Elaine’s Celebrated New York Pictures

One of our latest employees members has some huge information to share! Straight from the shores of New York, Elaine Sanders has been chosen for the thirteenth annual New York Portfolio Review. Sanders was one among 160 fortunate candidates who was accepted; in years previous, the pool of candidates have been between 2,500-3,500 photographers from the world over. Sanders began as an intern final June, and after her closing semester at Craig Newmark Graduate School of Journalism, she joined our employees as a full-time reporter and photojournalist.

When did you first begin on the Independent? What obtained you interested by journalism?

I had my first style of journalism after I labored for my undergrad paper The Daily Sundial at Cal State University Northridge. I used to be an artwork main targeted in pictures, and I obtained into video reporting and graphic design. I ended up turning into the print manufacturing supervisor for the weekly print paper. I liked the collaboration of the newsroom and the adrenaline of tight deadlines, however I didn’t have the boldness in my reporting abilities simply but. COVID struck, the paper moved quickly to on-line solely, and life plans modified for everybody. 

Fast-forward 5 years later, and I discovered myself wanting a profession job, and I had such fond reminiscences from my days within the school newsroom. I went again to grad faculty — Craig Newmark Graduate School of Journalism at CUNY in Manhattan — to get some reporting abilities below my belt, and I landed a summer time internship on the Independent in June 2025. After ending my internship after Fiesta weekend, I went again to N.Y.C. to complete up my closing semester of grad faculty. I obtained a name from our Editor-in-Chief Marianne, and he or she provided me a full-time place as a reporter and photojournalist, and I began again on the paper originally of March!

Tell me concerning the New York Portfolio Review. What is a portfolio assessment like and what do you hope to realize from it?

It is such an enormous honor to be chosen for the New York Portfolio Review. It is tough to place into phrases how thrilling it’s to be part of this as a younger photojournalist. I’m one among 160 chosen; in years previous, the pool of candidates has been 2,500-3,500 photographers from the world over. 

This is the thirteenth annual assessment hosted by The New York Times and my alma mater, Craig Newmark Graduate School of Journalism at CUNY. The faculty hosts the occasion, and The New York Times opinions candidates and selects editors to assessment members. 

What is a portfolio assessment? Each photographer comes ready with a portfolio of their strongest work and will get the chance to sit down, one-on-one, with picture editors from publications starting from National Geographic to the Associated Press. Editors give suggestions on the photographer’s work and be taught extra about their pursuits and talent. I’m thrilled to get some extra eyes on my photographs, get some suggestions to assist me hone my craft, and to fulfill some editors who I might be able to get some freelance work with sooner or later. My purpose is to maintain growing my photojournalism to higher my documentation of the Santa Barbara neighborhood and possibly get some native tales to nationwide information audiences!

How was journalism faculty in New York? What had been your experiences like, and the way did it enable you develop?

I used to be actually within the stomach of the beast! So a lot is going on continuously, and there are such a lot of numerous communities to cowl and so many reporters protecting it! This made it actually difficult to maintain up and, mockingly, more durable to suss out an excellent story. 

Over the course of my graduate program, we noticed Trump get elected for his second time period, the continuing conflicts in Gaza and Ukraine, the rise of more and more violent Immigration and Customs Enforcement techniques, and Zohran Mamdani’s amazingly energetic marketing campaign and election to develop into N.Y.C.’s first Muslim and Asian American Mayor. These information occasions had been mixed with main threats of press freedom, mass firings of journalists from main media shops, and the large quantity of disinformation and AI slop current within the present mediasphere.

All of this proved ample case research to be realized from in my worldwide reporting and photojournalism programs. It was a real-time crash course into how vital the roles of journalists are, and a few of the shortfalls of our work.

What have been a few of your favourite latest tales to cowl? What’s a narrative you’re engaged on now that you just’re enthusiastic about?

I’ve been having a whole lot of enjoyable tagging alongside on my coworkers’ tales as a photojournalist, taking some enjoyable photographs for dwelling articles that includes local people teams and companies resembling honey boy press, The Rack, and a mah-jongg taking part in group in Carpinteria. Currently, I’ve obtained a pair tales I’m excitedly digging into, and I’ve a narrative concerning the household historical past of some seahorses on the Sea Center popping out quickly!

It is basically rewarding to cowl native information and the colourful Santa Barbara neighborhood. I at all times get so excited after I see somebody out within the wild with a duplicate of the Independent of their fingers; it’s such an honor to have the ability to report for such an engaged neighborhood.

What’s your course of for getting photographs whilst you’re out within the subject? What’s a problem you’ve discovered that may shock folks?

My first step is at all times to watch. I attempt to get to occasions early, and even drive previous the day earlier than. I need to have the ability to see what the area seems like, and to try to guess the place the motion will happen so I might be in the fitting spot.

