Obama’s Burden from Christopher Morris on Vimeo.

You probably already know Christopher Morris‘ work. One of the founding members of VII, his conflict photography is unparalleled and his recent work on American politics, including the book “My America,” has redefined visual coverage of the White House. You might not know that Morris has been making videos in addition to his still coverage of American politics. Emotionally resonant and forceful, these videos look like none others produced in the 5DMarkII-fueled push toward moving images in photojournalism. The videos resemble Morris’ still work, but their use of music, black and white imagery, and tone make them something altogether different.  He’s released four videos, all worth watching:

Christopher Morris recently started a thread on lightstalkers to discuss his videos, and the response was varied. Make sure to read through that thread. The discussion there is interesting and touched on many aspects of Morris’ video work not covered in this interview (if you don’t have a lightstalkers account, email me), and I thought Morris’ videos would be a great subject for one of our periodic interviews here at dvafoto. I was delighted when Morris agreed to the interview. The discussion, conducted over email, is below. Our questions are in bold, followed by Morris’ full responses. If you’re reading on the front page, be sure to click through to the post to see the full interview.

dvafoto: What are you showing us with the videos? When “Dear Leader” first came out, the title (equating Bush with Kim Jong Il) and the tone and the video itself suggested to me a critical portrayal of the previous administration. Now seeing a similar tone in the Obama videos, it strikes me that you aren’t focusing directly on the man in the office, but the office itself and its theater and cultural baggage.

Christopher Morris: I’m showing you what I feel. Each one of these has a very distinct clear meaning for me. As for the viewer? That’s something I’m not quite sure of. This is the beauty of this whole process. They are whatever you want them to be.

I seem to remember you speaking or writing about what would become “My America” as appealing both to the Bush administration’s supporters and detractors. From the same photos, one side saw images of patriotism and strong leadership, while the other saw demagogy, jingoism, and blind, wrong-headed faith in a politician. Have you gotten the same reaction from your videos? From your coverage of Obama? How do you feel about this emotional ambiguity? is it your goal?

Each one of these short films has a distinct meaning for me. I know exactly what I’m trying to convey, what mood and emotion I’m trying to bring out of the viewer in each one of these… The exciting thing about the whole process though… is the emotion that I may want to convey… will actually with some, be the complete opposite or even something that I’ve never even thought of.

Your lightstalkers thread called your videos “experiments,” why are they experiments? Will they become more than an experiment for you? What got you started shooting video? How do you fit in the video shooting with the stills and deadlines? What influenced the style of your videos?

Here I’ll give a short synopsis of each of the Obama works and how they really came about. The first one I did was “The New Leader“. I didn’t wake up and think oh I’m going to make a statement about the Presidency today. It really started as I was sitting in the balcony of Capitol Hill while the President was about to step out to address the Nation on his Health Care Reform. I had been loaned one of the new Canon 7d’ cameras to test the day before. So literally 5 minutes before he came out, I decided to attempt to shoot some video of him at the start. Still images from a balcony 100 feet away of someone walking down the center aisle really do not make for great photography. So why now shoot video instead.. Later the next day when I put the clips into my laptop. I was stunned, with the whole quality and the mood of the images. In the next few day’s the President left for Wall Street to make an address on the Economy in New York. Basically here is a man that is trying to sell the nation on Health Care, the Economy, the War. The urgency of everything. This is what I’ve attempted to convey in “The New Leader” short.

All of this was really just an experiment to test out the 7D. There were and still are many parts that should be edited out. This is why on returning to DC in November, my initial plan was to attempt to record some more clips of the President to re-edit into the film. Then on Veterans Day, Obama was to visit Arlington National Cemetery and deliver a speech. This time using the Canon 5D, I basically shot non-stop from the moment the motorcade left the White House until it returned. Right away during the drive I could sense how visually stunning the motorcade footage was, with the added historical importance of the President’s visit, and that this couldn’t be edited into my earlier video. It would stand on its own ["Obama's Burden"]. What struck me is that roughly 10 cars in front of me is the President in his limousine looking out at the constant and never ending tombstones of our war dead.

