Boxing-A Poor Mans Sport

Professional photographers have had a hard go of it in the past decade! Digital cameras and platforms have made it easier for anyone with a camera to take amazing pictures. The quality of images that are being snapped today
is beyond compare to just a few short years back. I-phones are incredible at capturing publication worthy images, and with that, the demise of professional photographers is on the upswing, anything can get published these days if you find the right outlet or means.

Does that mean that anyone can take a good photograph? Of course not. Professionals look beyond the actual picture,
they are trained to set the exposure for intended effect, blur out a background and let the light hit just right to capture the peak moment, to give the end viewer the whole story.....as if they themselves were actual present in the moment.
Anyone can claim to be a photographer, but don't just claim it too loudly to those of us who are schooled in the art.

We are all MEDIA capable, but it takes many years to continuously make a living off of our craft.

Boxers are the same way, just because you can throw a punch does NOT mean that you are a boxer. Professional boxers give and take punches on a daily basis, learning the proper techniques and avoidance measures...they react on instinct and thus, turn pro when/if they are good enough. I fought for a few years when I was younger, upon realizing that I would never make it as a pro, I changed careers at the right moment. I am forever grateful for what my coaches taught me, and I wont forget my skills, but with that, I do not call myself a professional boxer.

Floyd Mayweather Jr. and Manny Pacquiao are fighting this weekend, you may have heard rumblings about it somewhere.  I was at the Mayweather camp in Las Vegas last week for the open media day, with about 400 other media types. It was a madhouse, and looking back it was a somewhat unpleasant experience. The general rudeness amongst those covering the open workout was embarassing. There was fighting, pushing and general name calling over simple positioning by those trying to get their own angles. People were actually moving other outlets bags and markers when they simply stepped away for a drink of water. This is not the journalism I was taught, and looking back, I am happy to say that I did my best with what was allowed to me. Kelly Swanson and her crew, along with those that run the Mayweather Boxing Club were amazing, with their politeness and the way that they were so accomodating to fans and showbiz types alike, but for the reporters and some of the camera operators, OMG, how long do you think you will last in this business if you continue to behave like you did? Seriously!

If you know me, then you know I am not one to hold back, I will face a challenge head on and speak my mind to those that are not following the rules. I asked a few folks just what they were thinking, and they all told me that they had the right to do what it was they were doing. They had the obligatory wrist band wrapped around their arm, so thus, they were in their minds, LEGIT.
I understand that with the limited time and deadlines, the pressure was on, but some of you "journalists" had better come to your senses. You represent not only yourself, but your media outlet as well as your mentors......this is a very small world and word travels fast in this industry.

Regardless of the experience, I had a very good week leading up to the camp with a quick stop over in Miami with Wladimir Klitschko and then was fortunate enough to shoot the fight of my life at Turning Stone Casino between Lucas Matthysse and Ruslan Provodnikov. All in all, I was able to get almost 100 images published in just the past week. Rolling Stone, TIME magazine, SI, ESPN, TheRING Mag and over one dozen different countries picked up my photos. I did apply to cover the Mayweather/Pacquiao fight, but was turned down...there are simply not enough spots available I guess, or our seats were sold to boost numbers! Though I am not happy with being declined, I am trying to keep my head up and just move on, to get past it. There will be better fights in the future and hopefully I will be invited to shoot those! Just like boxing itself, if you get knocked down, tighten your gloves and stand right back up, eventually you will forget about getting knocked down and will one day be the best.

If you like the sport, check out coverage from Al Bello and Ed Mulholland this week, they are the top 2 shooters currently that shoot the sweet science.
I tried to upload a PDF of last weeks tearsheets but the file was too large, check some shots here:

http://alexmenendez.photoshelter.com/#!/index/G0000lyzBgEalMdk

James Risen: Prosecuting the Press event

A few weeks back I was invited to shoot an event at the University of California Berkeley Graduate School of Journalism. The event was titled “Prosecuting the Press” and featured the world famous investigative reporter Lowell Bergman, a true badass and currently producer/correspondent for the PBS documentary series FRONTLINE. Bergman is so tough and experienced that actor Al Pacino played him in the feature film “The Insider”, needless to say, he is the real deal!

