Cool Shot of my daughter Hannah during an aproching summer storm at Poneloya Beach in Leon, Nicaragua.
Copyright Tomas Stargardter


Well Finally I am getting started with my blog. This one comes out a a cry in the dark to other fellow photojournalists and photo editors out there. I have been working as photo editor in LA PRENSA, in Managua Nicaragua. For the last three years since I took this job we have managed to get the department going. All of this was done in a non freindly climate towards photojournalist and photojournalism inside the newsroom. I have been basically fighting to fend off attempts to undo all we have done in the last three years to make this a working photo department.

We are now at the point where we were three years ago before my arrival.

For example, no longer editors are requiered to fill photo request forms to inform the shooters as to what they are going to cover.

Instead of a single photo department that handles the requests of the the paper we are now subdividing coverage into sections. Editors now just have a supposed working team but zero palnning is done ahead of time. Everything is done in the spur of the moment. Shooters go out without prior knowledge of thier assignments. Basically we fly blind.

Its shotgun coverage allthe way.

We had gotten rid of this since my arrival but now since the shooters are know in the supposed coverage teams we have regressed to the bad old days of bad coverage and publishing the worst photos.

When I came here, I came here to make a difference. But now I find myself right where I started from, but with less of a chance to correct it.

Well I am not giving up and if I have to start from scratch againg I will (wich is what I am doing anyway) I love this business to much to let be trashed by people who do not want to do thier job properly.

well thats it for now.