War stories
At the time of writing, according to the Committee to Protect Journalists, 12 journalists and media workers have been killed in Ukraine since the Russian-led invasion on 24 February. For many, the war is only a cheap flight or drive away. Experienced photographers are following a trodden path and novice photographers have the opportunity to wet their boots. With little opportunity to embed with the military and unpredictable nature of the conflict, what are the daily challenges, how are photographers being treated, are they being targeted and is their photography being used for propaganda?
Jay Davies (JD) is director of photography at Getty Images overseeing news coverage in Europe, the Middle East and Africa. Getty Images is primarily a news agency that gathers pictures and sells them to subscribing news organisations, newspapers, magazines and television broadcasters. Jay manages seven news photographers and can draw on several dozen other photographers from the sports and entertainment divisions if necessary. With the staff photographers spread thinly, freelancers also provide a crucial contribution.
‘In the years prior to the invasion where the conflict in the Donbas was somewhat of a cold war, we worked with a freelance photographer based in Kyiv and a handful of others from time to time. We periodically cover news in the Ukraine beyond just the conflict, Zelensky’s election and campaign for the presidency was newsworthy. We had our freelancer there covering different parts of that campaign and also taking periodic trips out to the front-line areas near the occupied Donetsk and Luhansk. We stepped up the tempo when there were fears that Russia was looking to escalate in some way at the end of 2021 and the beginning of