And then in December, Obama was to fly to West Point to address the nation on his decision regarding Afghanistan. Hence, “Obama’s War.” The choice of the music here is really interesting. What I do, is while playing one of the clips, I will cycle through some songs to see if anything fits the mood I’m attempting to convey. Having already downloaded some music files from pumpaudio.com, I had something in mind. By mistake I inadvertently played this Russian folklore song called Jolly Talk, by DrevA. For me it was perfect, here was this Russian voice taunting us with her simple words. Taunting us, for now it was our turn to send our young cadets to Afghanistan. The same thing Russian cadets were doing 30 years before. As for the images of the C5A cargo plane, they were shot the same night at an Air Force base near West Point. They are from the window of the helicopter as we taxied for take-off. For me they represented the planes that would carry the young cadets to war. They had almost this coffin like quality to them.
Read on »

Consequences by Noor

The website had just been a teaser for the Dec. 7 premiere of Consequences by Noor, a multi-faceted essay “on the devastating effects of climate change around the globe.” Released to coincide with the Copenhagen climate change talks currently going on, Noor has scheduled a number of exhibitions and events in Copenhagen. The work is now available online: Nina Berman’s “Pine Beetles,” Kadir van Lohuizen’s “Brazil’s Range War: Assault on the Amazon,” Jan Grarup’s “And then there was silence,” Stanley Greene’s “Shadows of Change,” Jon Lowenstein’s “In the Oil Sands,” Philip Blenkinsop’s “The Fires Within: The Burning Coalfields of Jharia, India,” Francesco Zizola’s “A Paradise in Peril,” Yuri Kozyrev’s “Karabash and the Yamal Peninsula,” and Pep Bonet’s “Poland’s Coal Industry.” Additionally, if you happen to be in Copenhagen, there are 50,000 copies of a special English-language newspaper devoted to Consequences, produced by Danish newspaper Information. The sidebar of the site also says that Consequences will be on tour in 2010. Hopefully I’ll get to see it in person.

Beyond the fantastic work by each of the photographers involved in Consequences, I’m particularly interested in the distribution model for the work. Rather than focus on getting the photojournalism out to a wide audience in the traditional publishing model, Consequences’ goal seems to be getting the work seen first by people in power to make a change. I think it’s a valuable strategy. While there is a strong role for these essays to play in informing the general public about specific effects of global climate change, the public may well have reached a point of saturation for these sorts of stories. A strategic shift in intended audience, from mass public to people with influence and power, could have momentous results. Colin Powell famously cited the influence of Platon’s photos in his endorsement of Obama. More to the point, Nick Nichol’s photos of the forests of Gabon helped persuade the country’s president to create a nature preserve comprising 1/10th of the Gabon’s land. I’m sure the Copenhagen summit attendees have been staring at spreadsheets and white papers for months leading up to this summit, heads dizzy with hard data and statistical models. The photos in Consequences will put a face on the abstract issues of global climate change for those most able to make a difference in the international environmental agenda. The photographers’ work will likely have great effect during these first few days.

Olga, translator and student. Together with other people, since September 2008, Olga is taking classes at the Belarus Free Theatre to perform in drama theatre. Here during the final performance with other students, as ending workshop conducted by a British actress, invited by the Company. Minsk, Belarus, April 2009

Italian photographer Alessandro Vincenzi wrote in to dvafoto to let us know about recent work of his work covering the Belarus Free Theatre, an underground theatre group that has survived over the past few years despite repeated harassment by the Belarussian government. The pictures are great, and the piece as a whole convey a sense of real energy and fun amid a backdrop of secrecy and political repression. From the artist’s statement, “Under the current political system the Free Theatre has no official registration, no premises, nor any other facilities. Rehearsals and performances (always free of charge for the public) are normally held secretly in small private apartments, which, due to security and the risk of persecution, must constantly be changed…[In] Belarus are state-owned, the directors and creative directors are appointed by the Ministry of Culture. The performances are censored and the programs are old. The Free Theatre wants to offer a modern alternative that discusses social problems with a degree of creative freedom. The prize that members of the Free Theatre have to pay for what they are trying to do is considerable; almost all the members of the ensemble have served time behind bars.” I sat down with Alessandro (over email, really) and asked him a few questions about the project.

