Made in Chile
The first 17 days in August after the miners disappeared underground are spent in silent vigilance, almost in secrecy. We think this will be just another of so many mine disasters that happen around the world, with some anxious waiting followed by a great deal of mourning. The respect for the pain of the 33 families is felt all across that stretch of desert – dubbed Camp Hope. The pain of that vigilance gives way to an outburst of rage against the mine’s owners, who never appear nor give any credible explanation for the disaster. Rumors of a rescue plan without details cause more confusion as it all seems improvised. When the collapsed mine tunnel is determined to be impossible to reopen, the rescuers pull back as it seems there is no one alive to rescue. The families sink into uncertainty.
“All 33 of us are fine in the shelter.” My family lunch ends abruptly as we see the slip of torn paper on live television. The miners are alive 17 days after their tunnel collapsed 700 meters underground. Six hours later I’m in Camp Hope far from our lunch table photographing the families celebrating. The families learn to laugh again.
A day photographing at Camp Hope soon becomes a routine so natural I feel like part of the neighborhood. I park my car, grab my cameras, and greet the families who are also part of the landscape. I greet Maria and Elizabeth, sisters of trapped miner Dario Segovia, who are conversing and joking with everyone around. Photographers gather in front of their awning to cover reactions to whatever is the news of the day. Together with them is Cristina Nuñez, fiancee of miner Claudio Yañez, who proposed marriage to her through a message sent from the depths of the mine. She accepted immediately. They’ve already been together for a lifetime. Cristina is boisterous and likes to be noticed.
Across the way is Lilianett, wife of Mario Gomez, the oldest of the trapped miners. Lilianett framed the first letter Mario sent her from below as if it were a museum piece.
Memory of the present
Reuters photojournalists continually bear witness to events as they happen across the globe, sending out some 1600 images over our wire every day. The latest edition of our Our World Now series draws upon this unparalleled award-winning resource to document a year in the life of our vibrant, troubled, beautiful planet.
A U.S. soldier of 2-12 Infantry 4BCT-4ID Task Force Mountain Warrior takes a break during a night mission near Honaker Miracle camp at the Pesh valley of Kunar Province August 12, 2009. REUTERS/Carlos Barria
Sometimes funny, sometimes devastating, always compelling, the images in Our World Now 3 encompass the drama and diversity of trends and topics that have defined 2009 and offer a glimpse of individual destinies unfolding. In over 350 striking single images and in-depth Witness features, this new book forms a mirror of our times.
An actress from the Dseu Renaissance de Pikine theater group wearing traditional Toukouleur make-up and chewing a stick toothbrush waits for rehearsal to begin at a local community center at the slum neighborhood of Pikine in Senegal’s capital Dakar, November 7, 2009. REUTERS/Finbarr O’Reilly
Ayperi Karabuda Ecer, Vice President of Pictures said of the series “During the past three years Our World Now has become a unique collector’s item, creating an indispensable visual reference at a time when there is less and less photojournalism seen in print.”
Click here to view the first in a series of slideshows of pictures from the book. And here for the second installment. Third installment here. Fourth installment.
Order your copy of the book here.
from Russell Boyce:
Don’t drink the water, even if there is any to drink (Update)
One more picture that caught my eye during the 24 hours news cycle for the World Water Day is the image of hundreds of hoses providing drinking water to residents of a housing block in Jakarta. The grubby plastic pipes supplying a fragile lifeline to families seem to represent the desperation that people face when the water supply is cut off.
Hoses used to supply residences with water are seen hanging across a street at the Penjaringan subdistrict in Jakarta March 22, 2010. Residents in the area say that they have had to construct makeshift water supplies for their homes by attaching hoses to pumps bought with their own money, as the government has yet to repair the original water supply which was damaged. March 22 is World Water Day. REUTERS/Beawiharta
Today, March 22 is World Water Day and Reuters photographers in Asia were given an open brief to shoot feature pictures to illustrate it. The only requirement I asked of them is that they included in the captions, the fact that while the Earth is literally covered in water, more than a billion people lack access to clean water for drinking or sanitation. At the same time in China 50 million people are facing drought conditions and water shortages and the two stories seemed to tie in with one another.
Looking at the file today three pictures really stuck home to me as to just how enormous the problem of getting clean water to people in the world is.
