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Anton Hammerl, RIP
Anton Hammerl
There is more sad news out of Libya. Three recently released journalists, Americans James Foley and Clare Morgana Gillis and Spanish photographer Manu Brabo, have confirmed that a fourth journalist with them was shot and killed.They were in the Libyan desert, near Brega, when they were separated from the rebel scout they were using for transportation.
Anton Hammerl was shot when Libyan government forces came upon them and fired. It was April 5th, 2011, he was 41 years old. Within the same month we would lose Tim Hetherington and Chris Hondros as well. The remaining journalists with Anton were captured and only released this week. Until then, the Libyan government claimed to be holding all four journalists.
Anton Hammerl, was a South African photojournalist, who lived in the UK with his wife and three young children. Efforts are underway to recover his body and bring him finally home.
While he was missing a Facebook page was created to assist and it is now being used to monitor the progress in bringing him him. You can read more here. More information on a fund being created to support his children’s education is available here.
It’s tragic that he was killed an even more tragic that the Libyan government choose to cover up his death and it was only revealed after the release of other held journalist’s in that sad country. In fact, until the release of these journalist’s the Libyan government lied to both the South African Austrian by claiming to be still holding him.
…RIP…
Tagged anton, conflict, hammerl, libya, photojournalism, photojournalist, war
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Tim Hetherington Killed
Sad news.
I just read online at the New York Times that Tim Hetherington, the Oscar-nominated director of Restrepo and a widely respected photojournalist has been killed in Misurata, Libya. He was covering the escalating violence in that city has government forces continue to attack rebel strongholds.
Three other photographers who were with him were also injured. Chris Hondros, and Guy Martin are being treated for life threatening injuries. Micheal Christopher is also in surgery, but he is expected to recover.
Initial reports are that they were hit by a rocket propelled grenade (RPG) fired by government troops.
My condolences and sympathy to their friends and families. This is a sad day for photojournalism.
Magnum sells Archive
Magnum Sells it’s Archive
http://www.pdnonline.com/pdn/content_display/features/pdn-online/e3i8decb5ca03594f57edb6fec52a3fe9e6
Well, It’s been an interesting few weeks in the photo industry.
Magnum, perhaps one of the most famous photo agencies in the world, has sold it’s photo archive. Many journalists and photographers are shocked and upset at this news and more than one is claiming the sky is falling.
Now that the news has had time to sink for people and much of the noise has dropped off, I though it was time to look at this event with a clear and reasonable view.
Magnum, for those who may not be aware, was one of the first photography agencies set up by photographers for photographers. Magnum photographers have covered most , if not all, the major political events since there founding in 1947. In fact, Magnum was started because most photographers were not treated well by other agencies and often had trouble maintaining ownership of their work (sounds kinda familiar – the more things change, the more they stay the same). Magnum has included some of the most famous names in photography as founders and/or members. Henri Cartier Bresson is considered the founder of modern photojournalism. Robert Capa is considered the definitive war photographer. Magnum photographers have, in many ways, shown the modern world the power of photography as a journalistic tool.
…but they sold their archive….
The magnum archive contains some of the most famous photographs of the past century, from Robert Capa’s dying solder in the Spanish civil war to the tanks in Tianamen Square. Magnum photographers have been there and came back with photographs.
….but they sold their archive….
Well, let’s look at that. Although Magnum was one of the first agencies to defend photographer’s copyrights and license them to clients instead of selling all rights, Magnum has also often been short of funds. Magnum is a co-operertive agency, with all members sharing in risks and rewards. It also likes to focus on longer term and more difficult to cover subjects. There are plenty of shooters for the lighter subjects, but Magnum tries to cover the deeper elements of the human condition.
….but they sold their archive….
Yes, they did. For 30 million dollars, which is no small amount of money and they sold it to Dell. In fact, Dell purchased with the express intention of protecting it and making it more widely available then it had in the past.This was not a trival purchase, nor did Magnum consider it for just money
Dell invested the time and effort to transport this precious library in the safest means possible. It’s not like photographic archives can be just shipped by fedex somewhere. They also invested in the facilities to store it properly. This is from the days of film and most of the material is in the form of negatives, all of which can age and detriotate over time.
