Jim Nachtwey at PhotoPlus Expo

I’ve spent a lot of time thinking about the talk Jim Nachtwey gave at PhotoPlus Expo, and the photographs he showed. Pretty much everyone acknowledges him as a singular figure in the world of photography (although I would argue the same for Sebastiao Salgado, and the breadth of his work is truly extraordinary. From Northern Ireland to the tuberculosis wards of Northern Thailand, Nachtwey has borne witness to the worst of the world’s conflicts and social issues.

As Nachtwey himself said, he “gives a voice to people who have endured immense suffering, who have no voice.” His classic composition recalls the paintings of such masters as Caravaggio and Goya, and in his photographs I have seen an incredible palette of black and grey, with more variations on those colors than I thought possible. Rather than making suffering beautiful, Nachtwey shows the incredible, inherent beauty of people, even at the worst moments of their lives.

It would be impossible to witness what Nachtwey has witnessed and remain uninvolved, so he took advantage of winning the T.E.D.. award and started a campaign against Extremely Drug-Resistant Tuberculosis (XDRTB). He turns his anger into “something that can clarify my vision, not cloud it.”

To simply see Nachtwey’s work as depressing would be missing so much. “My mission as a photographer has always been to have the pictures published in the mass media while the situation is unfolding.” It is because he knows the power of images to move people to action. That was the case with the famine he photographed in Somalia in 1992. After the photographs ran as a cover story in The New York Times Magazine the outcry made it possible for the ICRC to mobilize the largest aid effort it had undertaken since WW II and saved 1.5 million lives. Can there be any greater achievement than that?

I think everyone left Nachtwey’s presentation wondering what they had done and what they are doing with their lives. I know I did. And it’s going to take me a lot more time to sort that out. I am inspired by his example, and glad that he is working so hard to bring light to darkness.

Sari Talks Nachtwey

There are two ways to react to a lecture and slide show by James Nachtwey. One is to feel like you’re accomplishing nothing in this world, even if you ARE trying to add something good through your work or personal interests. Another is to accept your limitations, recognize that Mr. Nachtwey is some sort of a God, and simply try to emulate him in whatever humble ways you can. I’m choosing the latter.

It’s hard to retain faith in this day and age that photos really can and do make a difference to better our world and affect legislation like they did during the Vietnam war or for that matter the turn of the century when Lewis Hine and Jacob Riis’ photos were instrumental in helping to bring about child labor laws. But when you’re operating at the level of Nachtwey and his “comrades at VII” as he calls them, you really can and do have an impact on issues because there are editors who will believe in your images enough to take a risk and put them in print. Nachtwey mentioned three in particular who had been crucial to helping get the word out originally about the atrocities in Rwanda, Somalia and his current work on Extreme Drug Resistant Tuberculosis (XDRTB) – they are Kathy Ryan (NYTimes), Michele Stephenson and MaryAnne Golon (both were at TIME until recently).

In case you didn’t know (as I didn’t), the man won the TED prize in 2007 (http://www.tedprize.org/2007-winners/). This is huge. Check out the video (http://www.tedprize.org/video-1-year-later-james-nachtwey/) to see what he was able to accomplish with the $100K and mobilized resources to help him carry out his wish to bring awareness to XDRTB or Extreme Drug-Resistant Tuberculosis.

I’ve been very curious about this issue since reading Mountains Beyond Mountains by Tracey Kidder, about Dr. Paul Farmer and the work he has done, now worldwide, to stop the spread of TB, a disease that is completely preventable, but incurable if people develop the most dangerous strain.

Other things Mr. Nachtwey mentioned that are worth repeating:

"Photojournalism is a service industry and awareness is the service".

"What we call daily life has an imperative to go on." -This said to the backdrop of his photo of a couple in the warzone of Northern Ireland walking their baby in a stroller, glimmers of a burning car just behind them.

In tackling the difficult theory of religion being a cause of so much suffering he suggested that God is the justification for war, everyone thinking THEIR God is the only right one. No argument there as far as I'm concerned.

He enlightened the audience to the fact that famine is often not a natural occurence, as I had naiively thought. Rather it's a deliberate genocidal weapon.

To rejeuvenate our faith in the power of images he explained that relief organizations can seriously mobilize their donors in a time of crisis based on photographs. As an example, after his story about the famine in Somalia ran on the cover of the NY Times Magazine, phone calls and letters poured in to such an extreme and coverage of he story was increased around the world to such an extent that the Red Cross told him 1.5 million lives were ultimately saved in that country. Because of HIS images. He said he was not telling us this story from an egotistical perspective but rather an inspirational one because he'd like everyone with a story to know they can have an impact. "I'm a witness," he said. " [my anger must] clarify, not cloud my vision."