Oleg during a performance in the house-theatre rented by the Belarus Free Theatre to have a space where to perform. Here during a moment of Discover Love, directed by Nikolai Khalezin that tells about a true history. Oleg is Anatoly, Irina's (Anna) husband, an important businessman supporting the opposition party that was kidnapped and killed. Minsk, Belarus, April 2009

dvafoto: How did you get in contact with the theatre? Were they apprehensive about being photographed and (potentially) having their story presented to a wide audience (perhaps they’re worried about more government harrassment?)? What brought you to Belarus?

Alessandro Vincenzi: I had the idea since long to visit Belarus and I was looking for an original story to talk about the situation in the Country. There is not much information about what is going on in Belarus; it’s the last dictatorship in Europe and a place where the KGB is still exist, a place where the is no right of free expression.
As I did for all my reportages, also in this case there is a long research behind in the Internet, research that brought me to the Free Theatre. I came across to a video made by Swedish crew, a multimedia of performances from the Company and moment of protest and crashes between Government forces and supporter of the opposition party. Digging in the research I found the web site of the Company with contacts.
Paradoxically the international press gives them protection, more people know about their situation and the isolation that exists in Belarus and more difficult is for the Government to persecute their activities.

Public inside the house-theatre listening a reading from student of Belarus Free Theatre. Public is contacted by the company in a private and secret way the day before or the same day of the performance. Minsk, Belarus, April 2009

Have you had any luck getting this story published? I see very little work from Belarus and it’s not considered a hot news location, so I imagine it’s difficult to get editors interested.

Right, very difficult. Many people that saw the reportage were impressed by the way that the subject was approached, by the originality of the story and by some very strong images, but haven’t been published yet. I think it’s pretty sad that we have to wait that something happen in Belarus, or in any other Country of the World, to give voice to people that have to struggle every day to carry on their daily life…the bell will ring when it will be too late.

Slideshow at the end of Discover Love, directed by Nikolai Khalezin that tells about a true history. The slideshow was aimed to awareness the public about the violation of human rights all over the world. Minsk, Belarus, April 2009

You used to work for MSF, what led to your decision to become a photographer full time? How has the transition been?

Photography has been inside me since long, but probably I’ve never been brave enough to take the decision. The experience with MSF has been really important for me, for my personality, for the approach with people in general. I learned how to deal in situation of stress and how to mediate during difficult moments. It has been the most amazing experience that I had in my life, but during my last mission in Bangladesh I was looking at the patients and situations like a photographer and not as a humanitarian helper. It was not fair and respectful anymore especially for the beneficiaries but also for me. I couldn’t concentrate anymore on my work as biologist, so I decided was the moment to give a try to photography.

Yana Rusakevich, 32 years old studied at the Academy of Art of Minsk. During her studies and also after the graduation she worked at the Yanka Kupala Governmental Academic Theatre. Yana was one of the first actresses to join the Belarus Free Theatre in 2005 when was established. Few months ago she lost her job with the Yanka Kupala Company. Here preparing herself before a reading in the house-theatre. Minsk, Belarus, April 2009

What projects are you working on right now?

The Forgotten Italians is still in progress. I’m looking for a sponsor to follow the route of the deportation up to Kazakhstan, place where the Italian minority was deported from Crimea in 1942, during the Stalin Dictatorship. The Belarus Free Theatre is also in progress as I have the idea to follow them during their tours in Europe.

Anna, Oleg and Pavel during a performance in the house-theatre rented by the Belarus Free Theatre to have a space where to perform. Here during a moment of Discover Love, directed by Nikolai Khalezin that tells about a true history. Anna is Irina, wife Anatoly (Oleg), an important businessman supporting the opposition party that was kidnapped and killed and Pavel is an agent of the Troupe of Death. Minsk, Belarus, April 2009

Check out the rest of Alessandro’s work at his website: http://www.alessandrovincenzi.it/

Silicon Alley Insider gathers data on some newspapers who have recently ceased their print publications and moved entirely online.  While some, notably the Kentucky Post and the Seattle PI, have seen sharp increases in online viewership, the picture isn’t as rosy for most online-only newspapers.  A few of the newspapers now boast monthly online readership about the size of our own here at dvafoto, which is both a bad sign for those newspapers and a nice sign for us.  Most interesting, though, is an almost throw-away comment about the Kentucky Post:

A study by Princeton economists says that since the Posts closed, both the number of candidates for city council and local board posts, and the number of people who showed up to vote has dropped. The study also says that the incumbent politicians and board members now have higher chances of staying in office.”

