I Take Bad Photographs

Posted on January 30, 2009 by Trent Nelson

Yes. I do take bad photographs.

The reason some of you won’t believe it is that I usually only post the good ones.

But I’ve got to tell you, I have taken some really bad photographs. Especially lately. My name has appeared underneath some true garbage. People smiling at the camera, distracted compositions, rushed portraits, I’ve done it all.

And I’m not going to blame it on poor assignments, or the lack of time I had to work a situation, or the way my equipment seems to be wigging out, or any of the other complaints about things that my great-at-complaining photographer brain is loaded with.

I’m going to blame myself. I’m the one taking bad photos.

Now to fix it. My plan to combat this recent rash of mediocrity is to use public shame.

For as long as it takes for me to get my head on straight about photography, I’m going to post my best photo (or two) from every single assignment. That way, if I slack off an assignment there will be no hiding the fact. You can judge for yourself whether I failed.

So here we come, warts and all.

I’ve got to clear my head. I’m spread way too thin right now. It’s time to go on diet and stop bingeing on Netflix, RSS feeds, podcasts, gloomy news about the journalism industry, etc.

It’s time to step up and be a photographer, first and foremost.

Join me.

The Moguls

Posted on January 30, 2009 by Trent Nelson

In the quest for great photographs, no amount of talent or enthusiasm can overcome tough logistics and tight scheduling. So it was Thursday.

Assignments: shoot World Cup Moguls at Deer Valley, then hit an evening shot back in Salt Lake City.

Time was going to be short from the start. My shift started at noon and the event was set to start at 1pm. Factor in the thirty minute drive, parking, credential pick up, and a long hike up to the mogul course and you’ve got some serious timing problems. Add in the fact that the photos are slated for the front page and now there is pressure. Not a good environment for producing great photographs.

Arriving at Deer Valley, I see another photographer’s distinctive blue truck parked in the very first row of the mammoth parking lot. That should have been where the Tribune photographer ended up, on time, prepared and on top of things. The parking spot I found was at the far end of the lot, out in Siberia, making for a long walk in snow clothes and carrying all of my gear.

Some good news does come, however, when I’m told that the event has been pushed back to 2pm. With that announcement I suddenly feel prepared and on schedule. But then I find out that the women and men made their first runs this morning. This means that I’ve lost any option for a second angle.

There are only a few dozen athletes slated to ski in the finals. This will make it tough because you really only get one shot at each athlete as they fly off a jump and sail past. One shot. And you don’t know who’s going to win so when you’re editing all you can do is pray that you got a good shot of the gold medalist.

The best way to photograph winter sports is to shoot action up on the hill for the first run and head down to the bottom to shoot reactions during the finals. In this case, I had to choose one or the other. Since it was going front page I started climbing up the hill, figuring that seeing these athletes flipping through the air on skis would be a better front page shot.

This story is getting long so I’ll let’s hurry it up. My evening assignment back in Salt Lake was going to be a challenge, but then it got even tighter when I was switched onto an even earlier assignment. The decision was made to skip the mens final, so now I just had 16 athletes to get our front page shot. I could see the likelihood of this actually making the front page vanishing before my eyes. There just wasn’t enough time to get a great photograph. I should have been up here all day.

I photographed the women’s final and drove back to Salt Lake. After sending in my best photographs, I sent a text message to the photo desk that my photos were in and that I was going to take a short lunch break before my next assignment. My phone rings a moment later, and my evening assignment has been changed again. I run out to the car and start driving through rush hour traffic to Provo, forty-five minutes away, to photograph a boy and his mother. There will be no lunch break, however short, today.

It’s just how some days are.

Meeting Betty Jessop

Posted on January 28, 2009 by Trent Nelson

NOTE: I have spent years covering polygamy and events in the FLDS community, including the first trial of Warren Jeffs and the 2008 raid on the YFZ Ranch in Texas. You can find all of my posts on polygamy by clicking here: Category:Polygamy

There are two competing story lines to Betty Jessop, which I think are summed up in the two photos above.

1. The FLDS view (on the left) is a smiling and happy young FLDS woman who returned to her faith and family when she turned 18 and now lives a wonderful life surrounded by family and friends.

2. The worldly view (for lack of a better term) is a curiosity and sadness that this young girl had escaped a cult but chose to return to its secretive culture and give up her freedom.

Please use a permanent marker to circle your position on the computer screen. Especially if you are at work.

Hey, did I mention that I met Betty Jessop?

We were ushered into this dining room area in a home on the YFZ Ranch and met Betty. She was surrounded by (I’m guessing) her sisters and other family members. They were all a little nervous at all the attention, and there was much giggling. I don’t think too many strangers with cameras come around.

Betty laughed and was a little camera shy at first. It was the end of a long day and she hadn’t expected to have her photo taken tonight. She was hardly the first young woman to ask me to delete any “ugly” pictures. I thought she looked great. We sat down and she talked, and after thirty minutes or so it was over.

Last night I went to a local bookstore to hear Betty’s mother, Carolyn Jessop, talk about her bestselling book, Escape. As she read about Betty, Carolyn got emotional. At one point, reading about her leaving, she told of going back into the house to get her daughter and saying, “Betty, I will not leave you behind!”

