The Photo Feed 05.21.08

Kansas City Star Photogs Launch Print Sale To Support Co-Worker (NPPA)
Kansas City Star photographer Tim Janicke has some big-hearted colleagues. With Janicke undergoing treatment for brain cancer and going onto long-term disability, he’s lost his company insurance. So Kansas City Star features photography editor Mary Schulte and other photographers from the paper are organizing a print sale to raise money to offset the Janickes’ overwhelming health care costs. Donated images will be sold through a soon-to-be-launched Web site administered by the Star’s online store. If you’re interested in donating a print for the sale, click here to learn more.

Photographer Alan Pappé Dies (Austin-American Statesman)
Alan Pappé, who shot movie stills and musicians, has died. Pappé photographed Liza Minelli for the covers of Time and Newsweek and shot movie posters and stills for more than 30 movies, including Grease. He also shot numerous musicians, including Jimi Hendrix, Ted Nugent, the Grateful Dead, Jefferson Airplane. Pappé died in an Austin hospice on April 30. His family would not disclose his age or cause of death.

Calling It Quits? (Black Star Rising)
As the National Press Photographers Association (NPPA) considers changing its name to The Society of Visual Journalists, Inc. (SVJ), photographer Heather S. Hughes is considering leaving the organization. The NPPA would arguably better represent video and other multimedia professionals. But Hughes, who just wants to be a photojournalist, feels left out by the possible change—and she’s not sure there’s another organization that represents still photojournalism loyalists like her.

MORE BELOW: Washington Post names new assistant picture editor ... Epson Web site features photography tales ... Why you might want to "stop taking pictures" ... Terry Richardson: professional improviser ... Bridging the racial divide with jazz photography ...

Washington Post Names New Assistant Picture Editor (Mediabistro)
The Washington Post has named Robert Miller assistant picture editor. Miller was previously director of photography and multimedia at The News & Observer in Raleigh, North Carolina.

Epson Web Site Features Photography Tales (The Photo Traveler / Epson)
Epson recently launched a Web site highlighting articles and videos about different photographers’ work (and, in some cases, their experiences with Epson products). Dubbed Focal Points, the site currently includes conversations with VII founding member James Nachtwey, Ansel Adams’ protégé Chris Rainier, commercial photographer Rodney Smith, fine art photog Robert Weingarten, portrait photographer Phillip Stewart Charis and many other photo pros.

“Stop Taking Pictures” (Photoshop Insider)
If you’re unhappy with your photos, it may be time to stop taking pictures and instead focus on being taken by them, says photographer Vincent Versace. Instead of focusing on composition rules, he suggests capturing an image’s feeling, not just in your viewfinder, but in your head.

Terry Richardson: Professional Improviser (Adrants / Belvedere Vodka)
If you’ve ever wondered how Terry Richardson works his magic, be sure to check out videos of the photographer talking—between expletives—about improvising during shoots, getting subjects to “open up” like flowers and shooting for the vodka company. To view the videos, visit Belvedere’s Web site, select your country, say you’re old enough to drink vodka click “Discover Luxury Reborn,” then select “Terry's Room.”

How A Photog Found His Rhythm (AP)
Before racial desegregation was considered socially kosher, a self-described “white, Jewish guy” named Herb Snitzer was shooting some of jazz’s great stars like Dizzy Gillespie and Louis Armstrong. His images were among the few shots of African-Americans to wind up on the covers of Look and Life. Despite these circumstances, Snitzer says he never experienced any racial tension with the musicians he shot. In fact, Snitzer considered photographing jazz “an act of solidarity with Americans suffering injustice,” says Benjamin Cawthra, who is curating an exhibit of Snitzer’s photos in St. Louis.