situations, such as a small boy trying to give a St. Bernard a bath in a washtub. Just the idea conjures up images of soap and water everywhere. This is the kind of photograph that is explicit, and when the quality is good, it transmits the message effortlessly. A  feature  picture  can  be  used  to  provoke  an action, to excite someone, or to create a feeling. Here the  message  is  strong  and  emotional.  The photographer has a particular feeling he or she wishes to bring out in the reader. This is the type of picture that  moved  Congress  to  pass  laws  prohibiting  child labor (fig. 1-2). Research Defining a feature picture is fundamental; the process you will find complicated is researching the subject.   Once   the   originator   of   an   assignment provides the photographer with an idea of the kind of pictures desired, it is up to you, as the photographer, to  perform  the  necessary  research. The  photographer  should  ask  the  following questions:  "What  are  the  requirements  of  the assignments?  What  is  the  end  product  going  to be—black-and-white   or   color,   prints,   or transparencies? What are the size requirements of the pictures, as well as in what publication, if any, will they  be  used?  Where  is  each  photograph  to  be used—as a cover by itself or in connection with other photographs for a story? Will the prints be used in an exhibition  or  placed  on  display  somewhere"? Only through research can you answer the many questions pertaining to the assignment. Thorough research will provide the necessary details you need to plan  the  shooting  and  to  bring  together  all  the necessary elements of the photographs. Making  Feature  Pictures Making feature pictures may require elaborate technical effort and unusual compositions, yet it may be  simple.  When  you  produce  feature  pictures,  you must work carefully and take time to consider and evaluate your approach. Unlike a news assignment, a feature picture assignment permits you to exercise more control over the situation. You are better able to control the subject, lighting, and composition. To  be  a  good  photojournalist,  you  must  use correct  composition  to  make  the  message  clear  that your  picture  is  meant  to  get  across.  The  position  of the subject, the highlight and shadow areas, the use of leading lines, and the foreground and background must be controlled to best tell the story. When the picture elements are arranged, you must think of what is included, what is missing, and what is suggested. To dramatize an idea for a feature picture, you have many tools to work with. Knowing your subject and subject selection are significant. Imaginative lighting  can  be  used  to  create  a  mood.  Many photographers take full advantage of fast lenses and fast film to use available light. For a feature picture to have more impact, you may find it necessary to distort or accentuate the perspective  with  various  focal-length  lenses.  The camera position is also important. You can use a distant panoramic shot to set the scene and a closeup shot to emphasize significant detail. Shooting from a low camera angle adds stature to the subject. A high camera angle creates a sense of separation; it shows more of what is happening. The control you exercise over the scene can add interest and variety to feature pictures. Electronic flash and fast-shutter speeds can "freeze" action and "stop" what is too fast for the eye to see. By using the right application of slow-shutter speeds, you can blur moving objects, giving an illusion of movement to your pictures. Time exposures of moving lights create  motion  patterns,  as  does  panning  the  camera with the subject. The serious photojournalist also skillfully controls depth of field. Picture  Quality For publications, you want to deliver the best full-toned, normal print to the printer that is possible. This means that the print must have full highlight and shadow detail. The print must be of proper density, never so light or so dark that it loses detail. Contrast should  always  be  normal,  unless  the  subject  matter requires  higher  or  lower  contrast.  Printing  in  a newspaper, book, or magazine tends to increase the contrast of a photograph; and it often becomes darker. A display print, on the other hand, is viewed directly and does not go through the lithographic process. But, here again, the best possible print must be made with  detail  in  highlights  and  shadows.  It  must  have proper contrast and density and be dust- and spot-free. It is important for you to know how the photograph is going to be viewed 1-5