Alex Farris | Oct. 11, 2009
 |
| Photo by Aaron Bernstein |
| Robert Pledge, founder of Contact Press Images, talked to photojournalism students Oct. 6. He described the differences in the way photographers work with publications in this era of fast technology. |
Related |
Pledge, founder of Contact Press Images in 1976, visited associate professor Jim Kelly’s J344 Photojournalism Reporting class to discuss the role of photo agencies from the mid-20th century to the present.
As examples of the work that agencies such as Magnum and Contact have done to bring the news to the world, Pledge presented two series of photos. One was Gilles Caron’s portfolio of images from the May 1968 anti-government riots, from the student organization to the police clashes to the overturned cars in the streets.
The other, from Contact photographer and co-founder David Burnett, documented the 44 days between the overthrow of the Shah of Iran and the return of Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini.
Pledge compared the submission of photos when he started Contact with the process today. Whereas in the past film had to be mailed and The New York Times Magazine worked with a 10-week lead time to wait for those photos, now photographers can sent photos directly from their cameras to the press room. He stressed that aspiring photographers must work fully in the current environment and not in any method from the past.
Pledge followed Aaron Bernstein, a 2007 graduate of the School of Journalism and photographer for the Office of University Communications. Bernstein presented images he had taken during the recent G20 summit in Pittsburgh.
Questions? Comments? Email the Web editor.
