Out of Focus Magazine No. 5

I'm pleased to announce that Out of Focus Magazine in Sweden has published my photos in a Flash piece on Life in the Shadows, a story about African immigrants in Barcelona, Spain.

Ancestral Calling featured in National Geographic Traveler en Español

This photo feature on my second cousins in County Cork Ireland hit the newstands last week in the January/February edition of the magazine.

Another Banker Turned Photojournalist

When I came across this article I was absolutely thrilled. I have been an admirer of Marcus Bleasdale's work for years. His Media Storm piece on the Democratic Republic of Congo, entitled "Rape of a Nation" is not only beautiful but couldn't have been a more timely piece of photojournalism as the country recently erupted in conflict once again. As someone who also made a career change from the investment world to photojournalism, I too hope that I have become a nicer guy.

You can find the Times article here.

PX3 Press Release

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:

WINNER OF PX3, Prix de la Photographie Paris

CHARLIE MAHONEY OF SPAIN WAS AWARDED SECOND PRIZE IN THE PX3 2008 COMPETITION.

PARIS, FRANCE
PRIX DE LA PHOTOGRAPHIE PARIS (PX3) ANNOUNCES WINNERS OF PX3 2008 COMPETITION.

Charlie Mahoney of Spain was Awarded: Second Prize in category Photojournalism for the entry entitled, " Living in the Shadows ." The jury selected PX3 2008’s winners from thousands of photography entries from over 85 countries.

Px3 is juried by top international decision-makers in the photography industry: Carol Johnson, Curator of Photography of Library of Congress, Washington D.C.; Gilles Raynaldy, Director of Purpose, Paris; Viviene Esders, Expert près la Cour d'Appel de Paris; Mark Heflin, Director of American Illustration + American Photography, New York; Sara Rumens, Lifestyle Photo Editor of Grazia Magazine, London; Françoise Paviot, Director of Galerie Françoise Paviot, Paris; Chrisitine Ollier, Art Director of Filles du Calvaire, Paris; Natalie Johnson, Features Editor of Digital Photographer Magazine, London; Natalie Belayche, Director of Visual Delight, Paris; Kenan Aktulun, VP/Creative Director of Digitas, New York; Chiara Mariani, Photo Editor of Corriere della Sera Magazine, Italy; Arnaud Adida, Director of Acte 2 Gallery/Agency, Paris; Jeannette Mariani, Director of 13 Sévigné Gallery, Paris; Bernard Utudjian, Director of Galerie Polaris, Paris; Agnès Voltz, Director of Chambre Avec Vues, Paris; and Alice Gabriner, World Picture Editor of Time Magazine, New York.


ABOUT Px3:
The "Prix de la Photographie Paris" (Px3) strives to promote the appreciation of photography, to discover emerging talent, and introduce photographers from around the world to the artistic community of Paris. Winning photographs from this competition are exhibited in a high-profile gallery in Paris and published in the high-quality, full-color Px3 Annual Book.
Visit http://px3.fr
For Press Inquiries, Contact:
info@px3.fr

About the Winner:

Contact Charlie Mahoney:
charlie@charliemahoney.net
http://www.charliemahoney.net

How to Save the Newspapers

In the Op-Ed section of today's New York Times, David Swensen and Michael Schmidt propose a way to save newspapers. Their solution is to convert newspapers in to endowed institutions like universities.

This isn't the first time I have heard this type of proposed solution. Pepe Baeza, the photo editor of the Magazine of La Vanguardia in Barcelona, Spain has also often talked of a government funded model, much like the BBC.

This current solution is an interesting one in that it would provide funding for news retrieval and an independence from the powers that want to influence the media, including the government.

The problem is that I can only see it working in the U.S. where there is more of a tradition of endowed institutions. It's worth some thought but how would they transition a corporation like the New York Times in to just such an entity and what would shareholders have to say about it?

I don't even want to know.

You can find the article here.

Qufoto.com Interview

I'm pleased to share with you an interview that qufoto.com did with me. You can find the interview here.

Hard to believe... TPOTY again!