During the Q&A Carolyn was asked how her kids are doing now. Speaking of Betty, she said that Betty had turned down a friend’s offer to pay for college. About Brooke’s article on the front page yesterday, FLDS Teen Disputes Mom’s Book, Carolyn said, “That’s been very painful.” Brooke’s story focused on a book that Betty has been writing about her experiences in and out of the FLDS community. Someone described it to me as “Escape From Escape.”

Carolyn said that Betty had lots of friends when she was attending public school after leaving the FLDS (in West Jordan, a suburb of Salt Lake City), and she worried that the book might destroy Betty’s relationships with those friends, further locking her into the FLDS society.

Someone asked if the FLDS members of Carolyn’s family had read the book. Carolyn said she didn’t know, that if any had they would never admit it as the book would be contraband. During our interview with Betty, she said she had read parts of her mother’s book, and expressed hurt by some of it.

Carolyn talked about how smart Betty was, and suggested that Betty would be saddened at the state of education among the FLDS. She said Betty had taken a child development class in high school, and would know sexual abuse when she saw it.

Someone said to Carolyn, “I have a hard time understanding what is pulling Betty back.” Carolyn said that Betty was a favorite of her father, that he named her his favorite name. She said Merril was very protective of Betty. If the girls got in trouble the punishment would be, “A slap to the sisters and a sucker for Betty.”

According to Carolyn, leaving the community was a big blow to Betty. In the FLDS community, she never got in trouble. She was the favored daughter of one of the most powerful men. Teachers bowed to Betty. She had the world by the tail. When she left and went to a public school, she felt alone. She missed her half brother. All the kids had a hard time without their siblings.

I think you are seeing some of the people that Betty felt alone without in these photos.

The mind control is really strong, Carolyn said. We sent her to twelve therapists; it was impossible to break through the mind control.

Carolyn said she calls and texts Betty all the time, though she wasn’t sure if it was really Betty’s number or if Betty even had access to a phone. “Once in a while I get a call,” Carolyn said.

I remembered that Betty had a phone and a camera, which you see in most of these photos.

Carolyn said that if Betty wanted to get out, she would. “I would make sure,” said Carolyn.

Jazz vs. Cavs – LeBron James

Posted on January 27, 2009 by Trent Nelson

Photographed the first quarter of the Utah Jazz vs. Cleveland Cavaliers, focusing on LeBron James. Above is a sequence during player introductions. So much energy. Then he goes over to the scorer’s table and does this whole chalk ritual. Look at all the fan cameras that got the shot, while I got this…

There’s a big chalk cloud above that frame, too. Would be a great moment, but not for me this year.

It wouldn’t take long for LeBron to explode.

Then three photos of the play where Kyrylo Fesenko fouled James pretty hard, knocking him to the floor.

I had moved to the outside for a clearer view, but the ref is always unpredictable.

Obama and Bush

Posted on January 26, 2009 by Trent Nelson

It’s been a week since the inauguration of President Obama and after pouring over hundreds of links to photographs and multimedia coverage, these are three of my favorites. You can click on the photographs to open each link in a new window. Each is well worth your time.

Photograph by Mustafah Abdulaziz

Burn Magazine, a creation of Magnum’s David Alan Harvey, had a great black and white portfolio of the events by photographer Mustafah Abdulaziz. I love the tonality and vision. Abdulaziz was clearly shooting from the heart.

Photograph by Scott Strazzante

Chicago Tribune photographer Scott Strazzante wrote a short piece for SportsShooter.Com about two of his favorite photographs from D.C. Strazzante always has a different, original look.

Photograph by Doug Mills

And finally, documentary filmmaker Errol Morris interviewed three top photo editors about the iconic images they picked to tell the story of the Bush Presidency. Every post on Morris’ blog is a must-read (even the ones that are so deep they make my head swim), but this one points out an important fact: Much of our perception of history comes from still photographs. These photographs are how we will remember history. Not from video, not from TV, not from words (okay, maybe words a little bit). Read it and weep.

BYU vs. UNLV College Basketball – Second Half

Posted on January 22, 2009 by Trent Nelson

This was about the moment when UNLV took over the game. Jackson Emery did a Pete Rose dive, sliding across the court trying to save the ball. It wouldn’t be long before UNLV tied the game and then went ahead to win, as BYU put up brick after brick.

Once a team unravels like this, it’s pretty easy to find photos to show it.

Jonathan Tavernari loses his handle on the ball.

UNLV’s Brice Massamba and UNLV guard Rene Rougeau celebrate after Rougeau was fouled during a UNLV streak that gave them a 55-48 lead in the second half.

Finally, Lee Cummard walks off the court after the loss.

BYU vs. UNLV College Basketball – First Half

Posted on January 22, 2009 by Trent Nelson

Covered last night’s BYU vs. UNLV game and I’ll make a couple posts out of it. First, the good news… BYU had a great first half, going into the locker room with a double-digit lead.

Lee Cummard looks down at UNLV guard Tre’Von Willis.

After this dunk by Lee Cummard, the lead was 19-11.

UNLV head coach Lon Kruger argues with an official.

Brigham Young’s Chris Miles pulls the ball from UNLV’s Darris Santee. Traveling was called on the play. In background, Brigham Young guard Jimmer Fredette.

Next post, when I get a minute, the mirror-image second half…

Trent Nelson | Photojournalist

Monthly Archives: January 2009