Pulitzer Prize-winning photographer David Swanson documents California wildfires for a global audience, taking pictures and video at the same time.
Fires are trending news, as nearly one million acres burned this year in California by September 20. Swanson, who has covered California wildfires for five years, explains what it’s like to chase wildfires, capture compelling images, and manage risks.
“I feel it’s my calling to show the work of frontline workers,” says Swanson. “Most people don’t understand what happens at the perimeter of an expanding wildfire. Sheriffs’ deputies going door to door. Hot shots making minimum wage, working in situations I can’t fathom and I’m lucky enough to leave after I’ve made a few pictures.”
Swanson, a transplant to California from the East Coast, notes that many journalists cover wildfires.
“I respect their courage and knowledge, and I have learned from their experience,” he says.
As expected, safety is of prime importance. Standard gear includes a helmet, goggles, fire boots, and fire-resistant Nomex clothing (Nomex is a heat and flame-resistant fiber developed by DuPont that won’t melt or support combustion).
Swanson uses two Canon camera bodies with 24mm, 135mm, and 100-400mm lenses. He wears Meta’s RayBan smart glasses that shoot video while he takes still images, which is how the video below was created.
“I’ve made it a habit to go out with another photographer, so we know we have two working vehicles. We use two-way radios and keep checking in with each other,” says Swanson.
Apps such as Watch Duty and Windy help photographers follow fires and assess their potential for destruction.
“We fire photographers make judgment calls on covering based on the news value and the chance for the fire to grow substantially or if CalFire will knock it down by the time we get there,” says Swanson.
California Code allows journalists to enter areas that have been evacuated. Swanson can pinpoint the relevant section of the Code; 409.5 (d) (1): This section shall not prevent a duly authorized representative of a news service, newspaper, or radio or television station or network from entering the areas closed pursuant to this section.
“This allows us a unique window most will never see,” says Swanson who covers southern California mostly for Reuters and Agence France Presse (AFP).
“Fire behavior is — in the true sense of the word — an awesome sight, especially as the day ends and light wanes. It’s harder to capture in daylight. When the sun sets, wildfire flames illuminate the surroundings and better photographs are made.”
Swanson’s Impressive Resume
As a college student, Swanson completed photojournalism internships at the Los Angeles Times in 1986 and Newsday in 1987. He graduated from the School of Visual Communication at Ohio University in 1988.
Swanson moved to Los Angeles in 2019 after a 33-year career at The Philadelphia Inquirer. The Inquirer, including Swanson, won the 2012 Pulitzer Prize for Public Service for its series on violence in city schools.
Swanson’s photo of a firefighting train was part of Reuters’ global portfolio that was named Pulitzer Prize finalist for feature photography in 2022.
He is no stranger to danger. After Penn State Football Coach Joe Paterno was fired in 2011, Swanson was hit in the head by a brick thrown during what he called a “low-grade student riot.”
Globetrotting Swanson covered the aftermath of the earthquake in Haiti in 2010 and Hurricane Katrina in 2005. He was an embedded photojournalist with the 10th Mountain Division during two trips to Afghanistan in 2003. In 2004, he was shot in the arm when he was embedded with the 2nd Battalion 4th Marines Echo Company in Iraq, a unit that took heavy casualties.
“Like any of the previous dangerous assignments, fires have their own inherent risk,” Swanson says. “We always try to have a back door that we can escape to, that also includes an area that has burned we call ‘the black.’ I have a fire shelter that wraps around me like a cocoon I hope I never need to unfold.”
About the author: Ken Klein lives in Silver Spring, Maryland; he is retired after a career in politics, lobbying, and media including The Associated Press and Gannett in Florida. Klein is an alumnus of Ohio University and a member of the Dean’s Advisory Council of the Scripps College of Communication. Professionally, he has worked for Fort Myers News-Press (Gannett), The Associated Press (Tallahassee), Senator Bob Graham, and the Outdoor Advertising Association of America (OAAA).
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