A boy swims in the murky waters of Manila Bay March 21, 2010. The Earth is literally covered in water, but more than a billion people lack access to clean water for drinking or sanitation as most water is salty or dirty. March 22 is World Water Day. REUTERS/Cheryl Ravelo
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from Russell Boyce:
A Shanghai sinking – an aerial perspective
Checking through the file this picture by Reuters Shanghai based photographer Aly Song really caught my eye and I needed to think why.
A view shows a sinking cargo ship after it collided with a boat on Huangpu River in Shanghai February 1, 2010. Three sailors were rescued from the accident, while further investigation is underway, according to local media. REUTERS/Aly Song
Why does this picture work so well when common sense tells me the worker in the foreground should block my view of the scene? Why don’t I feel that I want him to move so I can see the whole scene? Maybe it’s the way I am drawn into the picture by the strong sense of aerial perspective, the bold dark red of the helmet in the foreground, the point of focus, the harsh contrast of the diagonals thrown up by the stricken cargo ship and then through into the soft, misty and pale skyline of Shanghai.
Or is it the classic grid like composition of the horizontal line of the waters edge and the vertical lines of the buildings that are both dissected by the triangular shapes of the cargo ship? What ever it is the eye suddenly snaps back to the subject, an overturned cargo ship slowly sinking in the murky waters of the Huangpu River.
I just have to know more. The caption tells me the cargo ship collided with a barge, three sailors were rescued and an investigation is underway.
The worker softens the image and brings a human dimension to what is essentially a mass of concrete and broken steel.
In a more technical dimension, the worker fills the critical RH 1/3 of the image, helping to contextualise the scene
Nice image Aly!
How to squeeze a decade into 100 pictures
Reuters’ photographers shoot around 1,500 pictures a day, that’s 10,500 pictures a week, 547,500 a year. Times that by ten and you have some idea of the task ahead of me in selecting just 100 pictures to represent the very best of Reuters’ photography from the past decade.
In order to prevent the sheer scale of the project becoming overwhelming we had to be very clear about what we wanted to portray. Rather than telling the story of the decade we wanted to present the best of Reuters photography of the decade. Happily our photographers have produced many of the defining images of our recent history, so we found that our story was also the decade’s story.
Still the decision on what to include and what not to include was not easy. Conversely, limiting the selection to 100 pictures actually made the task easier. Some pictures stand out and stand the test of time. These shine so brightly over the years that it makes them impossible not to pick.
U.S. Marine Corp Assaultman Kirk Dalrymple watches as a statue of Iraq’s President Saddam Hussein falls in central Baghdad April 9, 2003. REUTERS/Goran Tomasevic
Cardinals’ vestments are blown by a gust of wind as they arrive for the funeral Mass of Pope John Paul II at St. Peter’s Basilica in the Vatican. REUTERS/Max Rossi
1.The 100th year of the 20th Century and last year of the 2nd Millennium was definitely and indisputably 2000.
2.The 1st year of the first decade of the 21st Century and of the 3rd Millennium was definitely and indisputably 2001 – obviously. The clue is in the number ’1′.
3.The 10th and last year of the first decade of the 21st century will be 2010 – obviously. The clue is in the number ’10′.
4.The last day of the first decade of the 21st century and 3rd millennium will definitely and indisputably be December 31st 2010.
There is an ongoing concerted and fraudulent effort by the BBC, Reuters and other major media players to deny these facts for cynical commercial branding and packaging purposes. This is an abuse of their position of information stream control domination.
Clear thinkers will ignore them and respect and express true and honest chronological facts and conventions.
1,2,3,4,5,6,7,8,9,one more to go…
A whole year left to take more excellent pictures to put in ‘The Reuters First Decade Of The 21st Century Photography Library’.
The best job
Editor’s Note: Eliana Aponte is a highlighted photographer this month on the Reuters website. See an extensive portfolio of her recent work here.
Being a photographer is one of the best jobs in the world because when you enjoy what you do it is more a hobby than a job. In our case, it is a hobby with considerable responsibility.