In short, the printed newspaper is an important check on politicians. Not new news, I suppose, but now there’s data to back up the assertion.

As expected, Americans Laura Ling and Euna Lee were put on trial in North Korea and the pair have just been sentenced to 12 years “reform through labor” in a prison camp, according to the Korean Central News Agency. The pair were reporting on the China-North Korea border for CurrentTV when they were arrested and jailed. The Obama administration has said they are trying “all possible channels” to resolve the matter and secure the women’s release, but North Korea has become increasingly hostile to negotiations over the past weeks and months. Ling and Lee have become pawns in high stakes political negotiations, and it may cost them their lives. The prison camps in North Korea have an alarmingly high death rate, according to reports.

Pop star Madonna holds the child named Mercy, whom she hopes to adopt, in an undated sepia publicity photo taken in Malawi. Photograph: Publicity handout/Reuters

In what could be a small followup to Joerg Colberg’s earlier apprehension of black and white documentary style photography, Martin Parr’s penned a pithy analysis of handout photos provided by pop-singer Madonna from her recent attempt to adopt a child in Malawi.

Choosing sepia is all to do with trying to make the image look romantic and idealistic. It’s sort of a soft version of propaganda. … This predilection for sepia is all part of the baggage we have about photography … people seem to think it looks more real.” -Martin Parr

As media outlets dwindle, the majority of the viewing public’s connection with visual communication will increasingly be the province of handouts, PR shots, and propaganda, if it hasn’t already. While some might lament the failings of the mainstream media, one hopes newsrooms endeavour to hold themselves to a higher and less manipulative visual language than a publicity campaign. Analyses such as Parr’s here are necessary to the understanding of what we’re shown.

And while we’re at it, Randy Cohen, of the New York Times Sunday Magazine’s regular “The Ethicist” column (my favorite magazine column, next to Harper’s Index and Harper’s Weekly Review), analyzes the ethical concerns of international adoption for his new NYT blog “Moral of the Story.”

I’d written before about one state legislator’s efforts to get state money to support Connecticut’s newspapers, but the idea is gaining steam. Now come reports that Senator Benjamin Cardin (D-Maryland) has introduced legislation that would allow newspapers to restructure as nonprofits and give the papers a number of tax breaks. Hard to say whether this will get anywhere. According to the article, the bill has no co-sponsors as of yet.

(via the new APhotoADay blog)

Andrew Craft / Fayetteville Observer - First Lady Michelle Obama looks at a photograph that was given to her as a gift from the city as Fayetteville Mayor Tony Chavonne introduces her Thursday at the Fayetteville Arts Center on Hay Street. The framed photograph was taken by Fayetteville Observer photographer Andrew Craft.

A lot of photojournalists hope their photos can make a difference. Informing the public is one avenue, having powerful people who make decisions see the photos is another. Andrew Craft’s great photo, of a military family saying goodbye as the husband and father ships off for deployment, will be doing the latter. He talks a little about it here and his paper mentions the event here.

The city of Fayetteville, North Carolina, decided to give Craft’s photo, taken as a staff photographer for the the Fayetteville Observer, to Michelle Obama on her recent visit to the city. Receiving the photo, a stark portrayal of the domestic toll of the war in Iraq, Michelle Obama said, “Thank you…this picture is just moving. It says so much, and it is going up in my office tomorrow.” Video of the speech at C-Span.

Bryan Derballa - President Hugo Chavez caravans his way through the slums of Catia as a last attempt to rally support for his constitutional amendment.

Mother Jones has just published a gallery of friend Bryan Derballa’s coverage of the referendum vote in Venezuela. Some great shots in there, especially the one I pulled for the top of this post. So much excitement, distilled, isolated, and composed in its own setting.

Karl Rove, everyone’s favorite Bush henchman, is an avid user of Twitter. And a hunter. And a photographer. I think it’s the curt style necessitated by Twitter’s 140 character limit, but there’s a strange and unsettling intimacy in having such unmediated access to what are essentially facebook status updates of one of the invisible hands behind the Bush administration.