They also invested the time and money to have Magnum archivists come over and educate them in the notes on the material, the proper storage, and how this material should be treated. This was an investment for reasons more than money.
So, the result is the Magnum archive is now in the hands of a group with deep pockets, so they can protect it as well or better than Magnum itself. It’s in the hands of a group who plans to use its deep pockets to make it more accessable, which is something Magnum probably could not have afforded in the same manner. Finally, it puts a healthy amount of money in the hands of Magnum so they can use to support more the great work they have delivered in the past.
I think this is a win-wion deal for everyone involved, including ourselves.
Interestingly enough it appear that this sale may only apply to Magnum’s US archive and the4 individual photographers are retaining their copyrights. More from the British Journal of Photographer here.
Magnum itself discusses the sale here.
I think Magnum has been very smart in this transaction. They have placed some of their most valuable work in a storage facility better than they could probably afford themselves. They will be available in a manner that does not increase their workload and it gives them some much needed funds to continue doing what they do best.
Also posted in Business, copyright, famous, magnum, Professional Photography, Uncategorized
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American Photo Steps Up
Well, just when I thought the spirit of free speech had left the US publishing environment, American Photo magazine steps up to the plate. This month they have a cover story on controversial photography and matched the article by printing a selection of the work – including on the cover itself.
Now, these are not pornographic or even nudes, which turn up regularly in photographic magazines. These are controversial for all the right reasons, they expose a view that others may find uncomfortable or they portray the human condition in a less favorable light. In other words, they force us to look at ourselves or think about things we would rather pretend didn’t exist.
What I was also impressed with is they explained the background behind the photograph and sometimes the price the photographer paid for presenting the work.
One of the most moving pieces is a picture of a little starving African girl trying to make it to a feeding station. A short distance behind her is a vulture waiting for her to fail. It’s a disturbing picture of what is probably an all too common occurrence in some parts of the world. After the shot, the photographer chased off the vulture and carried the girl into the station. This was not a posed work, but rather what he saw there – and this was not the only staving person in the area.
For his efforts, he received a well deserved Pulitzer Prize, but also an unusual amount of abuse. For many people seemed to want to kill the messenger and blamed him for the situation, as if he was responsible for girl’s plight. Personally, I think people just hated being shown something they wanted to ignore, which is fact that a lot of people on this planet are starving to death. To deal with this reality, people sent him death threats, nasty letters, and many other forms of scorn. Unfortunately, it turned out to be too much for him and he committed suicide less than a year later.
Photojournalists have a difficult job. They need to travel horrible locations and face horrible situations with enough human compassion to capture a photograph that explains to the rest of us what’s happening there. Besides the physical risks involved, it also requires them to risk a lot of physiological damage. Conflict photographers are just as likely to get PSD (Post Traumatic Stress Disorder) as combat veterans.
American Photo is to be commended for presenting this work in a fair and balanced manner. To present it all is probably a challenge, as I expect they will be receiving nasty letters from a variety of special interest groups. Hopefully, they will continue to step up and show this type of work.
The self-censorship of the modern press is disturbing and dangerous. The desire to avoid controversial subjects or views in the interests of maintaining audiences or market share or advertisers risk losing the freedom of the press that was fought for in the first place. It’s not safe speech, commonly held views, or government approved statements that need to be protected – even the most repressive regime allows this already. It’s the dangerous speech, the speech that offends some and makes others think that needs to be defended. This is the type of speech that needs a Charter of rights and freedoms or a bill of or rights or the protection of high courts. This is the speech that tells us what’s actually happening and makes us consider what should happen. This is the speech that gives us the knowledge to vote properly and forms the foundations of a free and just society. Without it, we are nothing.
As Voltaire said a long time ago “I may not agree with what you’re saying, but I will fight to the death for your right to say it.â€.
Here’s to American Photo for doing their bit to maintaining this freedom and this tradition.
Also posted in Business, Professional Photography, Uncategorized
Tagged Business, magazine, photojournalism, rights
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