MIDWEST MEETING: Evanston meeting draws 45 photo editors to day long workshop that combines offerings with Illinois photo gathering. Click here for details.

BETTER IMAGES: Chicago Tribune business photo editor talks about efforts to improve business photos. Click here for ideas.

SUCCESS STORY: Albuquerque Tribune's director of photography gives insight on the process that helped the newspaper earn honors in the Pictures of the Year contest. Click here for highlights.

PROMOTION TIPS: If you're moving from photographer to supervisor, here's advice from a human resources specialist to help with the transition. Click here for tips.

THINK LIKE A DESIGNER: Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel staffers give insight on the design/photography partnership. Click here for more.

AP PHOTO REPORT: More stand-alone essays, in-depth packages are being offered in response to member requests. To read what AP is doing, click here.

MIDWEST WORKSHOP DRAWS PHOTO MANAGERS, STUDENTS
The third annual Midwest Associated Press Photo Managers regional workshop drew 45 photo managers and students to the Hilton Garden Hotel in Evanston, IlL., the second weekend of April. This year's workshop was scheduled to coordinate with the Illinois Press Photographers annual competition and day-long seminar, allowing photo managers the opportunity to combine the Friday APPM meeting with the Saturday IPPA speakers and sessions. The new location was also more convenient for photo managers in Indiana, Wisconsin and Michigan.

BUSINESS PHOTOS CAN BE MORE THAN GUYS IN SUITS
Photo editor Maggie Walker of the Chicago Tribune has responsibility for the financial pages' visual report. When she took over the post years ago she found a common theme for images accompanying business stories — "white guys in suits in offices." Other common subjects were press conferences and building photos of companies mentioned in stories. "I spent about a year figuring out what more you can do with business photos," she says.

	(Chicago Tribune/John Smierciak)
	(Chicago Tribune/E. Jason Wambsgans)
	(Chicago Tribune/Alex Garcia)
	(Chicago Tribune/Erik Unger)
	Click on each photo to view a larger version.

For photographers experienced in news, feature or sports, getting interesting images for the business page can be especially challenging, Walker says. Story subjects are frequently cited for what they know, not what they do, providing little content to photograph.

When the subject cooperates, it is possible to illustrate the story by moving out of the office, such as placing an aircraft executive inside a jet engine for a portrait. Another had an executive in a new, empty office on the telephone while sitting on a lonely chair, while a blurred figure of a member of the moving crew swirled in the he background.

Walker credits the creativity of photographers when they succeed in producing an interesting, unique image. She points to the portrait of a pair of fund managers, tightly cropped and slightly off axis, as an example of what needs to happen. "I'm always asking the assignment desk to tell the photographer to be really creative," she says, adding the assignment editors remind her that creativity is expected from every assignment.

Using reflections to tie disparate elements together has also been a useful tool, citing a display of luxury goods in Tiffany's as an example. The same technique was also used to illustrate a high rise employee's need to go from his office on the 37th floor to above the 80th floor in order to use his cell phone.

The business section writers have been helpful, Walker says, because they realized early that good photos helped their stories and the section. This has been important with a weekly small business section where the emphasis has been on photos of the business people in action.

Consumer stories also have drawn more active assignments. A recent story about a family's investment plans began with a family portrait, but when Walker, the writer and the page designer all agreed it wasn't working, a second trip when the family was genuinely interacting produced an image that worked for everyone.

Finally, Walker says that for some stories, the building photo can still be useful in illustrating a story about a company. Creative architecture photography, with photographers making the extra effort for a unique look, has made the difference, she said.

ALBUQUERQUE TRIBUNE: A WINNING PHOTO STRATEGY
The 13,000-circulation Albuquerque Tribune has regularly been cited for excellent photography and use of photographs. The afternoon newspaper, published in a joint operating agreement with the Albuquerque Journal, won this year's Pictures of the Year best use of photographs by a newspaper under 100,000.

Director of Photography Mark Holm told the Midwest photo managers that the way the newspaper's staff makes choices creates their strong visual report. Holm says the four photographers take ownership of the stories they are assigned or create on their own. A photographer may get new one assignment each day, but will be juggling several others that are in progress. Their process begins with photo requests filled out by writers, which Holm characterizes as "requests" rather than "assignments." And while some of the requests have run dates for the stories, Holm says he often chooses to dismiss that. The photo staff schedules themselves and the stories don't run until the best visual presentation is possible, he says. "We wait until the fruit is ripe til we put it on the table," he said. The photographers may go with the reporter on an interview, but mainly to gather information on when the best time to come back for a photograph would be, he says.

Because photographers create their own schedules, it is more "chaotic" and "comp time" is used frequently, he says. The approach to getting the best moments requires time. The paper's approach to a new police chief for the city was to send a photographer to the chief's current city and spend time with him to get the story-telling images.

The Tribune staff never does the unfocused feature-hunting some newspaper photographers do in between assignments, Holm says. "If we are going to go on a feature mission, we walk out the door with an idea," he said.

