Assignments 2024 | The BPPA Exhibition ON TOUR

France's Caroline Garcia dives in an attempt to return the ball to Czech Republic's Marie Bouzkova during their women's singles tennis match on the fifth day of the 2023 Wimbledon Championships at The All England Tennis Club in Wimbledon, southwest London, on July 7, 2023.France's Caroline Garcia dives in an attempt to return the ball to Czech Republic's Marie Bouzkova during their women's singles tennis match on the fifth day of the 2023 Wimbledon Championships at The All England Tennis Club in Wimbledon, southwest London, on July 7, 2023. Photo - Adrian Dennis / AFP)

The best of British press photography has come to Port Sunlight in a new exhibition.

The British Press Photographers’ Association are bringing their annual exhibition, ‘Assignments 2024 – The BPPA Exhibition’, to the beautiful Bridge Cottage within historic Port Sunlight. It is the first time the exhibition has been presented in Merseyside and follows a successful showcase in London’s Southbank.

The exhibition is a showcase of the best 100 photographs from members of The BPPA, celebrating the best of press photography. Over the summer, a changing display of 50 photographs will take over Bridge Cottage, one of Port Sunlight’s most distinctive Arts and Crafts-style houses. The exhibition is presented in partnership with Port Sunlight Village Trust, the independent charity responsible for preserving and promoting the village.

Curated by five leading industry figures, this year’s exhibition covers stories from March 2023 through to the spring of 2024 and will feature everything from sports and entertainment through to politics and protest with royals, celebrities, and global events as seen through the eyes of the association’s photographers.

Founded in the mid-1980s, The BPPA has sought to promote and inspire the highest ethical, technical, and creative standards from within the industry, and once again is set to deliver an exhibition of photographs from the cutting edge of journalism.

Thanks to the support of Canon UK, Assignments 2024 is FREE to attend, with donations to Port Sunlight Village Trust welcome.

This year’s curators were photojournalist David Burnett, Reuters UK and Ireland Chief Photographer Suzanne Plunkett, photojournalist Steve Back, Press Association photographer Jane Barlow, and Getty Images sports photographer Justin Setterfield.

  • Assignments 2024 is FREE to attend.
  • The address is 10 Bridge St, Birkenhead, Wirral CH62 4UP
  • It’s open between Wednesday and Sunday from 10am to 4pm, between 8th June and 1st September 2024.

Assignments 2024 | The BPPA Exhibition opens in London

Photo: ©Elliott Franks

The British Press Photographers’ Association presents its annual ‘Assignments’ exhibition celebrating the best of press photography from its members.

Curated by five leading industry figures, this year’s exhibition covers stories from March 2023 through to the spring of 2024 and will feature everything from sports and entertainment to politics and protests with royals, celebrities, and global events as seen through the eyes of the association’s photographers.

Founded in the mid-1980s, The BPPA has sought to promote and inspire the highest ethical, technical, and creative standards from within the industry and once again is set to deliver an exhibition of photographs from the cutting edge of journalism.

  • Assignments 2024 is FREE to attend.
  • Open from 11am to 6pm daily between 24th May and 2nd June 2024.
  • Covers 5 floors of The Bargehouse on London’s Southbank, part of Oxo Tower Wharf.
  • Once again the BPPA bookshop will return during the exhibition.

The Bargehouse can be found on Google Maps here , you can use the post code SE1 9PH or on What3Words the location is lovely.spirit.voted

CPS offers no evidence in “disturbing” arrest and prosecution of photojournalist.

Dimitris LegakisDimitris Legakis

CPS offers no evidence in “disturbing” arrest and prosecution of photojournalist.

 

A judge has described the prosecution of Dimitris Legakis, a member of the BPPA, as “disturbing” and that it “raised serious questions” after the CPS offered no evidence in a case that they brought against him

Wales Online quotes Judge Walters, sitting at Swansea Crown Court, as saying “the crown now recognises that which was the situation at the start, namely that “there was no evidential basis” to charge the defendant. He called the case “disturbing”, said it “raised serious questions”, and said “something has very seriously gone wrong”.

