Renowned photographer Michael Coyne was among the teachers at a workshop on reporting and photography in Colombo on Aug. 17-18.

Journalism and Photography 2010 was held at the city’s Center for Religion and Society and attended by a group of 25 established and aspiring reporters.

Michael Coyne offered advice on how to compose a photo for media insertion and how to use photography to effectively illustrate a news story.

For the practical part of his session, he took the group to a nearby market and asked them to take shots, particularly of the market workers’ faces. They then sat together to analyze the pictures taken.

“Photographing people is the most accessible and popular form of art,” said Coyne, whose work has been exhibited from New York to Hong Kong. “You can use it to capture the simple beauty of people in their own environment, the places where they work, play and pray.”

The group also heard lectures from Father Benedict Joseph, national director of Catholic social communication, along with other invited speakers, on the role of journalists in society and how to write reports that meet international standards.

“After this I won’t be getting any complains about my photos,” said Vas Coonghe, a Catholic reporter on a prominent Tamil daily.

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