One of the characteristics of long-term photo documentary projects is making connection with the people who are the focus of the story. You get to the “truth”* when you spend the time to get to know the people you’re photographing and they get to know you. Trust and rapport develop.

Those factors sometimes get overlooked in daily photojournalism. It can be easy to go to an event or respond to some situation, document what’s going on and move on to the next thing. Time is short compared to the number of assignments and expectations of the organization.

But there’s something to be said for an approach that involves connecting with community and building relationships. This article on F-stoppers is from a rural/small-town journalism perspective. As Robert Stevens notes, being a photojournalist in a small community means the members of that community get to know you. You’re recognized when you show up (or not) at events but also at the grocery story, gas station, etc. That can be challenging, as people may want to bend your ear for good or bad when they run into you, but it can be a benefit as well. Getting to know the community members means they recognize what you do. They can be more comfortable around you. You have the rapport that can more quickly lead to the “truthful”* moments that will resonate with viewers of the photographs.

This perspective can work with “big city” photojournalists too. It’s hard to know everyone in a large urban area. It’s easier to get to know people in a part of that community. Can you carve out a community around where you live or work or do business? Or some other part of town? Are there sections you can go to on a regular basis, starting to get to know people? Is that a way that publications that cover large metro areas can start to connect more locally?

There are obvious constraints within large organizations: too much area and too few staff. The industry is continuing to face challenges to maintaining, or even building, readership. Small staffs have to rely on stringers, in some cases. So is there a connection? Maybe this is an opportunity to think about how organizations structure their staffs and build expectations. If more connection can equal more rapport/trust, that can move the needle in a positive direction with respect to trust in the organization.

I freely recognize I’m not working in that space. I don’t have to do the things photojournalists do every day. But maybe the approaches that guide long-term work have more connection to daily/weekly work than we’ve thought. As Robert writes at the end of his post, “Don’t just aim your lens. Talk to people, listen to their stories, and be part of the room. When you get back to your usual work, you might find you see things differently.”

*Why is “truth” in quotes? I recognize that historically “pictures don’t lie,” but photographs are a slice of time, and what they show can be determined differently by different viewers. The best the photographer/photojournalist can do is try to present what was in front of the lens in a way that reflects the scene accurately – regardless of whether the viewer wants to agree with it.