Who's taking photos of Somali Pirates, Congo Guerillas, etc?

[solvent]

How do these photos get taken, thats my question.

I see photos on news sites and wonder who was given permission to get so close and how did they get permission? How did they not end up another hostage? Can anyone shed any light?

[MJPhotos24]

They speak the same language - money!

[Gentleman Villain]

That's funny cuz I wondered the same thing.

My first thought is that many of the shots are just stock photos. My second thought is that the whole Somali pirate thing is a false flag operation orchestrated by the Illuminati banking families :p

[MJPhotos24]

It's not the first time an agency has paid a group to allow a photog to come aboard - they pay for there safety as well, but wonder how much of a guarantee that can be.

[Moppie]

If you were the member of an international crime syndicate that extorts governments for ransom through piracy would you allow a photographer to just poke around your enterprise? Hell no...a photographer would be viewed as a potential agent gathering intelligence information. The whole thing is afaik


Even international crime syndicates need good marketing.

[solvent]

Well then... i wonder who funds the photographers to go over there and take some photos?

Im specifically interested the people who are fighting for something around the world, as well as those rebels and how the photogs fund their trip to a certain place to get photos and make a living?

Is it more a case of fund it on your own, hope you get some good stuff, and then contact everyone you can trying to sell it?

[movado242]

this might shed some light on the subject: http://dirckhalstead.org/issue0712/what-we-go-through-for-a-story.html

she has a slide show on msnbc of the pirates today..11/25/07

French photographer Véronique de Viguerie has produced a wide array of features for World Picture News, including the "Madrassas of Pakistan" and "Afghanistan's Fiercest Policewoman." She covers many types of subjects ranging from hard news to reportage. Based in Afghanistan, de Viguerie narrowly escaped death in 2005 in a Kabul café when caught up in a suicide bomb blast; the man next to her was killed. She has been recognized with awards by the photojournalism community many times. In 2006 she was winner of the Canon Prize for Best Female Photojournalist at Visa Pour l'Image. Her work has appeared in Newsweek, The New York Times, LIFE, The Daily Telegraph, The Times, Le Figaro, Le Monde and Libération

[MJPhotos24]

Well then... i wonder who funds the photographers to go over there and take some photos?

Im specifically interested the people who are fighting for something around the world, as well as those rebels and how the photogs fund their trip to a certain place to get photos and make a living?

Is it more a case of fund it on your own, hope you get some good stuff, and then contact everyone you can trying to sell it?
As the basis of any successful photographer - you shoot what others can't and people will buy. Not many, if any, are getting these images so that makes them more valuable of course. Agencies and individuals with a good backing can do this, but if you read the story posted going in as a photog isn't always going to work.

[Aaagogo]

http://photography-on-the.net/forum/showthread.php?t=589338&highlight=war+photographers

[primoz]

How do photos of US soldiers in Iraq, NATO soldiers in Afghanistan or Hamas soldiers in Lebanon get taken? Same thing, different flags. News agencies have their contacts, and everyone wants to show their side of the coin. So everyone, one side or the other side, wants journalists on their side presenting their part of story. And news agencies use that... afterall it's all about money ;)

[ANGUS]

Groups want publicity, photographers may work for wire agencies like The AP or Getty or even for some major news papers like New York Times may have photographers in war zones. Some people take the risk and shoot then sell.

It tends to be writers that get kidnapped for some reason, possibly because they express an opinion not liked by the groups.