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Interview with Jon Jones, Director of Photography, Sunday Times
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- 22nd Dec 2011
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- 4 comments
Jon Jones
Many of your photojournalist roles were extremely dangerous, and required you to spend time in war-torn countries. What drove you to risk your life in such dangerous locations?
Jon: I had an absolute belief that those types of stories needed to be shown and photographed and people needed to know what was happening. When I was working it was pre Internet, mobile phones, 24hr news etc. The idea of travelling off to these places, spending a long time there and being immersed in this story was what I loved. This totally drove me; I absolutely believed it was the correct thing to do.
Was it a difficult transition to make, moving from working behind the lens to behind the picture desk? What drove you to make that decision?
Jon: It wasn’t a conscious decision at all and wasn’t something I thought I would end up doing. It was an opportunity that was offered and it was an intriguing thing to go and do. You don’t stop being a photographer and start being a picture editor and vice versa. At the moment I work in a particular way and as a photographer I worked in a different way but it’s a very similar job in some respects.
I never sat down and thought I want to be a picture editor, it literally was an opportunity, someone suggested I would enjoy doing it, so I thought I would give it a go, not thinking I would even stick it out.
What three qualities would you suggest a photojournalist needs to succeed in this current climate?
Jon: We see a lot of very similar stories and a lot of the same stories are done and redone through generations. Be original and find things that are interesting, don’t just rehash things. It’s always about the ideas; people with great ideas always do well.
Photojournalism and Documentary Photography is becoming an increasingly popular genre, do you think this is a positive thing for the industry?
Jon: There is a huge influx of photographers these days. This term photojournalist is much more prevalent these days. When I studied photography we were told the Industry could probably absorb around 12 people a year. Today there are fewer jobs but 100’s more photographers.
There are a lot of very good photographers who are not working, which is never a good thing. The expectations of young photographers are way out of kilter with the realities of the industry.
Leading on from this question do you think to many people are entering into this genre with no training or awareness of how to tell a story/be a journalist?
Jon: It’s an incredibly difficult business to do well in and make a living out of. It’s not something you can enter into lightly; you need to be extremely dedicated.
I don’t think many people really understand the business side of the business.
How important do you think social networking and blogging has become for a photojournalist? Would you say this is now a crucial part of being a photojournalist?
Jon: It’s an important part of being a photographer today. Having an online presence is essential and social networking and blogs are just an extension of that. Anything that you can do to get your work seen by a wider audience can only be beneficial.
Are you on social Media?
Jon: Yes I am for work. I use it because I like to see what people are doing, what projects they are working on and what they have shot. It’s a good way for me to keep a check on what people are doing without having to chase them all the time.
Do you still work on any personal photography projects?
Jon: I have no time to shoot anything now, but I still regard myself as a photojournalist, I’m just doing something slightly different at the moment.
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