AB
Well-known member
While reading the new issue of "News Photographer", I see Mark Anderson is was featured in the "Where are they now" segment.
This segment looks at where past National POYs are now, written by Doug Legore (a past winner himself).
When I was first new to the NPPA, it was Mark Anderson's work that inspired me most. While I never worked for him, watching his work definitely brought the best effort out in my own work.
I still think the story about the noise from the Air Force jets affecting the Amish country is one of the finest local news stories I've seen. That along with Rob Macey's camp for handicapped kids in Phoenix (that story inspired me to go work for that station even though Rob had left).
Anyway, in the magazine article, Mark talks about a story from his POY tape. It was about a homeless man playing a wicked Jimi Hendrix on the guitar. Mark says it was his favorite piece on his entry. One of those fancy "NPPA type" stories that make the judges ooh and ahh.
While he's still proud of the piece, Mark now says he wished he had dug deeper and found the real story, that of what this homeless man was going through. What did he do with the money he played for?
Even though it was a great feature, years later Mark feels as though he didn't get the full story.
I found this insight very refreshing.
I'm not claiming to be on par with Mark Anderson, but I too have thought about past stories I was proud of at the time and thought "that was nice, but was that the true story?"
I was just wondering who else felt about their past work like that. And from the NPPA standpoint, is content being considered when judging contests over style?
I know, you sell the sizzle, not the steak, but while I've enjoyed some of the stories the past few years on the NPPA DVD, I've more often been left with a feeling of, "that's nice, but....".
Maybe I'm just getting old quick and don't appreciate the whiz/bang effects of the new guys. Maybe it's a game for the MTV generation. The only problem is my version of MTV is J.J. Jackson, Alan Hunter, Nina Blackwood, Martha Quinn and Mark Goodman.
This segment looks at where past National POYs are now, written by Doug Legore (a past winner himself).
When I was first new to the NPPA, it was Mark Anderson's work that inspired me most. While I never worked for him, watching his work definitely brought the best effort out in my own work.
I still think the story about the noise from the Air Force jets affecting the Amish country is one of the finest local news stories I've seen. That along with Rob Macey's camp for handicapped kids in Phoenix (that story inspired me to go work for that station even though Rob had left).
Anyway, in the magazine article, Mark talks about a story from his POY tape. It was about a homeless man playing a wicked Jimi Hendrix on the guitar. Mark says it was his favorite piece on his entry. One of those fancy "NPPA type" stories that make the judges ooh and ahh.
While he's still proud of the piece, Mark now says he wished he had dug deeper and found the real story, that of what this homeless man was going through. What did he do with the money he played for?
Even though it was a great feature, years later Mark feels as though he didn't get the full story.
I found this insight very refreshing.
I'm not claiming to be on par with Mark Anderson, but I too have thought about past stories I was proud of at the time and thought "that was nice, but was that the true story?"
I was just wondering who else felt about their past work like that. And from the NPPA standpoint, is content being considered when judging contests over style?
I know, you sell the sizzle, not the steak, but while I've enjoyed some of the stories the past few years on the NPPA DVD, I've more often been left with a feeling of, "that's nice, but....".
Maybe I'm just getting old quick and don't appreciate the whiz/bang effects of the new guys. Maybe it's a game for the MTV generation. The only problem is my version of MTV is J.J. Jackson, Alan Hunter, Nina Blackwood, Martha Quinn and Mark Goodman.