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Interview with Greg Gibson
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New Page 2
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Interview with Greg Gibson
Pulitzer Prize
winning Wedding Photojournalist
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You’re always referred to as “Pulitzer Prize winning photographer”
Greg Gibson. It’s a tremendous honor! How’d you win the Pulitzer?
Yes, winning the Pulitzer was an honor and a surprise…both times. I
did not win by myself, but won shared awards. I worked for the
largest news organization in the world, the Associated Press for 10
years and was fortunate to be a part of many historic front page
news stories during that time. In 1993 the small group of AP
photographers that covered the 1992 Presidential Campaign was
awarded the Pulitzer Prize for Feature Photography. In 1999 another
small group of us that covered the Impeachment of President Clinton
won the Pulitzer for Spot News Photography.
The first time we won, I did not even know that AP had made an entry
on our behalf. It’s every journalist’s dream to win the Pulitzer
Prize and drink champagne with the newsroom staff. It was my day off
on the day the Pulitzer’s were announced in 1993 and I was out on a
bike ride with my wife all day. When we returned home I had an
undecipherable phone message from one of my co-workers with some
mention about a Pulitzer. I had no idea what he was talking about. I
got the surprise of my life when I called him back and an hour later
was at a celebratory dinner with a handful of my colleagues from the
’92 Campaign team.
Ironically enough, while winning my second Pulitzer Prize, it was
the coverage of the Presidential Impeachment and the Monica Lewinsky
scandal that led to my leaving journalism for good. The long hours,
the stake-outs and the tabloidish feel of the story left me feeling
apathetic and burned-out. I didn’t feel passionate about my work any
more and I knew that without that fire burning in my belly I
couldn’t continue to succeed at such a competitive level of
journalism. I took a two-year leave of absence in 2000 and didn’t
return.
You’re a pure photojournalist.. standard questions: Do you hide
behind poles? Do you shoot formals?
I WAS a pure photojournalist, with regard to news photography. With
regard to wedding photography, I am not a pure photojournalist.
With most of my wedding clients, I don’t feel the need to be the
true fly-on-the-wall photojournalist. I like to banter with my
clients and have a good time. I never want a client to feel like
there is a stranger in the room with them so I try to put them at
ease. My goal is to provide an accurate record of the wedding day,
so that when the client views the images, the pictures match their
memories of the day. If I find that my subjects are too aware of my
presence and that my visibility is inhibiting the opportunities to
make the kind of pictures I seek, I will withdraw a little. I do try
to avoid managing situations, but I’m not afraid to interject myself
or my personality into a situation if I feel I need to.
I feel that at the end of the day my job is to make the best
possible pictures using whatever resources are available to me. Most
clients could care less about the mechanism for doing so. They just
want the results they seek. With some clients I feel a need to be
more visible and with some quite a bit less. Every client is a
little different and you have to get a feel for what they want and
need.
Yes, I do shoot formals and I actually enjoy having some couple
portrait time. There is a mistaken impression that portraits are not
a part of photojournalism, but the fact is that I shot many
portraits when I worked as a photojournalist. Every major
photojournalism competition includes a portrait category, including
the World Press Awards and the Pictures of the Year Competition. The
difference is that in news photojournalism, portraits can’t be
passed off as fake moments, as often happens in wedding photography.
I consider formals a part of the family history and a necessary part
of the wedding coverage. It’s not the focus of my coverage however,
so I try to keep a tight, concise list and get through them as
quickly as possible while still maintaining a high level of quality.
I talk with clients in depth about this part of the wedding coverage
to make sure we are on the same page and remind them of the reasons
they hired me in the first place.
Do you think a training in news photojournalism is necessary to
be a PJ wedding shooter?
I don’t think this training is an absolute must to be a wedding PJ
shooter but it certainly helps. Working as a news photojournalist
offers advantages and training that you can’t get anywhere else.
First of all, someone is paying you to go out every day and make
pictures, hundreds of pictures per week. There is no better way to
learn than trial and error. I have captured millions of images in my
career, and each one, good or bad, has made me a better
photographer.
