Petty Officer 3rd Class Patrick Kelley used his lens to capture vivid images of the Deepwater Horizon oil spill. His images illustrate some of the spill’s grim effects.
Kelley’s selection of subjects, like a contractor... read more
Petty Officer 3rd Class Patrick Kelley used his lens to capture vivid images of the Deepwater Horizon oil spill. His images illustrate some of the spill’s grim effects.<br />
Kelley’s selection of subjects, like a contractor cleaning up oily waste, an oiled reddish egret or a flaring operation, contribute to his success at documenting what has been called the worst oil spill in U.S. history. A combination between his subject, timeliness, composition and overall photography skill grabbed the attention of several media outlets resulting in 33 front page placements. Kelley’s images of the oil spill are included in the Associated Press and Getty Images databases. The following top, online news outlets also used Kelley’s images: NYtimes.com, MSNBC.com, Yahoo.com and NPR.org. Kelley said he has found his images in more than a dozen languages. <br />
He topped off May with photos of President Barack Obama visiting the Coast Guard Station in Louisiana. <br />
The newsworthiness of the images resulted in them being highlighted in the DVIDS News Service, which goes out daily to approximately 500 media outlets. The photos were also sent separately to multiple local, national and international media outlets. <br />
Using the new, DVIDS star rating system, three of Kelley’s images were rated among the top five May photos. <br />
Not only did Kelley submit media attention-grabbing photos, he used his broadcast skills to capture footage of the Top Kill operation, which was intended to stem the flow of oil and gas. The video was sent to multiple local and national media outlets. Combined with his other top video, In-Situ Burn Footage, his footage drew more than 1,500 views on DVIDS and the YouTube channel and multiple placements. Overall, Kelley used his well-rounded journalism skills to capitalize on his opportunity to cover breaking news, demonstrating the importance of timing and skill. <br />
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