behind the camera in pictures
A newsreel cameraman whose name is lost to time, shoots landscape scenery from an observation deck.
The camera being used, an Akeley, in its day was a revolution and a favorite during the newsreel era even after the arrival of sound pictures.
Among the features Carl Akeley introduced in 1914 that still being used today on modern gear was the ball head to allow smooth panning/tilting.
By the time this article was written outlining Norman Alley’s views on news photography and television news, the Hearst newsreel crews were under contract with CBS News to shoot newsfilm for programs such as Ed Murrow’s See It Now.
Norman Alley, in addition to his usual duties with the Hearst newsreel, was Ed Murrow’s primary west coast news photographer outside of Charlie Mack, Murrow’s main go-to photog.
Alley son, Dexter, learned a lot at his father’s knee and followed in his footsteps of shooting news, becoming one of the first photographers hired on at a local affiliate in the late 1940s.