Last December I got a call from Chris Coe, who runs the Travel Photographer of the Year photo competition in the UK. When he called, I really couldn't believe that I had won the New Talent category. This year, I entered again submitting two stories and imagine my surprise when Karen Coe called me this December informing that I had won the Life category. Considering the fact that entries were received from photographers in 61 countries, I still can't believe the odds. The award includes some great prizes, but I have to admit that getting a funded trip to Cuba just has me thrilled. You can find the full gallery of winners here.

First Place in the SOS Racism Photo Competition

It's with great pleasure I get to announce that I recently won first place in the SOS Racism Photo Competition. SOS Racism is a French and Spanish NGO that defends human rights by fighting racism. Two of my favorite Spanish photojournalists, Txema Salvans and Manel Clemente were on the jury, which to me adds special sentimental value to the award.

As you probably can tell, I was in the water up to about my arm pits. It was a bit nerve racking as I had to constantly look over my left shoulder to make sure no oncoming waves were approaching. The winning photo is above.

MIchael Robinson Chavez: Dharavi Multi Media

I met Michael Robinson Chavez at the Foundry Photojournalism Workshop in Mexico City. Not only is he wonderful photojournalist, but he's an easily approachable and open person. 

Take note of the techniques Ed Kashi pioneered in his multi-media story on Iraqi Kurdistan on MediaStorm. In some of the rapid fire sequences the framing doesn't change at all, so Michael was working with this technique in mind and set the camera on a tripod or a stable spot while repeatedly firing. In the sequence on the train, however, he shot hand holding the camera which gives a different effect, so this is something to consider when prepping for multi-media.

For some reason I could not upload the video, but you can find the link here.

More Consolidation

PDN Pulse reported today more editorial staff cuts at the Chicago Tribune, 80 people have been given buyouts/layoffs, including two photojournalists and two photo editors. This trend, I imagine will continue and the only way photographers will be able to survive is by adapting, but how do we adapt? 

Recently I had an exchange with Magnum legend, David Alan Harvey on his blog, Road Trip. I had asked David to help me with an edit on a story I have been working on that was up for projection at a major magazine. He provided a healthy dose of honest feedback, but more importantly he touched upon an interesting and related topic. 

Here's what he said: 

"i worry about photographers that are trying the rather "tried and true" classic picture story at a time when i think these kinds of stories are barely marketable even to the the magazine editors.  times have changed...tastes have changed...to survive now i think young emerging photographers need to think either very conceptually, or if "straight photojournalism" is your goal, then go with an audio/video combo as does MediaStorm or VII slide shows or Magnum in Motion...i hate to be the "spoiler" on this forum...not a fun job...i just have to tell you the way it is based so much work i see coming in from everywhere..."

So is what Harvey is getting at true? Is it the end of the 'tried and true" photo reportage? Is conceptual photography the new paradigm?  Or is it simply a change of fashion that will come and go?  

Martin Parr, also of Magnum fame, seems to be in agreement with Harvey. In an article published in PDN online, he states:

"A lot of times photographers don't have enough imagination in terms of what subject matter is going to appeal to editors. A good idea and good story, well executed, is going to have a much better chance than a tired old story. Most photographers don't really think about what they're shooting. There are certain expectations about what photographers should shoot, and they stick to that.

You have to be more ingenious, you have to think carefully about the appeal that your subject will have and how it will fit into a modern magazine that's going to shy away from a more traditional humanistic approach. How to make it look interesting, and entertaining, and at the same time have a level of poignancy and zeitgeist: I can't tell people how to do it, can I? In the end, it comes down to the personality and individuality of the photographer to express that."

The other alternative, according to Harvey, is the multimedia route, but I still have my reservations, especially as it relates to fees. I've spoken with representatives of my agency, WpN, and they say that fees are not proving to be worthwhile on multimedia, for now. 

In an email exchange with Brian Storm of MediaStorm, Storm said that "the fees are all over the board. You don't create multimedia for the money, you make your money on print, syndication, a little on multimedia, but it all fits together." Doesn't sound convincing to me, but then again, we are in the very first stages of a paradigm shift and pricing may go up. 

Time will tell. In the meantime this topic is to be continued...