Types of Photojournalism- Different Types of Photojournalism & Photography. The 8 Types of Photojournalism are Spot News, General News, Feature Sports, Action Sports, Features, Portrait/Personality, Pictorial, also Illustration. Types of photojournalism pdf.
Types of Journalism
Photojournalism
Photojournalism refers to explaining a moment, issue, incident, or story by using photography. It is a way of storytelling that represents a story visually via photos. Photojournalism is one of the significant types of print journalism that has become an essential part of journalism.
Types of Photojournalism
Different Types of Photojournalism in Photography
The 8 Types of Photojournalism are:
- Spot News Photojournalism
- General News Photojournalism
- Feature Photojournalism
- Sports Action Photojournalism
- Sports Features Photojournalism
- Portrait/Personality Photojournalism
- Pictorial Photojournalism
- Illustration Photojournalism
1. Spot News Photojournalism
Spot news photographs carry an urgent, unplanned, and often unpleasant or undesirable ambiance. The coverage cannot be scheduled in advance. Spot news photography includes automobile accidents, airplane crashes, tornadoes, fires, murders, bank robberies, and so more. It also represents various acute, exciting, and usually noteworthy occurrences that help characterize life. Usually, spot news occurs without notice and ends quickly, or its most newsworthy aspects do. Unless aftermath photos are acceptable, so photographers must arrive soon. Many newspaper photographers use police monitors, cellular telephones, social media platforms, for example, Facebook, Twitter to get spot news.
Covering Spot News
The key to successfully covering spot news, once the photographer has arrived, is to quickly ascertain what is going on and decide which aspect is the most important and truthful—which element is the most appropriate truth. Then photographers marshal all the technological and creative aspects of photojournalism to inform readers well within appropriate legal restraints and ethical limitations. Photographers should always record what appears to be the essential aspect first. It would help if you made every reasonable effort to keep intrusion to a minimum—by using attention-getting flash, stay physically as far from the action as possible, respect police lines, take care not to destroy potential evidence—by walking on them.
Spot news often presents two sides: the hard-core event and secondary but often humanizing aspects.
2. General News Photojournalism
Journalistic organizations schedule the general news photojournalism process is termed general or planned news. Covering general news may not have the adrenaline-producing excitement of raging fires, police shootouts, etc., but this category regularly offers photojournalists opportunities to inform readers about significant happenings. General news allows photojournalists to plan is knowing a story—what it is, where it came from, where it is, and where it probably is headed. If time allows, delve into subjects so you can make informed decisions about coverage and emphasis—can avoid covering the superficial and obvious gimmick set up. Photojournalists should get familiar with the subject and physical layout of coverage sites.
Covering General News
Must be cooperative with reporters from your organization who can help you in your quest to inform readers visually. Reporters can provide insight into a story that photojournalists might miss.
Two Types of General News
- Hard News: Something that’s happening now. It’s “important” news. Seeks to inform rather than entertain.
- Breaking News: Hard news that’s happening right now. An ongoing story.
3. Features News Photojournalism
The feature is a broad category that includes images with at least some news value and pictures that may easily fit in one or more other non-news categories.
Two Types of Feature photojournalism are:
1) Lighthearted images that entertain more than inform.
2) Serious images that inform more than entertain.
For example, light-hearted images are squirrels chewing on nuts, children playing in large boxes, parents pushing children on swings.
For example, serious images are dying people with AIDS mounting a valiant fight against the disease, a child violin prodigy destined for fame. Serious images convey news overtones or connections or probe the life of their community, to reach toward their subjects’ hearts and souls.
Editors tend to use features when space is available, and they have no images of a more severe and essential nature or when the graphically dull page needs sprucing up.
4. Sports Action Photojournalism
Sports action images are interested in capturing the actions as they happen. Photographing sports action is dangerous.
However, there are three essential ways to minimize your risk in covering spots action and to ensure you record critical moments are:
- Firstly, knowing how games are played.
- Secondly, knowing the strengths, weaknesses, and preferences of players and coaches.
- Finally, constantly being alert to potential as well as actual action.
Covering Sports Action
1. Using telephoto lenses of 180mm and longer is suitable for sports action coverage.
2. Motor drives are highly desirable because no photographer can regularly capture the height of action with a single manual exposure.
3. Monopods also are highly desirable when using telephoto lenses because monopods provide a relatively steady platform
4. Unless they have a specific reason to do otherwise, photographers should follow the ball in games where a ball is used.
5. Photographers should carry a short telephoto and a wide-angle or a zoom equivalent while covering the action. This allows photographers to record other scenes related to the game, particularly features and activities close to them.
5. Sports Features Photojournalism
Sports feature pictures are the same as features, except they always involve sports. Photographers typically take these pictures immediately before, during, or after sporting events and may take them at other times. Sports features round out sports events by revealing their off-stage activities. They humanize sports, showing the emotions of players, coaches and spectators and conveying other game-related activities important but arguably secondary to gameplay.
For Example, opposing coaches embracing after a hard-fought game, a player on the losing side weeping, etc.
6. Portrait / Personality Photojournalism
The portrait/Personality category is not all faces, but it offers glimpses into hearts and souls. The photographer lets readers walk in the shoes of those pictured.
Although faces lend themselves to the person’s scrutiny, portrait/personality images need not be facial views to probe for deeper meaning. Back pictures and body forms can speak volumes. Good portrait/personality images reveal as much about the photographer as the photographer. Only image-makers attuned to nuances of nonverbal communication and comfortable with personal interaction can consistently visually plumb subjects’ inner selves. Actually, it represents emotion and sympathy.
7. Pictorial Photojournalism
Outstanding images in the pictorial category showcase the artistic side of photojournalism. Pictorials typically depend on light and form and their interaction. These images make readers pause, perhaps to reminisce about pleasant and similar experiences, or to feel a little better also a little brighter.
Pictorial typically entertains more than inform.
8. Illustration Photojournalism
Illustration photojournalism refers to combined or manipulated images that create a “new” image. Nevertheless, news photographers can not manipulate a picture without calling it a photo illustration. Images in this category visually try to convey ideas and concepts, and products. Both categories demand a particularly high technical photographic expertise and keen, incisive minds that can produce images that clearly convey the intended messages while doing so in clever, eye-catching ways.
Example Photo of Illustration Photojournalism