How To Shoot A Reportage #2

08 September 2010 2 Comments

Man carrying a sack in Kerala.

Your Luggage

First rule: travel light. If something is not really essential, don’t bring it with you. On the other hand, make sure that you have everything you really need and that you don’t have to waste precious working time because you have to do the laundry. It’s also a good idea to bring clothes that suit the environment you are visiting. Once I found myself entering a party in Shanghai wearing my camouflage shorts while almost everyone was sporting expensive evening wear. “It’s an informal soirée”, I was told. But I didn’t consider what they really meant by the word “informal”. Being a western photographer, I had no problem getting in, other times it has been a bit more complicated. For instance, the night I was kept from entering a club in New York with someone waiting to be photographed by me inside. Luckily a PR person that knew me arrived a few minutes later and explained to the doorman that I had to shoot a picture for Vanity Fair. My camouflage shorts are really comfortable, but now I always try to bring something more formal too.

Technical stuff

This is really a matter of personal taste and habits. I know photographers who are always shooting with two 35mm cameras with different lenses hanging around their neck plus a Leica and maybe one compact too. Others have their camera constantly on a tripod. Neither style works for me. I bring one camera body with an EF 50mm f/1.4 for portraiture, an EF 16-35 f/2.8 L II, which in my opinion is the most useful lens for reportage, an EF 70-200 f/2.8 L IS to take shots at a certain distance from the subjects, and an EF 100mm f/2.8 macro because you never know. A tripod sometimes is really useful but can be problematic to carry, I personally use a small one that’s just enough to hold my camera on a surface for night photography and long exposure times. I also bring a flash that doesn’t usually even get out of my bag. But have it, just in case the situation really requires it. Another tool that I rarely use, but that’s good to have, is a special bag that contains only two lenses. I can fix it with straps around my chest and it allows me to move freely in chaotic situations where a backpack would be too much. Of course I bring the battery charger, plug adaptors, my laptop, an extra cell phone, the model releases, my insurance documents, plenty of business cards and all the addresses I need (both on location and back home) printed on paper.

A telephoto lens is handy to shoot without being too invasive. Tai Chi on Nanjing Road, Shanghai.

Arriving

The very first thing that I do once I arrive at my destination is to get a local phone number for my second cell phone: people are not happy to call you if they have to spend a lot of money. Usually I don’t have to waste my time looking for a good deal because I already know which company is best for me, that’s part of my pre-production planning. Shooting abroad means that every day has a cost and – with the little money that magazines are paying now – it’s a good idea to get everything done in the shortest period of time. You won’t have much time to sleep or eat. If you do, that means that your breakeven will be higher. From the moment you land, every minute must be productive (that doesn’t mean stressed!) and your schedule needs to be always full. The first day is good for orienting yourself and figuring out what you can do on your own and where you would do better with the support of a local. I very seldom use assistants or drivers, but sometimes they are really essential.

Did you set up your budget? New York is expensive...

After a day of shooting (or even more than once a day), I download everything onto my laptop and start the editing right away. I organize my pictures in a “first choice” folder (that will go through a refined selection process further on) and a “reserve folder”. By doing so I have a rather quick overview on how the work is proceeding that allows me to decide what needs to be done. Keep in mind that, most of the time, all the planning that has been carefully calculated will go in a different direction because of unforeseen events. Don’t panic and be ready to grab new opportunities to work on your story.