Despite what might appear to be a publication devoted to presenting the vision of the visual journalist, Holm says "It is not gallery photography. We have our readers in mind all the time."

CONGRATULATIONS, SUPERVISOR! NOW WHAT?
When Carol Joe Yen asked the gathered photo managers how many had moved directly from a being a staff photographer to managing their former peers without intervening training or experience, more than half the room responded. Joe Yen, a human resources manager for The Associated Press, acknowledged the progression as a familiar career path for newsroom managers and offered these tips:

• Explain to the staff, your former peers, how you will judge performance, and clarify what is expected from each staff member.

• Multitasking has become common, but when working with staff members, "actively listen", giving the conversations your complete attention.

• Find some department problems that can be readily resolved — "the low-hanging fruit" — and take care of them first. This gives you successes you can build upon.

Time management is a frequent issue for new managers, Joe Yen said. Former peers will use friendships to advance agendas and there will be the temptation to try to fix everything for everyone.

"Learn to let go of former responsibilities," Joe Yen said. Set clear guidelines for employees and encourage them to be self-reliant and avoid "reverse delegation." She warned that new managers can too much time dealing with the 20 percent of staff members who will always be unhappy.

Joe Yen also described factors involved in the "art of delegation" and advised managers to "manage up" by developing knowledge about their boss's personality and work style.

A discussion of employee discipline procedures and suggestions for handling performance reviews capped the session.

HOW DESIGNERS AND PICTURE EDITORS CAN WORK TOGETHER
By Eric Keith
St. Joseph (Mo.) News-Press

Picture editors got tips on working with designers in a session by Sherman Williams, AME/photos, and Lonnie Turner, Features design editor, who both work for the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel.

The pair took turns commenting on various crossover aspects of photography's role in design at their publication. The first topic "designers love great photography" got no argument from the room full of photo managers and set the tone for the subsequent topics, which emphasized similar concerns between photography and design. Williams and Turner collaboratively discussed shared interests such as risk taking, humor, reader interest, planning and communication.

The seventh tip, "Designers live in a vertical world," spoke to the divergent ways photographers and designers frame their work. Turner stressed the importance of turning the camera vertically on occasion, especially when multiple photos are employed or when going for maximum impact through size. When Turner mentioned cropping photos to fulfill a vertical need, many photo managers expressed intense frustration with the idea. Bill Olmsted, Photo Editor at the Janesville Wis., Gazette, said designers should treat a photograph as a complete piece of work as they would a written story. To crop it is to change its content.

Turner indicated that the best way to make important decisions such as this is as a team. She wants as much collaboration as possible.

John Madill, photo editor the St. Joseph (Mich.) Herald-Palladium, said many page designers at smaller papers don't have the visual training necessary to make cropping decisions. A separate thread explored whether good design sense can be taught. Turner said she thought it could be taught but some designers just seem to have more natural ability than others.

Williams expressed the importance of communicating with designers what photographers and photo managers are trying to accomplish. He suggested photographers should not assume both groups are speaking the same language.

A discussion entitled "Cut it Out Will Ya" caused less consternation when Turner suggested that cutouts can look desperate if the gimmick is an afterthought. When used, it should be planned. Williams said that the key is having the photo staff on board.

The last two ideas for design "Eureka! The creative myth" and "There is never just one right way to tell a story" further exemplify the unified presentation from Williams and Turner. Williams said good work often happens as a series of conversations and conscious thought. Turner believes that in the end, it is important to come to an agreement about the most appropriate presentation for our stories.

AP PHOTO REPORT CHANGING IN RESPONSE TO MEMBER REQUESTS
By Chris Stanfield
St. Paul (Minn.) Pioneer Press
President, AP Photo Managers

At Friday's APPM Midwest seminar in Evanston, Ill., those in attendance had the opportunity to hear from and speak with David Ake, AP's deputy director of photography, on a number of issues related to the AP and its relationship with its members. Ake explained that the AP photo report is now offering more enterprise and in-depth photo stories by its staff photographers. Ake mentioned that the request for more stand-alone photo essays came as a result of members expecting more enterprise and "less safe" approaches from the AP staff photographers.

Members shared in a discussion about a larger need for newspapers to offer more photography to the daily photo report. "I hear more and more members asking for more state photos," Ake said. Ake went on to say that he'd like to see member contributions increase under the spirit of the cooperative between the AP and its member papers. Several members in attendance agreed that there is a growing need for more quality photography across the state and pledged contribute more to the daily photo report.

Cliff Schiappa, AP Midwest photo editor, encouraged those in attendance to make the push for better crediting of photography in their newspapers. "I'd like to see newspapers be more consistent in giving full credit to the photographer and the newspaper when using photos from the Associated Press, in addition to the AP byline."

Coming up: For details about upcoming APPM workshops and seminars, see www.apphotomanagers.org.