On 22nd September 2023, Dimitris was arrested and held in a police cell for 15 hours. He had been reporting on a serious incident from a public space at the time. Legakis also informed police that he was assaulted by four people at the scene, an allegation that South Wales Police are yet to investigate.

During a search in custody, police were shown Dimitris’ UK Press Card, which identified him as a bone fide news gatherer. Despite that, South Wales Police held his camera equipment for a further two months, in breach of the Police and Criminal Evidence Act (PACE).

He was initially charged with assaulting an emergency worker, obstructing or resisting a police officer and a public order offence of using threatening or abusive words or behaviour. The public order charge was dropped at an early stage and Legakis was found not guilty of the other two charges at trial, after the CPS offered no evidence.

This is yet another instance of police in England and Wales arresting a British photojournalist who was working legally and in a public space. Similar incidents involving BPPA members Tom Bowles, Peter MacDiarmid and Ben Cawthra have already prompted widespread condemnation.

Assignments Live – International Women’s Day

The British Press Photographers’ Association, in partnership with Sony Pro Imaging, U.K. & Ireland, are delighted to announce the return of our photography talks series ‘Assignments LIVE’. To kick off the new run we are excited to reveal our International Women’s Day panel talk at The Frontline Club on Friday 8th March. We are assembling leading professionals in the field to participate in a photography-focused discussion. Our aim is to delve into the evolving role of a Press Photographer, analysing the landscape of 2024 amidst challenges such as Artificial Intelligence, the decline in newspaper print sales, the growing demand for digital content, shifts in the political sphere, and international conflicts. We will also explore the pertinent question of whether press photography still maintains its significance. Spoiler alert: Yes, it unquestionably does! Join us as we uncover the reasons behind its enduring importance. BOOK TICKETS HERE

Chair:
Alexia Singh a Senior Lecturer on BA (Hons) Photojournalism and Documentary Photography at the London College of Communications,  a multimedia producer and photo editor with 20 years’ experience leading creative teams in the news and NGO sectors. During a 16 year career at Reuters News Agency she set up and managed picture desks in London, Paris, and Singapore and launched the Emmy award-winning Wider Image website for immersive storytelling. She has worked for Magnum Photos, WaterAid, DEC and Save the Children as a photo editor and producer.

Panel:
Sarah Lee – who started her professional career 24 years ago as a contract freelancer for the Guardian. She is still there. She’s also one of BAFTA’s regular photographers, and an ambassador for Leica. She recently shot a number of campaigns for Transport for London. And her book “West of West” (loosely focusing on the end of Route 66 in California) was published by Unbound early in 2020. The subject Sarah is most thrilled to have shot is Iris Murdoch.
Lucy Young – a highly versatile London-based photographer specialising in news and features work for national newspapers and magazines, with the bulk of her work commissioned by The Times and the Sunday Times. Her work ranges from capturing breaking events to intimate portraits of the people in the news. Lucy’s work has included the revolution in Libya, the work of Islamic Relief in rural Kenya and images of the Royal family and top political figures in the UK.
Chloe Knott – a freelance sports photographer based in London working across commercial and editorial assignments. After starting out in football with Danehouse Photography, she has worked across a wide range of worlds class events including The Wimbledon Lawn Tennis championships, The Rugby World Cup and Olympic events. Over recent years she has worked primarily under world renowned photographer Bob Martin for clients including The IOC, Sail GP, Manchester City FC and Wimbledon.
Helen Healy – a picture editor with over thirty years experience in the industry. She was the Head of Pictures at the Financial Times for seven years and has also worked at the Guardian, The Times and The Independent. She has seen the newspaper industry move from being a print to a mainly digital product. During her career she has been involved with covering many major news events, including 9/11, the wars in Ukraine and Iraq and Brexit.
Sarah Tilotta – who has worked as a photo editor and photographer for CNN in London since 2016, as part of an award-winning Visuals team covering news, politics, and features worldwide. Her publications as a picture editor and photojournalist have been recognised with Emmy, Webby, and Foreign Press Association awards, among others, on subjects including climate change, LGBTQI+ rights, and migration. Previously she held roles at NOOR Images in Amsterdam, and National Public Radio (NPR) in Washington, DC. She completed an MA in Photojournalism at the School of Visual Communication at Ohio University, and a BA in Visual Arts & Photography from Fordham University in New York.

