Richard Pohle
The Times and The Sunday Times
The Times and Sunday Times staff photographer found himself in the middle of what he describes as “one of the worst press scrums I’ve been in”, to get the picture of former BBC presenter Huw Edwards arriving at Westminster magistrates to answer charges of making indecent images of children. It was the first time Edwards had been seen in public for months.
Richard knew that the picture desk would want a striking image for the front of the website and newspaper so positioned himself with the rest of the media and waited. Edwards appeared from a taxi and was immediately surrounded by police who pushed through the pack. “It was total chaos”, Richard says, “Camera crews, photographers and journalists shouting questions completely surrounded me and I had trouble seeing Huw at all”. The police made one last push to clear a path and Pohle suddenly found himself in front of Edwards and held his position until the newsreader entered the court.
Having a sense of humour plays a large part in Richard’s life and this comes across in his work. In Birmingham to cover Crufts, he saw a Poodle being groomed by its owner. When the owner had finished brushing she leaned in for a kiss but the proud pooch moved back, the horrified look on his face making a front page picture and featuring in a digital gallery.
Richard was assigned to cover the Conservative party conference which witnessed the Party trying to decide a shortlist of candidates to be their new leader. He spent the duration of the event looking for each of the four candidates every day so The Times subscribers and readers could be kept informed. “They were careful not to be seen together and would appear in any part of the conference centre at different times”, Richard says.
On the final day the media was told that all four would make speeches to the conference and then sit together on the front row of the audience. This would be, we were told, the only time they would be seen together. Throughout all of the speeches the media were clustered in front of the four empty seats. “When the speeches finished there was a sudden surge among the media surrounding the empty seats”, Richard remembers. “I know found myself at the back of the pack and couldn’t see the seats at all”
He then heard the audience start to applaud. “I looked behind me and all four had unexpectedly appeared on the stage. I merely turned around and I was now the one who was in prime position. I could feel the pack behind me fighting for position”.
Luck has a major part to play in news photography, but you need to have the sharp wits, the ability to react immediately and technical skill to make this luck count - as Richard deftly shows with this portfolio.