He ended by showing his most recent work about the TB crisis in Cambodia and said that in the caretaking he saw by families and volunteers, he witnessed "love on an epic scale."

Thank God there's goodness out there somewhere.

Over'n out...

-Sari

Night 1 Day 2 of PhotoPlus Expo

After our first day at the Expo we went to Aperture for the Sony World Photography Awards/Artisans of Imagery exhibit, and I've never seen a gallery so full of people and so hot and sweaty. It was hard to see the actual photography, but I saw many friends (some long lost ones), and the catering was fabulous.
I got a chance to say hello to Brian Smith who's photographs of Vegas burlesque dancers lined one wall, and asked him about the project he's been doing with Sony, photographing celebrities in support of the arts.

He talked about how enjoyable it has been for him to get to know more about the stars he's been shooting, and has learned some fascinating things, including that actress Taraji P. Henson is the great grandcousin of Matthew Henson, one of the explorers who discovered the Geographic North Pole.

Next we walked over to the PDN bash and entered a strange, noisy, disorienting ballroom, complete with "get your photo taken with a drag queen." I thought maybe I was lost in a tourist spot on TImes Square. The band was so loud you could barely hear anything, but I saw friends, had some great (if loud) conversations, and for the hour or so I was there, had a good time. The guys of Dripbook were particularly proud of adding their logo to the balcony so everyone could see it, and I have to say it definitely stood out.

As I was leaving, I looked up and Monte Isom was projecting images on a building across the way. Instead of meeting him at a downtown bar I elected to go home and sleep.

Having to wake up way too early to get back to the Expo, I worried I'd be late for the first panel: "VII Presents The New Deal: How to Fund & Produce Reportage in the New Economic Environment." But no worries, and except for the fact that the room couldn't have been colder (we were all freezing!), it was the best, most positive words I've heard in a long time. Moderator Stephen Mayes of VII presented his photographers Ron Haviv and John Stanmeyer, and Doctors Without Borders NY director of communications, Jason Cone. All the participants talked with enthusiasm and optimism about the multiple new ways of getting work out there, and the exciting challenges of coming up with new ways to sustain photojournalism (or advocacy journalism).

Stephen spoke of partnerships with NGO's like Doctors Without Borders, about working with corporations (like Canon) and even some governments (the French) to send photographers to cover stories of importance around the world. Ron showed some of his multimedia work on the DRC (Democratic Republic of Congo) and Darfur, and told of how those projects had added new avenues of exposure to the work through traveling exhibits, projection of images on walls around the world, books, and the like.

John showed his work and spoke about photographing the devastation of the 2004 tsunami, and how it was almost, "beyond my ability to visually understand it." And in talking about projecting images on buildings and walls he said, "Everywhere can be a canvas to project upon. Everything doesn't have to be a dead tree."

Jason Cone spoke about how this also brings images back to the places where they were taken, as we saw slides of images projected on homes in Brazil, or pasted at the bottom of an empty swimming pool in Liberia. He sees this as a way to have a greater engagement with the populations being covered.

They all spoke about how they could now create content and not rely solely on mainstream media to disseminate it. And yet they acknowledged the fact that we are in a transition society right now and no one is sure how to make a steady living from this work. Yet the fact that things are falling apart and changing is also an opportunity to rewrite the rules as you see fit. It takes passion, drive, courage and the need to tell stories whether or not someone hires you to do it . The old ways will not return. But new ways are being forged through crowd-sourcing, partnerships, NGO's, grants, foundations--really, the sky's the limit. It puts more power into the hands of the photographer and makes the photographer a creator, not a supplier.

This leads me into the issue of branding, as in the seminar: "Starting Today: You're a Brand. Building Your Brand & Image.". What is the first phrase or word that comes to mind when people hear your name? Can you answer that? What does someone get from working with you? What makes you different?


These are the questions you need to answer to begin to create (or re-create) your brand. I mean your brand as in "the CEO of Me, Inc. " Your brand is your reputation, so you have to strive for authenticity so that what you see is what you get. You need to be a storyteller online. You need passion and be someone people can trust. You need to offer valuable content that distinguishes you from all the other photographers out there. And you must figure out how to do this in many different ways. Panelist Ken Carbone said it best: Be you, Be heard."

How many ways can you spin one thing into ten?

Today was all about how you have to take control of your own destiny with a clear idea of who you are and a distinct vision. While this is a time of extreme confusion and the dismantling of the models we've come to rely on, it is also a time of exciting possibilities. When you have more control over your own life and career you have to do more to sustain and grow it.

Unify, simplify, amplify. Are you up for the challenge?