How we captured this photo after a Chicago Public Schools news conference
This week’s top photo comes from Visual Journalist and Assistant Photo Editor Pat Nabong. Follow her on Instagram.
What makes this photo great?
News conferences are often predictable: I get a photo of a speaker walking to the lectern, a close-up of them animatedly speaking, a few wide photos, and then a photo of them walking away. Sometimes, the scene offers something different, like a candid moment of Chicago Public Schools CEO Pedro Martinez standing in the elevator before the doors close, and it's an opportunity to be a little more creative and photograph him in a more natural and less performative moment.
How did you get the shot?
After the news conference, I watched Martinez walk with his staff to the elevator. I was about to turn around to pack up when I noticed him face the elevator doors, waiting for them to close. My first few frames were zoomed in on him but out of the corner of my eye, I saw the silhouette of a staff member on the left and thought it would add an interesting layer to the composition. I zoomed out and waited for the elevator doors to close until they obscured the other people he was in the elevator with.
Technical details
- Equipment: Sony A7IV with a Sony 70-200 f/2.8 lens
- Focal length: 156 mm
- Aperture: f/2.8
- Exposure: 1/500
- ISO: 3200
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