Secondly, many photojournalists work on a staff with other
photographers. They are working with other creative people on a
daily basis and exposed to other approaches and ideas.
Third, most photojournalists work with an editor that is providing
an unbiased, third party opinion of their work. They are receiving a
daily dose of feedback and criticism on the images they are
producing.
Sadly, most wedding photographers work in relative isolation with
little or no feedback on their images other than from the clients
that are paying them. Michael Jordan was the best basketball player
in the world, but even at the peak of his career he had coaches to
help him. Photographers are really no different. We all need coaches
to help us see our flaws, no matter how insignificant they may be.
We all need to make adjustments from time to time, whether we are
Michael Jordan shooting a basketball or a wedding photographer
shooting a camera.
Finally, many photographers that attempt to do wedding PJ without
any kind of “news” background, don’t truly understand what
photojournalism is. They think of it as “candids” photography,
medium groups shots of people talking, somber moments, or artsy
shots of the back of the wedding dress. The truth is that wedding
photojournalism is much more than a bunch of “candids” (btw, I hate
that word!). Good Wedding Photojournalism goes well beyond creating
a record of the day, and tells a well-rounded story that has meaning
to the subject.
Wedding photojournalism done well can tug at your emotions in a way
that other wedding imagery can’t touch.
Has wedding photojournalism changed over the past few years, or
is it a timeless craft?
Wedding photography has changed and continues to change, but wedding
photojournalism is a timeless craft. Styles and trends will come and
go and the wedding photojournalist may incorporate additional styles
and trends into his coverage, but there is no substitute for
dramatic storytelling.
How’s business?
Business has been great. I started in 2003 and have grown steadily
as name recognition has increased. I already had a number of friends
in the industry when I jumped in and no doubt those relationships
helped me hit the ground running.
I shoot about 40-45 weddings per year.
What will you be teaching at your upcoming seminar? How to be a
PJ?
Right now I’m currently involved in two PJ related workshops. One is
Huy’s Nguyen’s
Foundation Workshop in Feburary. I’m also heavily involved and
the new up and coming
Roots Workshop
in Cape Cod in July created by former USA Today photographer Emilie
Sommer.
The premise of both the Foundation and Roots Workshops is to teach
wedding photographers how to think like photojournalists.
Photographers are assigned to a team of 5 photographers with a team
leader/editor. Each photographer receives an “assignment” much like
a working news photographer. On the first day of shooting the
photographer goes out and shoots the assignment, then comes back for
an open edit and critique with their team leader/editor. The second
day, they go back into the field and apply what they’ve learned to
finish their story. The third day is spent preparing a final
presentation of each story for the group.
The real value of these workshops is the mentoring and the marathon
editing sessions. Each team has a number of mentors or “shooting
coaches” that meet each photographer out in the field during the
shoot to make suggestions or help them work through difficult
situations. The mentors provide invaluable, hands-on, live feedback
during the shoot. The team leaders/editors sit down with the
photographers and go through each and every image, offering feedback
on style, approach and vision. The editing sessions are honest, raw
and occasionally harsh, but no doubt educational and eye-opening for
the photographers.
The final presentations are often emotional events for the
participants, a culmination of 3 days of blood, sweat and tears in
producing a genuine story shot from their heart with newfound
vision.
What are the details of the seminar?
Roots Workshop
is July 13-17th in South Yarmouth, MA, centrally located on Cape
Cod. Tuition is $2,500 per person and includes lodging and linen
service, welcome BBQ, sunset cruise, clambake and a few other meals.
Each student will nee to provide their own gear and transportation.
There are currently about 5 spots remaining so anyone interested in
attending should register ASAP.
Foundation Workshop
is February 24-29th and is currently sold out for 2008. 2009 dates
are TBD.
My friend Matt Mendelsohn and I are considering a series of
multi-city one day workshop on wedding photojournalism in the summer
or fall. Anyone interested in information on those should send email
to
seminars@greggibson.com. |
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