His guest for this lecture was the currently embattled Pulitzer Prize winning American journalist and New York Times reporter, James Risen. Risen is also as tough as nails and has been challenged by the courts to reveal the name of his source for a chapter in his book State of War: The Secret History of the CIA and the Bush Administration. Chapter 9 in his book talks about a secret mission called Operation MERLIN that the CIA totally screwed up. Risen caught wind of this mishap and wrote about it years later, unfortunately, both the Bush administration and the Obama administration are still trying to punish him for bringing the said incident to light. He is currently challenging the ruling of the court system who looks to send him to jail if he won’t divulge his source of the leak, by taking his case to the Supreme Court. This is currently scheduled to happen in a few months, and that is also why I chose to accept this assignment, the verdict in this case will have HUGE implications on the way the Media/Press deal with acquiring and writing their stories in the near future. Risens’ challenge is one of the bravest things for a journalist to attempt, and I fully support his rights and ideals.  With the amount of hype that Julian Assange (Wikileaks), Eric Snowden and Chelsea Manning have received in the past few years for their specific leaks, the Risen case may seem miniscule in comparison. However, it must be noted that he was not the “leaker”, he merely wrote about the events the occurred, as told to him, by a trusted source…….but he is also a journalist, and is protected by the laws of the land…..right? One would think, but the rules have changed rapidly since 9/11, and the U.S. government is trying to set him up as an example….don’t burn us or we will burn you seems to be the statement they are screaming!

“The basic issue is, can we continue as journalists to protect and offer the confidentiality to someone who knows something going on in the government but doesn’t want to go public?”, asked Risen.

His question and answer event was scheduled at the Berdahl Auditorium on campus and was held in front of 300 invited guests. Among those in attendance was Whistleblower Daniel Ellsberg, one of the first ever to leak secrets, most famously the “Pentagon Papers” that he copied and delivered to The New York Times in 1971. His leak changed the way the Vietnam war debacle played out, and his decision and bravery no doubt helped save the lives of  many U.S. soldiers.

I was fortunate enough to film all of these men and listen to their stories as well….a bonus if you will. I had read the book ahead of time to judge for myself if the leak was really worth going to jail over…..I don’t think it gave away anything that would have jeopardized or hurt America…..unless showing how reckless and childish the whole CIA plan actually was…! I truly believe that the people trying to punish Risen are embarrassed by what he revealed, and the simple fact that they got caught. 

The Berkeley professors, Dean Wasserman and the students/staff who helped and attended this event should be proud of the program that they put together this night and I am glad that I could attend and do my part in capturing this small segment of history….James Risen is a true leader, and will be seen as one by years end.  When asked about his own future and why he published his book, Risen responded to the crowd, “I thought, I either publish these stories or I’m getting out of journalism. The default position for a reporter should be to publish.”

The entire event was videotaped and will hopefully be around for many decades to teach other journalism students the ethics and responsibility of being  professional writers.

In other happenings, I was invited to put together a small workshop on the UC Berkeley Graduate School of Journalism campus and it couldn’t have gone any better! I was to discuss being a “Pool photographer” as well as how uploading images to the Associated Press wire service happens. I had about a dozen excited and curious students in attendance in the library, and we spoke for over 2 hours. We talked ethics, responsibility, PhotoMechanic, editing, cropping, metadata, code replacements, Photoshop actions and FTP servers……and then went through my traveling camera case. Students set up my cameras with Pocket Wizard remotes and tried my selection of different lenses and bodies……Hands on was the motto of the day.   I want to personally thank everyone at Berkeley, and I truly hope to return there one day for a longer workshop to train these excited students. This was one of the best teaching experiences ever. Go Bears!!!

For more photos of this event click here:   http://alexmenendez.photoshelter.com/#!/index/G0000FU69V3m5Np4