Thanks must go to our fantastic sponsor Sony Pro Imaging, U.K. & Ireland who have enabled us to bring this event to you.

BOOK TICKETS HERE

The BPPA’s Statement on the use of Generative AI by photo agencies

The BPPA’s Statement on the use of Generative AI by photo agencies

The news that Shutterstock’s generative AI platform has been used to create and sell child-abuse content, as reported by Petapixel, will concern everyone.

Images of child abuse have been constructed from datasets built using millions of real photographs, without the consent of the photographers or those in the photographs. Photographers should be wary of lending their work to any agency that might use it in this way.

The BPPA is shocked and disappointed that Shutterstock made this possible. It harms our members when agencies market genuine photojournalism alongside such imagery.

We’ve taken time to consider how this reflects on the work of photojournalists more widely, and the impact this has on our members.

Generative AI images are fiction. Image manipulation of any sort is against The BPPA’s Code. Use of such content by news publishers harms them and their audiences.

Trustworthy photojournalism such as is produced by members of The BPPA every day requires direct documentation of events by skilled photographers working to the highest ethical standards. Anything short of that is dishonest.

Further reading:
https://thebppa.com/artificial-intelligence-press-photography-and-the-bppas-position/

The BPPA Press Photographer of the Year 2023

Oli Scarff with the BPPA's 2023 Press Photographer of the Year trophyOli Scarff with the BPPA's 2023 Press Photographer of the Year trophy

Congratulations to BPPA member Oli Scarff for winning “Press Photographer of the Year” at this year’s BPPA Awards.

Winners are selected by BPPA members who recognise their peers’ outstanding work as a true representation of the work done day in and day out by BPPA photojournalists working across the UK.

You can see all the winning work here.

Category Winners
Arts & Entertainment – Oli Scarff
Business – James Glossop
Essay – Adam Gray
News – Leon Neal
Portrait – Geoff Pugh
Royal – Kelvin Bruce
Sport (action) – Adrian Dennis
Sport (away from the action) – Carl Recine
Young Photographer – Ryan Jenkinson

Highly Commended
Arts & Entertainment – Celia Bartlett
Business – Simon Hulme
Essay – Simon Townsley
Portrait – Daniel Hambury
Royal – Adrian Dennis
Sport (action) – Carl Recine
Sport (away from the action) – Oli Scarff
Young Photographer – Belinda Jiao

Comment from the BPPA chair:

Now in its fourth year, The BPPA’s Press Photographer of the Year competition has once again delivered an abundance of outstanding images from the industry’s best photographers.

The broad range of this year’s entries shows that the best Press Photographers can turn their talents to any subject and still walk away with something fresh and engaging, the kind of images that jump off the pages of newspapers across the country and indeed the world.

It is very encouraging to see such high quality entries in the Young photographer category. A group of photographers that we will be watching closely over the coming years and expect to see taking home more trophies in the future.

Congratulations must go to all the category winners, but special congratulations to Oli who has shown himself to be a stand out winner and a very worthy recipient of this year’s title.

I’d like to thank everyone for entering, judging and to the team at The BPPA for their hard work to run this competition on behalf of press photographers.

Jamie Lorriman, Chair, The BPPA

Surrey Police pay out after photographer Peter Macdiarmid brings civil claim for false arrest.

A still from his own car dashboard camera shows Peter Macdiarmid having been arrested and handcuffed. ©Peter Macdiarmid

Back in September 2022 The BPPA posted a short piece on our website about the arrest on the 24th of August of multi-award winning photojournalist Peter Macdiarmid whilst covering a Just Stop Oil protest at Clacket Lane Services on the M25, south of London. He was handcuffed and detained for several hours by Surrey Police despite identifying himself as the holder of a UK Press Card.