As a journalist traveling through different countries, meeting interesting people, or working in inhospitable places, storytelling is a privilege. I have always thought that my eyes are the eyes of many people, and that through them others can see what is happening. When I started as a photographer I always wanted to contribute my bit to make the world a better place. Many of us think that when we are young and full of dreams. As time passes, I realize that the real changes in history are made by the people who are living their own lives. Photographers just document what happens, nothing more.
Reuters photographer Eliana Aponte (2L) is seen while working next to colleagues in the West Bank village of Qabatiya near Jenin, May 15, 2006. REUTERS/Mohamad Torokman
When I was in Colombia, I spent almost a month in the wildest part of the country where the sun never shines, the sounds of animals never cease and the darkness is neither gray nor black. Reuters was witness to the freeing of 300 policemen and soldiers who had been kidnapped by FARC guerrillas and held in the jungle.
It was the hardest experience in my life, both as a photographer and as a human being. I learned there is nothing more degrading than being deprived of freedom in the jungle. I slept, ate and lived like any of the real hostages in those camps. It shocked me to see their blank stares, the paleness on their faces and their hope to walk out of there one day alive; this is what I remember the most. Life in the jungle is an arduous test of mental and physical strength, both of which are necessary to survive. When we arrived at the first camp, everyone wanted to know who we were, and why we were there. To a certain extent our presence there was a confirmation of their freedom but the skepticism in their eyes remained. We told them many times that their captivity was almost over, but they didn’t believe it. We were led to three different camps after long hikes and many hours by boat and vehicle through inhospitable terrain, without the faintest idea of what part of the jungle we were in. As the days passed we reached the conclusion that we were being led in circles around the same area just to throw off our sense of direction. For those who don’t know the jungle, everything is the same, green everywhere.
The coolest part of being a female photographer is you exploring in a man-lead world and free to express your own feeling and viewpoint. I feel both strengh and sensitivity in your portfolio, well done Eliana.
from Raw Japan:
Call me “Crasher”
My nickname among the Reuters photographers in Tokyo is "Crasher".
They call me that because I always seem to get pictures right at the moment of a crash whenever I cover motorsports.
One colleague sometimes teases me saying "You’ve got to stop pouring oil on the track," and I answer: "I would never use oil -- I only use banana skins!"
In motorsports the most exciting moment you can capture in a picture is a crash.
That instant can be the difference between life and death, and it’s a picture that is most difficult to capture.
Gary!! very interesting and useful piece. when are you going to post next one?
Our World Now
Reuters photojournalists are continually bearing witness to events as they happen across the globe. They distribute over half a million pictures each year, pushing the boundaries of what news photography is and can be. Our World Now draws upon this unparalleled resource to document a year in the life of our vibrant, troubled, beautiful planet. In over 350 photographs, this book combines information and emotion to present a vivid mirror of our times. The second volume of this collector’s series is an indispensable visual record of a turbulent year that will be remembered as a turning point of our age.
Our World Now is available in U.S. bookstores. Click here or on the picture above to view a site dedicated to the book.
Still,it holds good.
At any time, the world view can be seen.
It is packed with very good insights.
from AxisMundi Jerusalem:
Heaven or Hell
To be in the right place at the right moment - this is every photojournalist’s dream. To be on the scene to record the “decisive moment” with your camera.
Most photojournalists around the world consider Israel and the Palestinian Territories as "heaven" for great stories providing great pictures. Well they are wrong.
For a long time this place has produced some of the most memorable news photos ever but at a high cost, and not just to the millions of Israelis and Palestinians who have suffered in their daily lives through the conflict of the past two decades or so. A number of photographers and camera operators lost their lives or been badly injured while trying to convey the story and a great number of others have psychological scars from being exposed to scenes of death and destruction over long periods of time.
Yes, Israel and the Palestinian territories are full of great images, but how easy is to find them and record them?
Well - the 'finding' part is not too hard. Beepers are constantly beeping, SMS messages are constantly being sent keeping the large international press corps up to date on even the most obscure goings-on. The Israeli Government Press Office, the Palestinian Authority, NGOs, the Israeli Defence Forces, settler groups, religious groups; all have very sophisticated media operations that fill your e-mail inbox, mobile phone and beeper with a constant stream of information.
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Resident Photographers Blog Expert
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The Wall
Ivan, you gave us real and deep insight about the Chile miner’s story and it is really good to see you had a close realationship with miner’s family while you covered the story. Great job- Kim