When the photo doesn't match the story

Do photographers have the luxury of capturing the "perfect" moment for a prep game? Not enough time in the day, especially since most photographers have other things to do.

The solution is to shoot your own photos because the paper isn't going to have a photographer sit at a prep game for 2-3 hours.

 

That's the whole point of this...it was a typical shot of a batter swinging a bat...nothing special. And in the slideshow you see online there are a number of better quality photos, including a couple that include the pitcher with the big game.

 

Do you think the photogs wonder why the story doesn't match the photo?
Seriously though, the only time the photo needs to match the story is a) a championship-type game; or b) something extraordinary happens, i.e., no hitter, 200-yard rushing game, 40-point game, etc.
If you don't have a good photo that matches your story, run one that works as secondary art.

 

I'll just add this: You run into a similar problem online. On a website, having art is important because web traffic is art-driven (people tend to ignore stories that lack a pretty picture by the link). We use a carousel and those absolutely require art.

For the print problem, I have a solution: I can go back into the files and change the art. My problem is this: When the best stories don't have live art. Happens fairly often. Teams are on the road (especially a problem in baseball where AP doesn't shoot on the road) and we don't string the photo for the paper, for example. So you go get file art of whoever did well, but it's deceiving because the photo literally does not match the game in the story.

It's a different issue, but in a way the same.

 

I got an email from an annoyed reader this year. He was disturbed that my basketball gamers were about Joe Joseph or Bobby Roberts, but the photos would be of Mike Michaelson or Jack Jackson. Told him I often don't know which angle my story is going until well after the photo deadline. He didn't accept that answer.

But there are times where I don't get how the photo can't match the story. Wrote a story recently on a baseball player who had been hit in the head four times this year. We ran a photo of him running the bases. Kind of shook my head at that one. I'd rather not run or photo or just a mug shot in that instance.

 

Like anything else, communication is the key. I'll send my photog a text during the game, saying, "Hey, try to get Joe Johnson, because that's the way I'm leaning." Of course that change should there be a walk-off hit, but those instances are rare.

With all that being said, I'm in the camp that runs the best photo over the one that matches. If we have one of Star Sammy, but it's a little worse of a photo, I'll run it on the jump. I'd rather pull the reader in with the kick-ass photo than turn them off completely with another "blah" shot.

 

Doesn't Brett Favre have something to say about a photo not matching up with his story???

 

We had regular "discussions" with the previous photo editor. One time we went with wire art because it fit the story better than what her photog came up with on an NBA playoff game.
She got mad and said, "Well, the writer should consult with the photographer and write the story to fit the photo."
Uh, sorry, that's never gonna happen.

 

Better than getting a phone call from the photog early evening, who is at a game over a half hour away, saying, "Um, I forgot to grab a memory card."

 

how about the photog that doesn't understand how some of the sports work, and you end up with your choice of JV photos to go with your varsity game...lol

 

You get what you pay for.

 

Haha... Beats the hell out of a "JV: Shelbyville won" line at the bottom of the agate for the varsity game.