Taking a photo is unremarkable.

Simply put, anyone can take a photo at almost any time they want to. That’s both great and not so great.

The capabilities of modern-day photography far exceed the capabilities of photographers 100 years ago. This is possible because of the internet, smartphones, globality and crazy advancements in technology.

For instance, in 1919, color film had just surfaced in mainstream media, while today in 2019, we can take microscopic photographs of plant cells.

But, what do we remember about photography over the past 100 years? How about “Tank Man” from 1989? Do you remember V-J Day featuring a kiss in Times Square? What about the 1968 Olympics “Black Power Salute”?
These are all iconic photos. Not because they’re high quality or taken with the smallest camera in the universe. These photographers were able to preserve a moment in history without using words.

Such is the power of photojournalism.

Unfortunately, cellphones have made many of us lazy and impatient. While newspapers and digital media thrives in this political atmosphere, daily news and current events are reduced to a box in your snapchat feed that you’ll glance at before clicking on “So Satisfying.”

By crawling into the vast wormhole of social media, we minimize our lives to blue light on a screen and reject the outside world. We’re always leaning towards colorful images, brief graphics filled with stock photos and anything that requires the least effort to obtain information.

However, we applaud Snapchat for enabling our short attention spans access to accessible news briefs with photos and headlines that work to grab our focus.

Photojournalism isn’t a cure for any of these modern addictions. Instead, it’s a call to action.

Photojournalism adapts in every new era. For example, videojournalism has evolved through media like documentaries that have the same job as any good news story. Modern journalism has equivocated feature-length news pieces to briefs accompanied by the advantages of multimedia journalism.

We at the Talon are always working to improve our methods of photography. Preferably, we’d take photos the moment the event happens, thinking proactively instead of retroactively. But, we haven’t perfected a system that meets our demands.

Our demands cause us to keep the highest level of professional journalism that we can. Incorporating color images, black-and-white pictures and informative graphics are just some of the many ways in which we attempt to keep up with the times … and the news.

Though we have access to the camera in our pockets, no better image can be captured than one by a Canon or Nikon. No better moment can be savored by one snapshot than someone who has the know-how, grasps the opportunity, and takes the shot.

Still, anybody can be their own photojournalist. Just grab your phone, step outside and capture something. Again, it doesn’t have to be remarkable, but it does have to say something. Although you may not realize it, you also all have access to a plethora of news.

Everything is always happening at all times. Don’t get left behind, join the force.