Jeff Fusco, the staff photographer for Philadelphia Weekly is my favorite photojournalist here in the Philly area bar none. It was his photography that pulled me towards PW over the City Paper when Lady and I moved down to Philly almost two years ago. No offense to Mike Regan, his stuff is wonderful, but there's just an extra something to Fusco's shots for me. The above shot from Monday's immigration rally shows his greatness. I bumped into him in the fray, I was hoping he'd be there for awhile and he was. We chatted for a sec and I've been waiting for the shots ever since and he didn't let me down.
The rest of the online exclusive essay is wonderful [the shot of the little boy in full dress and the man screaming above the 'silencio' sign are two other favs], but this image sticks out for me. He's got emotion, he's documenting the rally itself with the prominent Mexican and US flags flying overhead, the sun is diffused through the flag offering up some not too harsh light and I think he's got some additional fill flash from the camera centered on the man's face and left arm.
I love everything about the photo. The only thing I don't like is that I didn't take it.
Photography drives a paper/magazine. Even if the writing of a publication starts to dip in quality, if the photography stays top notch, it'll continue to stay relevant. That's what an old boss of mine at VIBE told me and that's how VIBE was able to stay relevant for so long, he said. Their photography assignments and editing kept them at the top. PW's writing is top notch [so is CP's], but honestly, it's Fusco's photography that keeps me looking out for the yellow boxes every Wednesday. Seeing his stuff online is great, but nothing beats the full tabloid-page shots inside the book.
And congrats to the local alt weeklies for raking in a shitload of 2006 Keystone Press Awards in Division VI [.pdf].
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