Rep. Michele Bachmann (R-MN) speaks to rally. Protesters gather on the US Capitol west lawn to voice their opposition to pending health care legislation. Washington DC, March 20, 2010. A health care reform bill finally did pass on the next evening. Jeff Malet Photography/Newscom. Find it on Newscom: jmpphotos000281
1. How did you get involved in photography?
My father was an avid amateur photographer and I caught the bug from him at a very early age.
2. When did you get your first camera and what do you remember about it?
My first camera was a simple point and shoot with no controls. I was 8 years old. When I my first roll came back, all the images were blurred. No one had bothered to tell me to hold the camera steady while snapping the shutter. That was my first lesson.
3. Why are you in Washington D.C.?
With my interest in politics, history and art, Washington was a natural choice. I live within an easy walk of the Capitol and the White House and just across the street from the Smithsonian. With its embassies and multi-ethnic population, the city is a culturally diverse place. It is also a top tier sports town. I also grew up on the East Coast and have family connections in the area.
4. What is your favorite thing about living in DC?
I have always had an interest in politics. Washington is the capital city of the most powerful and influential country in the world. In that sense, it is the center of the world.
5. What is your favorite thing to photograph in DC?
I most enjoy taking pictures on Capitol Hill where I have a front row seat to history in the making.
6. What is the coolest thing you’ve had a chance to photograph?
One evening while watching a baseball game on TV, a loud cheer erupted from the stands for seemingly no apparent reason. That was when I first found out that Bin Laden had been killed. I grabbed my camera and headed on foot to the White House shortly before midnight and was on hand to capture a wonderful spontaneous celebration in front of the North Gate.
7. What are you thinking when you photograph protests/protestors?
Free speech, and the right to peaceful protest and assembly as guaranteed by the First Amendment, is our most coveted right. Naturally, our capital city has become a central focus for many protest movements. Many people feel they have something important to say and need to be heard, so they take their message to the streets. They often elicit strong passions pro and con. I have that ability to amplify their voice with my camera and bring their message to others. Protest rallies also generate interesting photographs. Protestors are provocative and their signs can be extremely creative.
"If I held this sign in Libya, I'd be gunned down". Hundreds of demonstrators gathered in front of the White House calling on the United States to do more to help liberate Arab nations. The protestors stood in solidarity with pro-democracy movements taking place in Libya, Yemen, Bahrain, Iraq, Iran and the Sudan. In Washington DC on Saturday, February 26, 2011. Jeff Malet Photography/Newscom. Find it on Newscom: jmpphotos008433
"Protesting stupid wars and nukes since 1967". About 1,000 people from various antiwar groups, including Veterans For Peace, Iraq Veterans Against War and Code Pink, marched around Lafayette Park to make three demands of the Obama administration: stop the war, expose the lies and free Bradley Manning. More than 100 protesters, including Daniel Ellsberg, the man who leaked the Pentagon Papers, were arrested outside the White House in demonstrations marking the eighth anniversary of the U.S.led war in Iraq. In Washington DC on March 19, 2011. Jeff Malet Photography/Newscom. Find it on Newscom: jmpphotos008855
A four legged protestor declares "I Create Two Shovel-Ready Projects / Day" during The Taxpayer March on Washington (also known as the 9/12 Tea Party) This was a Tea Party protest march from Freedom Plaza to the United States Capitol that was held on September 12, 2009, in Washington, D.C. Over two years later, on September, 22, 2011, presidential candidate and former New Mexico Governor Gary Johnson used the zinger to good effect at the GOP Presidential Debate in Orlando Florida. The joke poked fun at President Obama's stimulus program to boost the economy. One television network said in its analysis that Gary Johnson's comment about "shovel ready projects" was one of the most memorable moments from the debate. Jeff Malet Photography/Newscom. Find it on Newscom: jmpphotos010808
Hundreds of progressive activists including The American Dream Movement attended a rally held outside the Capitol Building in Washington DC on Thursday, July 28, 2011. The rally to "Save the American Dream" was organized to tell Democrats to stand strong against Republican debt ceiling proposals that cut Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid while keeping keep tax breaks for millionaires, billionaires and oil companies. Sign in photo reads "GOP Don't Destroy the Economy". Participants included the AFL-CIO and major labor unions such as AFSCME, CWA, AFGE, Teamsters, and various progressive groups such as Move-On, American Dream Movement, Jobs with Justice, Gray-Panthers and Code-Pink. Jeff Malet Photography/Newscom. Find it on Newscom: jmpphotos010240
"Enough Socialism". Protesters gather on the US Capitol west lawn to voice their opposition to pending health care legislation. Washington DC, March 20, 2010. A health care reform bill finally did pass on the next evening. Jeff Malet Photography/Newscom. Find it on Newscom: jmpphotos000301
The Tea Party Patriots political action group holds a Continuing Revolution Rally in Washington DC on March 31, 2011 to urge lawmakers to reduce federal spending. Party leaders on Capitol Hill are racing to overcome an impasse in budget talks that is threatening a partial shutdown of the United States government. In photo, protestor who calls himself "The Captain" holds a sign that says "Shut it Down - Save America". Jeff Malet Photography/Newscom. Find it on Newscom: jmpphotos009110
Editor’s Note: Jeff Malet is a photographer based in Washington DC. You can check out some of his photos on Newscom.
You may be interested in some of these other FocalPoint blog posts:
Creative Whimsy on the Presidential Campaign Trail
Infographics Show the Whole Picture
Tags: jeff malet, photography, protestor, washington dc
[...] See the article here: Interview with Newscom Partner Jeff Malet [...]