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They offer two opposing perspectives on the situation.
One of them understands exactly why paps end up in the line of fire.
The other calls them fucking idiots.
Oh, its an earthquake.
Oh, its whatever.Youre going to go where the story is.
And for us, the story is celebrity.
If they happen to be caught up in a news story, you go.
Now, the greater backdrop is people in general in peril.
Their houses are burning down.
But we know Ben.
We know Jennifer Garner.
So were kind of just being in the neighborhood, learning as we go.
To be honest, theres no strategy.
It doesnt matter if youre hanging off a rope from a helicopter in the middle of a wildfire.
The pricing of the photo is not correlated to the risk.
Its correlated to the image of the celebrity and what theyre doing.
Its like war photography they dont get paid any differently whether theyre in a hot zone.
Thats the nature of the job.
For lack of a better term, its a shitshow.
This is a national, international story; its not just a local L.A. story.
The celebrity aspect, a lot of it is just fluke.
Its random sightings and luck.
There might be a better market for a photo like that because its very dramatic.
But the chances of that happening are slim.
I took some photos yesterday, but Im not taking them in the fire zone.
I went to the Santa Monica steps and shot across the canyon.
Look at theDailyMail theyre sending drones up over peoples houses.
The ones of Ben Affleck driving around, supposedly looking for his children are bullshit.
I know what the strategy is.
But I aint risking my life for it.
Is the payday worth the risk?
Its a news story and theres no re-sellable value to the photos thats not associated with the fires.
Because its a tragedy, nobodys going to keep reposting this.
Theres no evergreen value.
You want to get a Pulitzer?
These idiots want to make money.
Its not worth it, but theyll do it.
Some tabloid, some outlet wants the shot.
But Ive seen drone footage of the rubble.
Apocafuckinglyptic: Thats the best way to describe this.
Giles Harrison,London Entertainment Group
