What makes a good picture? There...

What makes a good picture? There is no wrong or right answer to

it. It’s a subjective choice the photo staff at the Daily Pilot has

to make every day.

Photo editing plays a huge role in narrowing down the images

captured through the lens of the camera to the one specific shot that

soaks up the ink on the front page of the Pilot.

Ultimately a few pairs of eyes should help choose the best picture

from the take. But sometimes you find yourself all alone in the photo

lab, after a long day shooting four or five assignments, unable to

see the difference between one photo or the other. You make your

decision only to come in the next day and get heckled by the rest of

the photo staff about the obvious picture choice you failed to see.

There’s also the type of assignment in which everything goes wrong

and you’d rather the picture never see the light of day. This

situation is what we call “the drop and walk.” Just put it in the

system and forget you ever shot it.

This week’s photo of the week was not a “drop and walk.” Kent

Treptow had a number of outtakes for this shot of a leaping canine

demonstrating his form as he dives into the harbor. This time, the

photo staff was all there to have a look and help with the editing

process. Usually we agree on one or two pictures and there is a

silent vote. But this time, everyone had a different pick. To end the

confusion, Photo Editor Steve McCrank made a choice and sent it to

press.