know about the so-called kick-ass trailer, so I decided to check it out online while we were still discussing about Ellis personality (or what we thought his personality was like).

The trailer was loaded 100% and I pressed play! - It really looked like a great movie trailer and my jaw was way down. It was awesome! The editing, the voice over, the music... but hold onnnn! -I yelled. I saw a picture of a devil, a black devil in the trailer and that image looked too much familiar.

-Ain’t that a photo taken here in Caracas? (My hometown) I asked them.

-No way. Mike said. It must be some fancy design from California- he thought.

-it looks like a photo I’ve seen in Magnum photos I said. I think it´s a Chris Anderson photo, from a book named "Capitolio".

They both looked each other without saying anything. Making me sound crazy.

After a couple of minutes searching for the photo of "the devil" online, we finally found it. It was a Magnum Photos taken by Chris Anderson in La Vega, a poor slum here in Caracas.

Christopher Anderson / Magnum Photos/ Used only for purposes of illustration/nonprofit.

The funny thing is that we all have seen that devil (The image cover of the latest Bret Easton Ellis book Imperial Bedrooms) in person or printed in local newspapers, he´s famous over here! But I guess nobody takes enough attention to this kind of stuff.

But you might be asking yourself, who is that devil I am talking about? - Well, as many of you know, the president of Venezuela, Hugo Chavez Frías, is a leftist politician. Chavez supporters are always participating in marches and political meetings and they are always making up new outfits/costumes to express something creative and original while they´re cheering their leaders. I guess it’s also a way to stand up from the crowd.

Anyway, the first time I saw that guy (The famous Devil) he came out from nowhere. His whole body was painted in red and he was wearing some kind of tiny black men´s swimsuit. He was dancing and screaming like he was in flames or something. But don’t get me wrong, he was really happy and enjoying what he was doing.

An alternative photo of the same devil. Ariana Cubillos-AP/ Used only for purposes of illustration/nonprofit.

His head was the center of attraction to most people. 2 big fat horns and a red spongy afro made him look way too spooky to many children and his tail was the final touch to make you think he was the real deal. That´s Fantastic, I thought.

But why does he use a devil costume? I can think of at least 3 different meanings.

First, to many Chavez Supporters and also to a lot of people around the world, the figure of devil means capitalism, a way of life opposed to Chavez government. Second, Here in Venezuela, or at least to Chavez and supporters, the devil´s representation is related directly to former EEUU president George Bush. A president with not so many good critics around the globe. But not only W. (as Mister Oliver stone calls him) get a kick in the butt in this situation. The devil works as a form to express that evil is among us, referring maybe to those whom live their life worshipping foreign lands and giving less importance to their own fatherland. The so-called "vende patria o apatriados", in English is something like Unpatriotic persons or stateless persons.

Art of Matt Mayfield / Used only for purposes of illustration/nonprofit.

Note: The different meanings and analogies written here are part of several testimonies of people I’ve heard while I’m covering political meetings as a photojournalist. This is not an attempt to assure you that this is right or wrong. It’s up to the reader´s mind to decide what to believe or accept.

Official wallpaper provided on Bret Easton Ellis official site / Used only for purposes of illustration/nonprofit.

Having said that, beyond any meaning in terms of any political effects this figure causes, I find pretty amazing that an ordinary man from my hometown, was in the right time and place to be photographed by Chris Anderson in La Vega, Caracas. Who took the photo and published it in his book called "Capitolio". And later somebody saw this picture in Capitolio and proposed it to be the photo cover of Ellis latest Book Imperial Bedroom.

Photo comparison between the book's cover and original photography taken by Chris Anderson/ Use only for purposes of illustration/nonprofit.

All of this, because one man gave up his real identity and played the role of the devil that day, fooling all kind of possibilities that his face would be posted on Beverly Hills as a promotional image from a book by an author who perhaps he never heard of.

A street in California with an advertising piece of Imperial Bedrooms / Used only for purposes of illustration/nonprofit.

His big fat horns and his personality brought him fame and fortune in a different way we all expected, without giving up on his soul, as the old tale tells. Ain’t that something?

I guess the red devil will catch us all on the flip side! mmmm...or just maybe Mister Ellis, who wrote on twitter after he found out about the famous American Writer J.D. Salinger death the following:


Ok! just kidding folks! do not take it so seriously! - Here Ellis breaks Silence On His Public Celebration Of J.D. Salinger's Death. ( In case you want to read the "some kind of explanation ")

See you on the road friends. Hopefully not on the highway to hell as AC/DC wrote some time ago.

AC/DC Highway to Hell album cover / Used only for purposes of illustration/nonprofit.

Bret Easton official site here!

Bye!

Written by Jesus Rodriguez.
jrphotojournalist@gmail.com