The post reminded Police Officers that journalists have a right and a duty to report the news. Peter engaged the services of the law firm Bhatt Murphy who sent a letter of claim to Surrey Police. Eventually last December Surrey Constabulary offered to settle out of court, but they are not accepting liability and are refusing to apologise for their actions. The law firm acting on behalf of Surrey Police responded to Peter’s lawyers and denied that any of the Surrey officers did anything wrong, arguing that the situation that they found when they arrived was confusing and that they had acted within the law.

Peter said after the result: “I have been a news photographer for 37 years and have covered many events where tensions were running high and police were under great pressure, this Just Stop Oil protest was not like that – it was very calm and protesters were voluntarily giving themselves up for arrest when a police officer decided to detain me on suspicion of conspiracy to commit criminal damage. I was unable to persuade the arresting officer that I was a genuine working press photographer and my press card was ignored. Whilst I am glad to finally bring closure to this after many months, I am disappointed in the actions of Surrey police in handcuffing and arresting me and then dragging out the legal process during my civil claim. Another colleague was arrested in similar circumstances in December 2022 by Hertfordshire police whilst covering a climate protest, but after legal action was started the force very quickly admitted it ‘unlawfully arrested and violated the human rights of a photographer who was held while covering climate protests on the M25’ and the Chief Constable personally rang to apologise to the arrested photographer. The stark contrast between the actions of the two police forces is telling.”

Congratulations to Peter and his solicitors for their perseverance in pursuing this case – Handcuffing and arresting a press photographer is unacceptable behaviour by Surrey Police. We believe that the Police got it wrong on this occasion and that this is far from the first time this happened and it is likely to happen again. In the end Peter has received damages and his costs, but would rather have not had to go through a lengthy and stressful legal process to clear his name.

Just Stop Oil Arrests

Just Stop Oil Arrests

Two press photographers and a documentary film maker were arrested whilst covering protests by the campaigning group Just Stop Oil on Monday 7th November. 

Tom Bowles and Ben Cawthra, both members of The BPPA along with BECTU member Rich Felgate were handcuffed and removed from two separate locations by Hertfordshire Police. A member of The BPPA’s Board has spoken to both photographers and, based on their accounts, we can report the following:

Tom and Rich were detained by the police at 10.44am, accused of suspicion of conspiracy to cause a nuisance. Tom wasn’t given a chance to offer an explanation for being at the location, nor was his UK Press Card acknowledged.

He was taken into custody and held until 1.20am the following morning and was released with no further action. Whilst in custody and speaking to his solicitor he found out that his house had been searched. This turned out to be by three male officers from St Albans. His wife and 14 year old daughter were both anxious about what had happened as they were woken to be confronted by this. His release papers said that he had been detained as he had been “Intentionally/recklessly causing a public nuisance.”

During his custody Tom repeatedly asked that his UK Press Card should be verified and when they eventually complied they informed him that his card had ‘failed verification’ although the police officers involved did not ask for his verification PIN. We have since checked and his card would have passed had they used his PIN. We have raised this with the UK Press Card Authority.

Ben’s experience was very similar. He was arrested at 8.15am after showing his press card, and having broken no law was still placed in custody. On arrival at the station he was told that his partner would be called but this didn’t happen. He had to push them to call her and they finally complied around 3pm – at approximately the same time that he had his first communication with an investigating officer. It wasn’t until his lawyer contacted them that things started to move along, which he believes was around 5pm. He was finally released at 11.30pm.

This isn’t the first time in recent weeks that this has happened. The arrest of Peter Macdiarmid covering a similar protest is still an ongoing matter.

The BPPA is deeply concerned that police forces are ignoring the UK Press Card and, more worryingly, are ignorant of what it is and what it represents. By arresting news gatherers they are going against a long-standing tradition of allowing the media to independently report the news. We sincerely hope that this is out of ignorance of how to identify members of the press and not a new policy of blinding society.

Still image taken from a video courtesy of Rich Felgate showing press photographer Tom Bowles being arrested by a member of the Hertfordshire Police Force minutes before Rich was himself arrested.

