I teach you need to be a good conversationalist to be a great photojournalist. You need to be a outgoing and creative to break the ice with subjects or approach complete strangers. I just completed a grueling photography task I do each year photographing dozens of subjects in two days, often finding strangers to be my subjects.
This
is easy if you are at an event – such as an art show, park or fair – but the task is photography for the annual Parker County Texas Visitors Guide. I
must get interesting photographs – preferably human – from 16 towns big and tiny and I have been doing this assignment for about 10 years. It is grueling but challenging and satisfying.
I need to drive the entire county and I don't want to take days going out and back. To make things harder, doing it in
two day means I cannot schedule to be at popular public events or make
arrangements to meet people at particular times.
The
bigger towns have senior centers, parks and farmers’ markets to find subjects doing
interesting things, while the small towns have nothing almost nobody, at least on a day I randomly drop in.
I
was dreading the small town of Peaster because it is a bleak pinpoint on the map
and a woman at the school district was snooty on the phone and would
not let me photograph on their campus this year Basically, Peaster is a nice high school and neighborhoods. When I arrived I took a picture of
the small post office, and it wasn't even open on this weekday afternoon.
I
drove around the few neighborhoods and
saw a woman in her shaded back yard, hair pulled back, head down and intently painting
something on a table. I was thinking “Please, oh please, oh please” as I walked
up to her wood gate, introduced myself and explained what I was doing.
I asked
if I may photograph her while she painted, and she said “No, I don’t take good pictures,” I enthusiastically countered with my favorite comeback, “Well, I take great pictures, so that evens things out!” Artist Ariel Menchaca laughed and agreed.
Jackpot! Not only did she agree to be photographed, she was doing
something of interest. She was paining folk art on mirror frames for a taqueria
her family was opening. For those not familiar with Texas, a taqueria is small
Mexican café specializing in yummy
authentic soft tacos.
It
took imagination, inspiration and a little bravery to get this good picture in
a tough situation. It was my best photo of the job. I drove to my next stop singing ♫ “Everything's Coming Our Way” by Carlos Santana.
