NewsPhotography

He arrived at the scene of a house fire after the flames had already been extinguished. But photographer Jerry Gay turned his lens on firefighters instead – and won a Pulitzer

Pulitzer-award-winning photojournalist Jerry Gay’s passion for photography and firefighters started so early that, as far back as elementary school, he would jump on his bike with a Kodak Pony 4 to chase fire engines. Gay, a longtime photojournalist who won a 1975 Pulitzer for a black-and-white film photograph of exhausted firefighters, died on October 14 at the age of 79. The…
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NewsPhotography

Once presumed lost forever, these eerie photos show us all what horror movies were like 100 years ago

The photo above shows a scene from a movie which was made an entire century ago. And while it’s just a single frame, you can see exactly why it’s still entrancing audiences today. A wild-haired and heavily bearded man is signing a document with a quill. Beside him, a hooded figure has the countenance of a rogue landlord waiting for you to initial the small print. And in a sense, he is…
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NewsPhotography

More than a century old, these school portraits have something profound to teach modern photographers… and it's got nothing to do with equipment or settings

We all remember the class portrait photo from our school days, and not always in a kindly way. Rows of children, arranged by height, squinting at a stranger behind a lens. Getting shouted at to comb your hair. Being berated for not smiling properly. It wasn’t everybody’s idea of fun. And yet if someone keeps the print, and it turns up a couple of decades on, we’re generally…
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NewsPhotography

A woman laughs behind glass, rainbows arc through a sprinkler and a marching band waits by the sea: Alex Webb’s camera photographs an America that's busy, bright and connected

Street photographers are taught to simplify. Find a clearly identified subject, moment or scene amidst the chaos of city life. Focus in on it, and minimise the visual clutter. Wait for the decisive moment, then pull the trigger. Alex Webb, though, does the opposite. His images are dense and layered. There’s no obvious focal point, which prompts you to keep looking at every nook and cranny.
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