(Nikon D2Xs, Nikon 80-200mm f/2.8 @ 200mm, I/320th sec. @ f/4, ISO 320)

Gov. Martin O'Malley has been photographed numerous times — mostly by The Sun's photographers. He has been the focus of our lenses a whole lot. We're talking many, many times here. You can't throw a stick at a stack of Sun newspapers without hitting a picture of O'Malley.

While covering the sort of things like the Special Session of the General Assembly, I try tremendously to get pictures not seen before — or at least a smidge different. This can be done through composition, lens choice, light or exposure, among many things.

This photograph of O'Malley wallking outside Government House to meet with the press hits me for various reasons. The light striking O'Malley, the wringing hands, pensive look and huge binder with massive paperwork; it all combines into a nice photo with a nice look and feel.

It may not get published in any form. Whatever the case, I do know it works for me and is better than a staid, literal stand-up photograph. It conveys much more.  

Posted by Christopher Assaf at 2:00 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)
                    

If you were standing next to a couple newspaper racks in the Dallas-Ft.Worth area this morning, you might have done a double take. The Dallas Morning News and the Ft. Worth Star-Telegram ran the same photo of Lady Bird Johnson on their covers. The Morning News cover has the correct version of the photo, while the Star-Telegram's cover flopped it.

An inadvertent mistake, it was the way the photo was presented to them, but still a big "Oops..." 

The best thing about this is the way the Star-Telegram immediately addresses the issue and lets the readers know what happened and why. No denial. No burying of the carcass. Just plain honesty. Too often newspapers bury their head in the sand when it comes to directly addressing issues and mistakes. Now, I am not talking about copy editing or factual mistakes. But instances where confusion and inconstancy can affect the perception and reputation of the paper by both readers and employees.

The San Antonio Express-News also made the mistake on their cover, so they are not the only paper. But I mast add I love the design of the Express-News cover and the looser crop of the Morning News. Put together  would have been fireworks -- though the Morning News cover looks very nice also.

Posted by Christopher Assaf at 12:57 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)