UPDATE: We have now written to the Home Secretary, various Members of Parliament and other senior figures who have the power and/or influence to help make sure that this doesn’t happen again. See the letter here

Memories of the late Eamonn McCabe

Memories of the late Eamonn McCabe

When the Press Photographers Association (PPA) first got together it wasn’t too promising. Only a few of the press photographers invited from each national newspaper bothered to show. It was a small gathering around a long table that gently rattled in the smoky gloom of a club called Duffers, nestling as it did beneath the railway arches that led trains into Farringdon station. It was early 1984, and the boys had gathered to hear our first Chairman and Founder outline his plans to create something new to represent the very best of press photography in books, exhibitions; above all to celebrate press photography at its very best.

Photo: Brian Harris. The first ever meeting of the PPA at Duffers Club in 1984. Eamonn McCabe is third from the right.

Some thought it was simply a vanity project for just one guy and his mates, and they stayed away. Although it was certainly to be elite, the PPA was not to be elitist. Around that table the photographers came from as diverse publications as The Guardian, The Standard, The Times and The Sun. But only one of those present was a sports photographer. And that was Eamonn McCabe.

Back in 1984, Eamonn was recognised as one of the very best sports photographers of his generation. He had won the prestigious Sports Photographer of the Year award four times and dominated the pages of ‘The Observer’.  John Downing, our Founder and first Chair, was keen to have Eamonn from the very start. But the truth was that there was a traditional strong line between ‘news’ and ‘sport’ on newspapers that filled into our profession, and John was determined to break that down, to represent the very best of sport alongside the very best of news in the newly formed PPA. There was no better man to lead that with his sports colleagues than Eamonn.

Within a year, the Association had taken off, and the first PPA Exhibition was officially opened by Princess Michael of Kent. Eamonn’s extraordinary work, often showing the preparation and behind the scenes of great sportsmen preparing for competition, was a highlight of the exhibition. But at the very core of what the PPA was about from the start was encouraging younger photographers to get involved and aim high. And a number found their work up there, in pride of place, with the very finest photographers working in Fleet Street at the first PPA exhibition.

I can vouch for that, as we now launch our Associate Member scheme, because I was one of those photographers back in ‘84, just started working at Sport and General Press Agency, and unsure whether to enter my pictures of tennis and, of all things, kayaking, to an exhibition that would have John’s extraordinary pictures from Afghanistan, and Eamonn’s now famous beautiful sports images from table tennis and boxing, the latter showing a gloved hand being prepared for the fight. Where did I fit in all this greatness?

At one late night PPA meeting at Duffers, Eamonn pulled me to one side, and in a very quiet casual almost laid back manner told me he liked my pictures very much, and that he would take them to the judging panel. So it was, a month or so later at the Barbican, a moment of immense pride to stand there beside my prints, 12×16, printed by the legendary Larry Bartlett framed on the wall, in my early twenties, as the royal party walked round with John escorting the Princess.

I can’t say I knew Eamonn well, more to say ‘Hi to’ and perhaps call occasionally, but the more people I’ve spoken to, the more I get the impression that many people knew him, knew his work, knew about his incredible career, but didn’t really know him at all. He had, after all, made the rare transfer from award winning sports photographer, to picture editor on The Guardian, and then finally, back to photography, on the features pages specialising in portraits.

Believe me here, I know from personal experience that going from the road to the desk is not easy. It is not unlike running an exhibition of photography. To those whose images you select and show prominently, you are brilliant as an editor, either for an exhibition or the paper that day, but to those whose pictures don’t make the cut, you’re just a patsy, or worse. Much worse.

As Brian Harris remembers, “Truth is that Eamonn proved to be quite a divisive figure on the desk, championed by some, and upsetting others.  He had been charged with making changes at The Guardian to counteract the new kid on the street ‘The Independent’, so there were bound to be some that were going to be unhappy. When later he left and went back to work as a photographer, staying with the paper whose desk he had run, doing portraits, some found that all quite challenging.”

But Eamonn, in his portraiture work, has left an impressive legacy of his imagery preserved for perpetuity at the National Portrait Gallery. Not many picture editors have achieved that.