A variety of instances, I’m not solely taking photographs, but additionally reporting and taking some video for our social media editor Maya to make use of in fantastic methods. It’s an actual problem; reporting and photographing take two utterly totally different elements of your mind. My eye is searching for the shot, and my ears must be listening for the quote, and my physique has to bodily be somewhere else to finest do each. So, when I’m out within the subject, I’m doing a whole lot of operating round! You might even see me climbing up on one thing to get a photograph, and the following minute crouched in entrance of the rostrum frantically jotting notes and making an attempt to seize a portrait. Then I gotta head again to the workplace to sift by means of the entire data I simply gathered to place out a narrative. 

Right now, I’m relatively restricted with my gear, primarily capturing on my Canon R5 with an 85mm portrait lens. For these of you who’re fellow photographers, you recognize that this lens is wildly impractical for a lot of conditions. But I fairly just like the limitation; it will get me considering creatively, and I discover it retains me extra engaged when I’m capturing. And I can get some stunning portraits, which I actually worth since we’re a paper concerning the neighborhood, for the neighborhood.

What are a few of your favourite issues to do in Santa Barbara whenever you aren’t working?

I really feel as if I’m a newcomer to Santa Barbara in some ways; I used to be born and raised in Ventura and frequented up right here for outings on State Street or to move out on an Island Packers whale-watching or dive journey. But it hasn’t been till only in the near past that I’ve began to discover all of what S.B. has to supply. I like to bike round city, attempt a brand new espresso store, or cease by one among my favourite outlets, Lewis & Clark. 

I’d say one among my favourite issues concerning the county is driving up the coast and into the Santa Ynez Valley. There is one thing simply so particular concerning the rolling golden hills, gnarly previous oak timber, and the sound of the shimmering ocean hitting the seashore that basically places me in an excellent headspace.What have been a few of your favourite latest tales to cowl? What’s a narrative you’re engaged on now that you just’re enthusiastic about?

I’ve been having a whole lot of enjoyable tagging alongside on my coworkers’ tales as a photojournalist, taking some enjoyable photographs for dwelling articles that includes local people teams and companies resembling honey boy press, The Rack, and a mah-jongg taking part in group in Carpinteria. Currently, I’ve obtained a pair tales I’m excitedly digging into, and I’ve a narrative concerning the household historical past of some seahorses on the Sea Center popping out quickly!

It is basically rewarding to cowl native information and the colourful Santa Barbara neighborhood. I at all times get so excited after I see somebody out within the wild with a duplicate of the Independent of their fingers; it’s such an honor to have the ability to report for such an engaged neighborhood.

What’s your course of for getting photographs whilst you’re out within the subject? What’s a problem you’ve discovered that may shock folks?

My first step is at all times to watch. I attempt to get to occasions early, and even drive previous the day earlier than. I need to have the ability to see what the area seems like, and to try to guess the place the motion will happen so I might be in the fitting spot.

A variety of instances, I’m not solely taking photographs, but additionally reporting and taking some video for our social media editor Maya to make use of in fantastic methods. It’s an actual problem; reporting and photographing take two utterly totally different elements of your mind. My eye is searching for the shot, and my ears must be listening for the quote, and my physique has to bodily be somewhere else to finest do each. So, when I’m out within the subject, I’m doing a whole lot of operating round! You might even see me climbing up on one thing to get a photograph, and the following minute crouched in entrance of the rostrum frantically jotting notes and making an attempt to seize a portrait. Then I gotta head again to the workplace to sift by means of the entire data I simply gathered to place out a narrative. 

Right now, I’m relatively restricted with my gear, primarily capturing on my Canon R5 with an 85mm portrait lens. For these of you who’re fellow photographers, you recognize that this lens is wildly impractical for a lot of conditions. But I fairly just like the limitation; it will get me considering creatively, and I discover it retains me extra engaged when I’m capturing. And I can get some stunning portraits, which I actually worth since we’re a paper concerning the neighborhood, for the neighborhood.

What are a few of your favourite issues to do in Santa Barbara whenever you aren’t working?

I really feel as if I’m a newcomer to Santa Barbara in some ways; I used to be born and raised in Ventura and frequented up right here for outings on State Street or to move out on an Island Packers whale-watching or dive journey. But it hasn’t been till only in the near past that I’ve began to discover all of what S.B. has to supply. I like to bike round city, attempt a brand new espresso store, or cease by one among my favourite outlets, Lewis & Clark. 

I’d say one among my favourite issues concerning the county is driving up the coast and into the Santa Ynez Valley. There is one thing simply so particular concerning the rolling golden hills, gnarly previous oak timber, and the sound of the shimmering ocean hitting the seashore that basically places me in an excellent headspace.