tftf45 – Interview: Press Photography

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Today I have Steven Georges on the show. He’s Chief Photographer for the Press-Telegram in Long Beach, CA. A real deep look behind the scenes of a dedicated press photographer, and you can tell he really really loves doing what he does!


“Cooling off in the Summer Heat” by Steven Georges (click image for larger version)

MP3 for today’s show:

Links from today’s show:

  • http://homepage.mac.com/gsikka Gaurav

    Great show! Informative & inspiring. looking fwd to more of the same

  • Boris Nienke

    i have problems downloading this episode with iTunes.
    1.) iTunes listed the tftf44 twice – don’t know why – but donload the second one (error)
    2.) the tftf45 is listed but not downloaded (error)

    The error is “Beim Hinzufügen von tftf45 – Press Photography Interview” zu iTunes ist ein Fehler aufgetreten. Möglicherweise ist die Datei beschädigt oder iTunes kann diesen Dateityp nicht wiedergeben”

    Maybe you have an idea…

    …sorry – it’s silly :D writing english but having a german error-message :D

  • Boris Nienke

    seems to work now… it’s downloading now… maybe it was just a server-problem

  • http://www.tipsfromthetopfloor.com/ Administrator

    Boris, glad it’s working for you again. There was some sort of glitch with the feeds in iTunes. Unfortunately something that I didn’t have any influence on. Hope not too many people were affected by that.

  • Kevin

    Fantastic show!! Learned a lot and the tips were great. Keep up the great work!!

  • http://www.tyroga.com/ James

    Loved this show… and the links given by Steven.

    Always happy to hear the latest Tips from the Top Floor.

  • Daniel

    Really enjoyed the show. Soundwise it must have been difficult. I couldn’t tell if it was the connection or equipment. Putting that aside though, I really enjoy hearing interviews with professionals who can give tips, tricks, and an overall boost of confidence for those of us who are just beginning. I don’t have an SLR and my point and shoot is a bit old (Fuji Finepix 2800) and sometimes I feel discouraged.
    I do want to ask if most professional photographers are as friendly as Steven Georges, Ron Pepper, and Franklin McMahon? I realize that with every profession there is a wide range of personalities but I get the feeling on your show that people in this professional are generally friendly, open minded and respectful to those who are still beginners or just getting into the professional world.

  • http://homepage.mac.com/daddysteve Steven Georges

    Wow, thanks for kind words. It means a lot to me!
    Daniel – Yes, there are a wide range of personalities but on the whole, I have found other photographers to be friendly and very helpful. I’ve always tried to take the time to answer questions when people come up to me and ask.
    When I worked as a freelancer for the Orange County Register, (also California) the competition between them and the Los Angeles Times was cutthroat, even nasty sometimes. But the attitude between the photographers when they met on photo shoots was genuinely friendly. I’ve always been impressed with the general attitude of this profession.

    Steven.Georges@PressTelegram.com

  • M@

    Probaly the 4th show I’ve listened to. I listen using iTunes… no problems there. The first few shows I listened to I had the “get to the point” complaint, but after listening to a few and becoming more “familiar” with it, I don’t think I’d make that comment. Keep up the great work, we spent a good 2 hrs listening to you on a recent drive.

  • http://www.tipsfromthetopfloor.com/ Administrator

    M@,

    glad you survived listening to me for 2 hours straight ;)

  • Lee

    Two hours?? I often listen to your melodious voice about four hours a day! :)
    Do I need to get a life??
    Lee

  • http://www.istockphoto.com/index.php?refnum=timmy Tim P

    I agree with all the positive comments above. I really enjoy hearing about PJ.

    The only thing I would say is that I want to know more. Please have a follow-up interview that goes deeper into the technical as well as the emotional sides of the job. How does Steve set his white balance for example. How does he pose people. How does he decide which lens to use. What ISO? etc. etc. Also the emotional side. How does he deal with the pressure? You are only as good as yesterday’s shots. No one cares about how good your work is 5 years ago–you have to bring home “the shot” every assignment. What is that like?

    Also, I’d like to hear more stories. Each one of his fire pictures on his photo site must have a story that goes with it. I used to do a bit of photo journalism a while back and I know that it is hard to get a shot of a fire with flames in it. Usually the Fire Department is so fast all you get are shots of water spraying everywhere!

    Anyway, sorry it is so long! I really enjoyed this one though! Keep it up Chris!

  • http://www.tipsfromthetopfloor.com/ Administrator

    Tim, thanks for the questions.. well, this could have easily become a two-hour interview, but couldn’t make the file any bigger than that :) I suggest for the time being you contact Steven directly, I’m sure he has his e-mail address on his web site.

  • http://www.neongreen.com craigv

    Wow, what a great show! Keep up the great work.

  • Agent86

    I would love to know how this photo was taken? http://www.tipsfromthetopfloor.com/wp-content/SummerGeorges.jpg
    I can work out the technical except how do you get the conditions with the black background. I hope this is not too off topic.

  • http://www.tipsfromthetopfloor.com/ Administrator

    You might want to shoot Seven a note, he took the pic. His website is at http://homepage.mac.com/daddysteve

    However, I suppose there simply was a black background in the picture when he shot it

  • http://homepage.mac.com/daddysteve Steven Georges

    Hi Agent86, just saw your question.

    I was driving into work when I saw 4 kids playing with a hose and a bucket of water on a hot day and immediately thought it would be worth stopping to check out.
    I stood across the street from them and started to shoot photos. Eventually they saw me. I waved at them and they waved back. It always amazes me how quickly people forget a camera is present and just go back to what they are doing. You can tell when they are poising for a camera.

    I kept shooting with a mono-pod for about 20 minutes trying to capture a good candid moment until they quit playing and then walked across the street to introduce myself and get their names.

    Here’s the part you were asking about —
    The sidewalk where they were playing had apartments behind them. An OK background but there was also a small garage door that was open and made a nice black backdrop. If you remember one of the tips from that show –

    Background, background, background!!!

    When the kids moved to the left or right playing on the sidewalk, so did I trying to get that black open garage door behind them. When the moment happened (there were a few of them) I had my shot!

    Luck still plays a big part.

    Steven.Georges@PressTelegram.com

  • http://www.uwsp.edu/ATHLETICS/mbb/past.htmPast Seasons

    Best you should change the page title tftf45 – Interview: Press Photography | Digital Photography Tips from the Top Floor to more specific for your content you create. I liked the the writing nevertheless.