So how to remember Eamonn McCabe? Dillon Bryden suggests that many have the same story as I have, and Dillon has, that Eamonn supported and encouraged them when they first started, as Dillon recalls, “being genuinely enthusiastic about younger photographers getting on with it and being able to do their own thing as photographers.”

While still at school Dillon joined a short course, The Bradford City Project run by Eamonn. There he found all sorts of photographers, though as Dillon remembers, “I was by far the youngest. At the end of the day I just wanted to go on do something else, I didn’t want it to end. We had done some landscapes, some football, some street photography, and everyone was off to their hotels for the night. I didn’t want to stop. I asked what’s next.  Eamonn suggested I head off to photograph the night racing at the speedway. And then he just handed over his Nikkor 400 3.5 . I couldn’t believe it, the ultimate lens, way beyond anything I could afford!”

Two weeks later, and leaving school for good, Dillon chased up Eamonn to see if he could get some work experience on The Guardian. Within a short time, Dillon found himself in Farringdon Road, having a great time, lots of shows in the paper, and was ready for that staff job. Hugely disappointed that wasn’t going to happen, Eamonn told Dillon ‘to keep in touch’ but strongly advised him to go to college, advise Dillon has never regretted following.

“Eamonn was like a godfather to me, gentle, calm, instructional. If he disagreed with you, he’d step back a little. He was a huge influence on my life and career. Put it this way, everyone knows Eamonn McCabe, and unless you’re a Guardian staffer of the late 80s, who knows who was The Guardian picture editor before Eamonn?”

Tim Bishop

Our Associate Member scheme is now open

Our Associate Member scheme is now open

At the association’s AGM in 2019 we started the ball rolling towards the creation of a new category of membership of The BPPA.

As part of our role of “inspiring” we chose to do this by helping to guide and mentor the next generation of photographers wanting to join the profession. This is now becoming a reality and we are delighted to announce that the doors are open to anyone fulfilling the criteria:

Any person who is not yet working full-time as a press photographer but who is striving to achieve that goal either through working part-time in the industry or by studying on a course specialising in news photography, photojournalism or related editorial photography.

Starting with a mentoring group based on Facebook the association will be inviting anyone who would like to apply for Associate Membership to do so by contacting us.

We have been working with relevant courses at Falmouth University and the University of Gloucestershire to develop the concept and hope to expand to other institutions as well as anyone who has chosen to make their way into the industry through other routes. The team of mentors has been put together and consists of a broad range of experience and specialisms. It includes agency and newspaper staff photographers as well as experienced freelancers.

Associate Membership is open to any person who is not yet working full-time as a press photographer but who is striving to achieve that goal either through working part-time in the industry or by studying on a course specialising in news photography, photojournalism or related editorial photography. Accordingly there are two routes into Associate Membership of the Association:

RULES OF THE SCHEME

Independent photographers working part-time in the industry and anyone studying on a non-approved course

  • Portfolio review by two or more members of the sub-committee
  • Interview in person or via tele-conference to include questions about copyright, metadata, ethics etc
  • Agreeing to sign up to the The BPPA’s Code
  • The length of the Associate Membership offered should be agreed after their interview and be part of the offer of Associate Membership but not less than twelve months

Those Currently studying on, or who have recently graduated from, an approved course

  • Students on an approved course just have to sign up, agree to abide by the The BPPA’s Code and they will be eligible for associate membership.
  • Courses will be approved by a sub-committee of The Board based on whether they are specialising in news photography, photojournalism and related editorial photography and teaching a list of topics such as copyright, metadata, ethics etc
  • The length of the Associate Membership offered should be not less than the duration of their course for students on approved courses plus six months and in extensions of a year thereafter.
  • The BPPA will offer an on-line based mentoring scheme where all Associate Members will have access to a panel of experienced press photographers. From time-to-time we will extend offers to Associate Members and try, wherever possible, to include them in the activities of the association

Notes:

  • There will be no option of a UK Press Card being issued to Associate Members. The press card is only open to full members.
  • Associate Members would not be offered their own galleries on our site and would not be eligible for the Find-a-Freelance system.