"Thirty years ago, the work of David Douglas Duncan possessed my soul and pushed me over the edge to a life in photography. To have him at our seminar was like getting to rock with Elvis", says National Geographic’s Director of Photography, David Griffin, above right….. 93 yr. old DDD ,above center, rolled into the annual NG Photographer’s Seminar in early January to "jam" with the best, for the best….
for the last 30 years or so, National Geographic Magazine has hosted the "world of photography" in its plushy Grosvenor Auditorium named after Gilbert H. Grosvenor grandfather of Gilbert M. Grosvenor ,left below, son of Melville Bell Grosvenor and Chairman of the Board of Trustees for the National Geographic Society…still with me ??? the Grosvenor dynasty descends from Alexander Graham Bell, the inventor (indirectly) of the ubiquitous, it drives me crazy cell phone, having invented the "crank it up" telephone in 1876. By 1888 Alexander was among 33 other elite scientists and explorers who founded the soon to be non-profit National Geographic Society whose "mission" was literally engraved in polished brass as "a Society for the increase and diffusion of geographical knowledge"…
even for those of you who have never been to the Washington D.C. Society Headquarters you may imagine an atmosphere where there are more black shined shoes than Vans or cowboy boots…."formal" might be a fair description and , yes, a bit more bureaucratic than a California think tank….lots of memos and meetings…..i mean, the Geographic is in the Federal Village and only 6 blocks from the White House….WASHINGTON seeps through the walls…i mean , it is a magazine, not a space shuttle launch!!! ..but, what would you expect?
what you might not expect is what you get at the annual Photographers Seminar….this year, besides the headliner David Douglas Duncan, were presenters Alec Soth, Jodi Cobb, Larry Fink, Eugene Richards, Paul Nicklen, and Debbie Fleming Caffery ….. the audience was, of course, just as impressive with William Albert Allard, Amy Vitale, David Burnett, Kristin Ashburn, Robert Clark, Amy Toensing, Ira Block, Steve McCurry, Richard Barnes, Maggie Steber, Mike Yamashita, Franz Lanting, Nina Berman, Stephen Ferry, Chien Chi-Chang, Callie Shell, and Chris Johns who turned in his cameras three years ago to become Editor of the Magazine…. and many many other "famous photogs" who will not be upset that i did not mention them (i hope) ….and so so many editors and biz superstars throughout the world, like Jean Francois Leroy, Director of Visa P’our L’Image in Perpignan, France, left above….
this Seminar is a true "gathering of the tribe" and is a major "tour de force" and "feather in the cap" for National Geographic….set up originally by Robert E. Gilka (see my story on "bosses") it continued under the guideship of Susan A. Smith, Associate Director of Photography for many years….now, David Griffin is the titular director, but he doles out lots of deserved credit to Susan and the Society "diplomat", Michael Nichols, now officially Editor at Large for the Magazine….the Grand Master of all master of ceremonies is none other than photographer Vince Musi who also does the honors at Look3, Festival of Photograph…Look3 was created by the same aforementioned tireless humanistic natural history former but always Magnum photographer, Michael "Nick" Nichols…lots of stuff going on "down there" folks…do not underestimate ever the power of what is going on at National Geographic…
"rock with Elvis"?? i do not know about that but, well, David Douglas Duncan changed my life with an inscription he wrote in my authors copy of "War Without Heroes"…way back when i was 23 and we were on the same week long seminar program together … in 1970 DDD wrote to DAH " David, you will have a fabulous life"…..thank you David….you set an example and gave me words to inspire….could there have been any greater gift???
but now the Photographers Seminar is over…my biased ramble is over….it is time for you to speak….what do all of you think?? does National Geographic Magazine "deliver" on it’s "mission" imperitive???
AGA…
welcome back!! we have missed you…
but, i was pretty sure you were working….i so so look forward to the work you are doing…
so, stay silent until you are totally finished…
peace, david
Like many others I grew up on Nat. Geo. I rarely look at it now. If I do, it’s to follow the coverage of one particular photog that I admire. Like you Mr. Harvey.
