Corcoran College of Art & Design Photography Department Chair Andy Grundberg during a portfolio review
Photograph by Elizabeth Krist
As I watch the photographers line up for portfolio reviews at the Corcoran, I wonder how many of them have the talent and the dedication to pursue a life in this art and business of creating images. Not all of the photographers are young, but it's clear that most are students or young professionals just starting out. I admire their courage in wanting a clear assessment of their work, and think of all the aspiring journalists whose work I've critiqued. Do they know what a struggle awaits them? Do they know that even if they learn how to manage a business, as well as the technology, it doesn't do you much good unless you possess a perceptive eye and a passion for what you're documenting?
Greg Breisinger is contemplating a career in photography, and this was the first time he'd ever asked a professional to evaluate this work. Spurred by the feedback, he plans to look at a much greater variety of photography, including many more landscapes and cityscapes, his own specialty. He also came to a realization about the rigor required to successfully capture a scene on film or in pixels: Shoot it 20 times in 20 different kinds of light, since different elements can combine to create very different versions, each evoking a different feeling.
I sympathize with those reviewing the portfolios, too, knowing how potentially painful this process can be, but also knowing in my heart that it's a waste of the photographer's time (and yours) unless you're utterly honest. Lucian Perkins, formerly a photographer with the Washington Post (and along with Nadia Hughes a contender for the title of photographer shown in the greatest number of FotoWeek venues), spoke about the rewards of catching glimpses of real talent amid mediocre work, and steering a photographer to move in that direction.
Joel Sartore and Randy Olson at the Smith Farm Center
Photograph by Elizabeth Krist
I thought about all of this later that same day, as I watched National Geographic photographers Joel Sartore and Randy Olson speaking to the packed Smith Farm gallery amid the Visions of Paradise exhibit. Here are two photographers who have dedicated their photographic careers to enlightening us. As Joel said, neither he nor Randy started out as environmental photographers, but ultimately everything seemed to point in that direction.
First World Gets the Filets, Third World Gets the Bones
Photograph by Randy Olson
Randy began by showing pictures of pristine lands, vanishing cultures, and scarce commodities, a series he titled, "The Last of......" Despite the occasional idyllic image, though, he claimed that the magazine never seemed to send him to Paradise, but to countries where the newspaper greets him with the headline, "Photography is Prohibited" and anyone caught with a camera is assumed to be a spy. Where Customs irradiates your film into oblivion as you arrive, before you've even had a chance to start the assignment. Where the minute you try to photograph a woman hanging up her laundry, a bystander calls the dog catcher to come arrest you. And where your guide drives you around on a motorcycle loaded down with Jack Daniels to pay off the warlords.
Fall of the Wild
Photograph by Joel Sartore
Joel began by saying that his talk would be less depressing than Randy's. He then pointed out that the global population was heading toward 7 billion, and that environmentally we've already stepped off a cliff. Oh no, Joel, not depressing at all. He then added that being wealthy (looking meaningfully at all of us in the gallery) only gives you the privilege of dying last. But while he showed disheartening images of humans poisoning and depleting the land, he also showed poignant images of the wild creatures we stand to lose. Do we value wilderness beyond what we can extract from it?, he asked. Sadly, the answer is a resounding No. Poking fun at himself, he claimed that his wife Kathy won't listen to him preach anymore, and that his three children jump up and run out of the room every time he starts in on one of his lectures. We laugh when he says we must all be asking ourselves, "What are we doing here? This has nothing to do with Paradise!" But of course it does, and when he asks us to think beyond the products at the mall and the price at the gas pump, we can't help feeling his urgency.
How many of those young photographers waiting their turn at the Corcoran will be fortunate enough to find the kind of motivation, whether dread or inspiration, that drives Randy and Joel?
FotoWeek at a Glance for Monday, November 17:
Opening party for Chris Morris of Agency VII, lecture, and book-signing
DATE: 11/17/2008
WHEN: 5:00PM
WHERE: Zone Zero, LLC
1000 Wisconsin Avenue, NW
Suite 300
Washington, DC 20007
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Tel: 202.333.4450
www.zonezerophoto.com
COST: Free
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Mentoring: Consider a Profession around Photography
DATE: 11/17/2008
WHEN: 6:30PM - 9:30PM
WHERE: National Press Club
529 14th Street, NW
13th fl., Holeman Lounge
Washington, DC 20045
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Reception (6:30PM - 7:00 PM)
Event (7:00PM - 9:30PM)
COST:
Members and sister organizations $15
Students $5
Non-members $20
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Lecture: National Geographic Photographer Mattias Klum
DATE: 11/17/2008
WHEN: 7:30PM
WHERE: National Geographic Society Headquarters
Grosvenor Auditorium
1600 M Street, NW
Washington, DC 20036
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An NGLive! Event: Photographer Mattias Klum will speak and present his work on Borneo in conjunction with his November 2008 story in National Geographic Magazine.
COST: Tickets required: $15-18, through National Geographic, 202.857.7700
