By Mike Tedesco, Pro Photo Community

Those at the top of their trade do not always have a lifelong history in their field. Such is the case for Pulitzer Prize winning photographer Deanne Fitzmaurice. "I got what some would call a late start in photography," says Deanne. "I was an art major at the Academy of Art, in San Francisco, and quickly realized that a career in art wasn't for me." As she switched to a graphic design degree, she took a single photography elective and found her calling. "I had never really taken pictures before, but I was hooked," says Deanne. "I went to the administration office and immediately changed my major to photography and have never looked back."

During her studies, Deanne soon learned that she needed a strong portfolio if she was going to make a living at photography, so she approached a local Associated Press (AP) editor for some work. "I was very green, but the editor was helpful and encouraged me to go out and shoot some feature images to put on the wire." And that's just what she did. "I went out to Golden Gate Park and started observing people, and I found a man sitting in a lawn chair reading a book and two Canadian geese were looking over his shoulder giving the impression that they were reading along with him." That image, along with a number of others, were run on the wire and began getting picked up.

As she worked through her courses, Deanne found herself gravitating towards photographing people and photojournalism. "Even my classes in studio photography, environmental portraiture, fashion, and architectural photography were critical to being a photojournalist because we photograph something different every day," says Deanne. "I think that's one of the best things about my job…The adventure of it. I have no idea, for example, what I'm shooting tomorrow. It could be a political story, a family with an ill child, the opera, or a baseball game. My job is always an education in all aspects of life." Deanne has photographed a wide array of subjects from the Loma Prieta earthquake, to various Presidents, to the Golden Gate Bridge Centennial, to all major sporting events including the Super Bowl and the World Series.

Deanne's approach to her photojournalism goes a little deeper than most, however. "I like to document the story as it unfolds but I am always looking for ways to take it to a higher level and get beyond the obvious," says Deanne. "I really like to get behind the scenes and photograph things that we normally don't get to see." It's the picture stories that she loves to do more than anything. "I want to make people feel something." A clear example is the Barry Bonds story that she did while Barry was approaching the Major League Baseball all-time home run record. "Everyone was photographing what he was doing on the field, but I wanted to show what people weren't seeing," says Deanne. "I wanted to show this very public athlete as a person who goes much deeper than who he is on the field."

So how does Deanne approach her subjects to get behind the scenes? "You can't have one formula that you use every time because each situation is different," says Deanne. "For example, if you are shooting a family story, you are entering someone's home and there is a fine line you have to walk. If they're not comfortable, they won't want you there." Deanne's approach is to be herself and engage in conversation to get to know the subject better. "I have to give up a little of who I am so that they understand me, what I am about, and what my intentions are. It helps a lot." From there, her goal is to be a fly on the wall so that the subject forgets about her and the camera, and that's when the natural moments unfold.

This approach was most critical in the Pulitzer Prize winning essay she photographed for the San Francisco Chronicle of an Iraqi boy who was badly injured in his homeland by the war that is currently taking place. "This was a very trying and critical time for Saleh and Raheem, but I knew this story had to be told. We had to approach them very delicately." Over time, this developing story led to additional support for Saleh's recovery and eventually helped them get amnesty to stay in the U.S. and also get the rest of his family out of Iraq and into the U.S. so that they could be with him permanently. "Stories and outcomes like this don't get any better," says Deanne. "The ability to help change someone's life for the positive is very gratifying."

A question that is often posed to a photojournalist working on a story like this is, "Where do you draw the line between doing your job as a journalist and just being a human who wants to put the camera down and help?"

"That's a difficult choice sometimes. You want to be a human first and a photographer second. People need to know that you care but you also need to capture these images," says Deanne. "You have to be able to read situations really well. For one reason or another, lifting up my camera may impact future events in the positive or the negative." You can see this in a particular photograph from this story.

"There is an image where Saleh is at Raheem's feet sobbing," says Deanne. "They had been to the grocery store and people were staring at him because he is missing an eye and forgot to wear his sunglasses." Saleh was so upset that his father had to pick him up and carry him home. When they got home, Saleh fell to Raheem's feet and began uncontrollably sobbing. "It was so hard to pick up the camera and shoot at that moment," says Deanne. "On a human level you want to console him and not embarrass him further by photographing this. That's one of the things about the fine line," Deanne notes. "You can't be too close. Yes, I became close to this family, and I wouldn't have been able to tell the story I did if I hadn't been, but if I got so close that I wasn't able to shoot these pictures, then I wouldn't have been able to do my job. The truth was that Saleh was experiencing these lows as well as highs and I needed to show that." These are the things that a journalist learns over time.

So what does Deanne have to say to those up-and-coming photographers who seek her advice as a photojournalist? "You have to really want it because it can be a difficult field to break into. It's a changing time in terms of photojournalism. There are more opportunities to get your work published with the Web," says Deanne. "Photo editors look at places like Flickr, Smugmug, and other everyday live sites. It's so much easier to reach editors with the Web. You used to have to go to New York and get time with an editor, and that's not the case anymore. Now you can go to Sportsshooter.com, for example, and put up your portfolio, and you will find that major editors go and look for photographers there," says Deanne.

"In terms of making it, you have to be passionate about it. You have to love journalism and to respect it. You need those things to drive you. You have to wake up every morning and want to photograph."