Some years ago I read the ethnography “Reading National Geographic”. This excellent study gave me new insight to the culture that surrounds Nat. Geo. and it left me distrusting the coverage and those behind it in general, particularly the senior editors.
If you like Nat Geo, you owe it to yourself to read this book. I’m not trying to spoil it for anyone only to illustrate that there is more than meets the eye to this publication.
Finsky,
First, I’ve not read the book. I’ve read some positive reviews and some negative reviews. Also the publisher’s description and premise of the book. And now your post above…in which you say: “…it left me distrusting the coverage and those behind it in general, particularly the senior editors.”
If you don’t mind, what specifically about the coverage is not to be trusted. What false pictures are being painted by the publishers or editors there? What lies are being perpetuated? Again, for the sake of conversation, do you have a specific example of a particular issue or article that we should all distrust?
Thanks.
It was curious to me learning about the dramatic loss of subscribers. I am primarily interested in natural history, and when I saw the trend towards other articles, my subscription was not renewed. I had been a long-time subscriber, but for me the magazine strayed from what I enjoyed the most.
I still pick the magazine up when I see it, and admire the photography, and like you, Fincky, I love following the work of some of my favorite photographers like David Harvey.
very well said mr Mike Halminski
mr FINSKI , also…
thank you for your honesty…
I REPEAT:
“…MIKE SLAPS PANOS IN THE FACE (or thats what he thinks!)
“… I would definitely recommend his book Air Guitar to Panos, assuming you read “books”…
MIKE , YOU REALLY “DID” ME WITH THE ABOVE”!!!!!
YOU SHUT ME DOWN… like a “stealth ” fighter plane somewhere in SERBIA…
VALENTINE’S DAY… GUESS WHAT I GOT FOR A PRESENT…
FROM MY GIRL!!!
A BOOK… A MOTHERFUCKING BOOK….
I FREAKED OUT… YA’LL KNOW… I DONT READ… OR SHOULD I SAY … I CAN’T READ!!!! …O.K?
BUT SOON, VERY SOON, my desperation became exhilaration…
THIS BOOK HAD NO LETTERS OR SENTENCES… OR ANYTHING YOU CAN READ… MAYBE JUST A COUPLE PAGES…
BUT… THIS BOOK WAS FULL OF PICTURES… PHOTOS!!!!…
This book’s epilogue goes like this…:
“… The most important love message and thank you to my kora-playing friend Jally in Senegal. Your voice and your message are with me daily. I will never forget you.
The most important love message are with me daily. I will never forget you.
The most important love message and thank you goes, of course, to my mother MARYANNA.
Thanks MOM for always sticking with me and for understanding my drive and passion from the very beginning. I LOVE YOU…
PEACE….
Now.. to whoever wants to judge me… or should i say: to every Mike or Michael out there… that dreams to slap me in the face…
to all of you….
CAN YOU GUESS WHO IS THE AUTHOR OF THE ABOVE BOOK????
a book , with no letters, theories, judgements, philosophies or
BULLSHIT…
CAN YOU GUESS???? CAN YOU….?
Posted by: Panos Skoulidas | February 15, 2008 at 01:37 AM…”
Now I’m going to generalise but the US is a big country. Americans are dumb stupid and ignorant I my wife’s best friend is a cultured cleaver person who can’t place Europe on a map it amazes me. I personally would love to have Nat Geo as a vehicle to tell some of these people about what I believe in.
I guess David’s right when he says that the audience must be satisfied. Nat Geo’s never going to be the most cutting edge publication but I think that the middle class readership it has is potentially the most influential in the world.
I think the writing has got a lot better since Chris Johns has taken over and it’s very slightly a harder hitting magazine. Obviously it’s easy to trash it for any number of reasons. BTW if I went to the Congo I would be taking pictures of Gorillas or more probably Chimpanzees.