Assistant Night Photo Editor
Software: CCI, Adobe PhotoShop, Merlin Photo Archive, iView, Lotus Notes
Description: I got an offer from the AME for Photo to come and work on the Photo Desk as an editor. I started out as an Assignment Editor for the Features and Business sections. Part of the job dealt with making assignments and part of the job dealt with finding and researching photos for different stories. I even took a studio photo specifically for a business story instead of buying a similar photo. I coordinated the shoot and selected the one that would work (and I got a published credit for it). Occasionally, I also filled in as the Daily Assignment Photo Editor running the breaking news assignments during the day. And then finally, I worked full-time as a Night Photo Editor, running the desk, coordinating photographers and assignments and helping select incoming photos for publication, as well as editing photos in PhotoShop for publication.
Another unique part of my duties was to administer the department’s Macintoshes as we went digital and switched from PCs to Macs and the photographers were given iBooks. We set up a system where they could FTP their photos in remotely and through either wireless or dial-up through a cell phone. I set up one-on-one training sessions for each photographer, customized their iBooks, as well as the office computers with photo software and taught them all how to use them.
This was truly one of the most exciting times in my storied career in journalism, not only because of the caliber of journalists I worked with, but also the caliber of work I contributed to and the stories I was a part of covering.
Company: The Washington Post
Year: 1999-’04