duckrabbit – we produce beautifully crafted multimedia

July 3rd, 2009 | Tags: art, Asian, photography, Singapore, Yaohong | Category: Asia | Leave a comment

Is this story just PR spin?

It certainly looks like it to me … some hashed up copy that’s come from Reuters. The clever headline has ensured the story is the second most popular on the worlds biggest news website.

Just think of the value in terms of publicity?

Priceless.

July 3rd, 2009 | Category: News Spin, journalism | Leave a comment

July 2nd, 2009 | Category: Favorite Headlines | Leave a comment

duckrabbit had a bit of stick last month for sticking our neck out and trying to get a debate going about the lack of diversity at photography’s top table. The upside was that its obvious just how far we have to go to persuade people of the fundamental importance of moving towards a more equal world.

Photography is mainly an individual pursuit and sometimes individualism at the expense of others is what came through. That said its tough for everyone out there.

Last month we had 14000 visits. Thanks and please keep your contributions coming. We had some cracking multimedia sent our way in recent weeks and this month we’ll be helping to push it out there.

July 2nd, 2009 | Category: duckrabbit | Leave a comment

July 1st, 2009 | Category: duckrabbit | Leave a comment

Regular duckrabbit readers will know that I’m not a big fan of black and white photography. David White, the photographer in duckrabbit, says it’s my blind slot. He’s right, but I’m learning.

I’ve just come across another learner. Benjamin Jarosch, a young New York based photographer looked me up on Skype to chew the fat on multimedia. He’s assisting one of the worlds greatest photojournalists, Joseph Rodriguez, whose work you’re going to be hearing and seeing a lot more of in the coming week or so but for once we’re going to start with the apprentice.

‘The Banks’ is obviously some skate park. More than that I don’t know and maybe Benjamin will add some comments for me to post here. What I LOVE about this set is its warmth and its tenderness. He’s taken a group of kids, typically stereotyped, and brought out the lyricism of their lives when it could have all been macho, stylized bullshit. You can sense real vulnerability in their lives.

Benjamin has found the right master to learn from. It shows.

Poetry. And some. More please.

UPDATE from Benjamin:
“The Brooklyn Banks” as it is commonly called, is an internationally known skate park. It is one of the few places in New York where skaters and bikers can ride without running into legal problems. It is also a place of community created by youth from all over NYC who come here to live life and prove themselves. It is here that one can get a real taste of today’s New York.”

July 1st, 2009 | Tags: Benjamin Jarosch, Joseph Rodriguez, poetry, skate park. The banks | Category: Hot Shots, So What Do You Think?, portraits | Leave a comment

July 1st, 2009 | Category: News Spin, journalism, multimedia | Leave a comment

duckrabbit lives in Birmingham, the Uk’s second largest city. On my way home yesterday I couldn’t help but stop and shake my head at what the biggest newspaper in Birmingham was running on their billboards that day.

Its a hard time to be a hack but a good time to be taking baby snaps.

duckrabbit (the non photog) shot this on his phone. I’d love to see what else is hitting the billboards around the world over the next few days and how that reflects on the news industry? Go on take a shot and email it to me benjamin@duckrabbit.info

THANKS

July 1st, 2009 | Category: duckrabbit, journalism | Comments (1)

I was asked to do a day shift for the Press Association last Friday. Not something I usually do, but that’s more ‘cos I don’t get asked than cos I don’t want to..I love chasing the news. Anyway. I was asked to go to Wootton Bassett, which is a small town/village near RAF Lyneham. The body of Major Sean Birchall was to be repatriated.

He was the most senior soldier killed in Afghanistan. RAF Lyneham is only just over half an hour away from me, and it was disturbing to realise how close the effects of the war in Afghanistan are. I’m sure I’m no different to most when I just sort of pretend it’s not really happening… Many people lined the streets to pay their respects to Major Birchall, including many, many war veterans.

Out of respect to the families, news crews and togs were not allowed to move once the procession arrived, so you had to choose your spot and stick with it, hoping it would be a good position. I was lucky…I took a chance on an upstairs window. I was able to get some strong pics which went out across all the UK national ‘papers.

There is a grab below, showing one of the pics that made the PA’s ‘5@5′…their best pics of the day. All I can say to that is that the rest of the pics of the day were pretty weak…but if shooting an interesting pic gets more coverage for the unnecessary death of a soldier, or anyone, then I’m all for it.

DW

PA 5@5 Sean Birchall

June 29th, 2009 | Category: duckrabbit | Leave a comment

so I asked my mate Stephen to do it for me …

June 29th, 2009 | Category: music | Leave a comment

June 29th, 2009 | Category: duckrabbit | Leave a comment

According to the BJP

‘French magazine Paris Match was the victim of a hoax when it was revealed that this year’s winners of its Photojournalism Award had faked their images.

Every year, Paris Match, which remains one of the last weekly magazine to give predominant space to photography, organises its ‘Grand Prix Paris Match du Photoreportage.’ This year, the prize, which comes with €5000 and ten pages in Paris Match, was awarded to two students attending Strasbourg’s university.

Guillaume Chauvin and Rémi Hubert won for a reportage chronicling the harsh difficulties some poor students encounter while studying at the Strasbourg university.’

You can read the full story in the BJP here, see the photographs on the Paris Match website here and follow a debate on the story at Lightstalkers here.

Fair play to the students. In the judges eyes they produced the best photographs. To me it says something about how style is more important than substance.  That’s what’s really being judged here.

Some people seem to think this is another nail in the coffin that is photojournalism. Why?  The winners have purely highlighted something that has always gone on in the media.  Fakery.  People are becoming more aware that we’re constantly being lied to and if that erodes our sense of trust, then good.

Its not the art that counts; its what you do with it.

A duckrabbit hats off to the lads and a fake finger in the eye of Paris Match who threw a tantrum and withdrew the prize fund.

Own goal, idiots.

June 28th, 2009 | Category: News Spin, art, duckrabbit, journalism | Comments (2)

This headline says it all.  Apparently Bruce played an absolute blinder of a gig, but this is what the Times of London decides to lead with:

Why?

That’s part of news culture I’m afraid.  Negativity sells. Or does it?

This is a particularly poor attempt to create controversy out of nothing. Quite frankly it sucks.

June 28th, 2009 | Category: duckrabbit | Leave a comment

Ok…I thought this was a joke, but, oh no…there is an odd multimedia piece (ie video) on the Grauniad front page..
take a minute…watch…contemplate…retch.

SHORTS ARE IMPORTANT…NEVER FORGET.

June 27th, 2009 | Category: duckrabbit | Leave a comment