A selection of images from stories pitched by Globe and Mail freelancers.The Globe and Mail
The Globe and Mail is proud to work with freelance visual journalists from across Canada. We are always accepting pitches and story ideas from all corners of the country and around the world.
What makes a strong photo pitch?
- News value: info about the event or subject, and why you feel it is a fit for The Globe
- Timing: is this something that is pegged to a particular day, or a feature that can be shot on a looser schedule?
- Effort and budget required: is it an assignment, full day, or multi-day project?
A compelling photo feature shows rather than tells, introduces our readers to interesting characters and provides them with a new way of thinking about their country through the lens of an experience different from their own.
There are many factors that go into what pitches we accept including what is outlined above (timeliness, how it fits with our current coverage, and budget), but we aim to respond to all pitches we receive.
Our standard rates for assignments
- Half-day rate (less than 4 hours): $250
- Day rate (4-8 hours): $450
- Expenses: $0.55/km mileage and other costs as required (PPE, parking, travel costs)
Please send pitches to photopitches@globeandmail.com and our editors will respond in a timely manner.
Together, we can produce memorable visual stories that will have an impact with Canadians.
Here are examples of successful pitches:
- Breaking news
- Regional features
- News features
- International
- Business
- Opinion
- Lifestyle and Arts
- First person
- Long-term projects
- Collaborative projects
Visual stories and photo essays
Breaking news
Pitches for timely news events could be as simple as a single image or location (like the disastrous flooding in B.C.), or a photo story surrounding an event that is unfolding rapidly. The news should be something that would resonate with a national audience, or a local window into a larger systemic issue.
Vancouver works to close Strathcona Park tent encampment
By Jesse Winter
Vancouver police arrest activists protesting the closure of the Crab Park homeless encampment near the Port of Vancouver in June, 2020.
Residents of Merritt, B.C., return home after evacuation to find destruction and sorrow
By Artur Gadja
Mudslides washed out parts of the highways that lead to Merritt, and also severed the major road and rail networks connecting the Interior with B.C.'s Lower Mainland.
Regional features
These are stories that highlight something happening in a region across the country that would be of interest to a national audience. They should be highly visual, character-driven and timely.
Celebrating Ramadan during COVID-19′s third wave
By Alia Youssef
Danieh Khan passes a date to her mother as the Khan family prepares to break its fast during a picnic in a Surrey, B.C.
B.C.’s Camp Ignite fuels young women’s firefighting aspirations
By Jimmy Jeong
Brooklyn Craig, middle, throws a hose as Camp Ignite participants take part in hose and hydrant exercise.
Graduates celebrate end-of-year at ‘party bubbles’ in Quebec
By Christinne Muschi
Loic Belair, dances in his bubble at the end-of-year celebration for graduates at Collège Laval, a private French-language high school in Laval, Quebec, June 11, 2021.
Meanwhile, back at the ranch, the rural Alberta roots of Calgary Stampede culture live on
By Leah Hennel
Clay Chattaway throws a lasso at the Bar S Ranch, nestled in the Porcupine Hills near Nanton, Alta.
Anishinabe chef is advocating for Indigenous food sovereignty with urban farm
By Ramona Leitao
Local community members play basketball nearby as Charles Catchpole prepares to harvest crops. 'That’s how accessible and visible this farm is, Catchpole said. 'You often get community members coming up to the fence and wanting to learn what we’re doing.'
News features
These are, quite simply, interesting stories well-told. They are often character driven, with insight into the life of an interesting person. Often pitches in this realm will involve pairing with one of our reporters to work on the story together.
A priest’s creature comforts: Chickens, grandchildren and God
By Yader Guzman
Grandchildren Dominic and Belén help Father Astudillo turn up soil in the backyard, in search of worms for the chickens to eat.
International
We receive many excellent pitches from photographers around the world every week. In evaluating these stories, we look for pieces that are either very timely, have a connection to Canada, or are solutions-based work that offer a clear lesson or insight for Canadians.
Inside the Darien Gap: Desperate Haitian migrants make a terrifying trek as U.S. efforts fail to deter them
By Yader Guzman
A Haitian migrant carrying his son on his shoulders treks through the Darien Gap in Colombia.
Indonesia’s Delta disaster: As COVID-19 variant spreads, deaths rise and cemeteries make room
By Joshua Irwandi
Ambulance staff, with the help of gravediggers, finish burying the plastic-wrapped casket of a COVID-19 victim in the Christian grave site of Rorotan Public Cemetery in Cilincing, North Jakarta.
Russia’s new radicals: Fighting for Navalny or against Putin, these young people took to the streets for the first time
By Nanna Heitmann
Young Russians watch a demonstrator climb a lamppost in Moscow's Pushkin Square.
This city in Ecuador is one of the world’s worst coastal climate-change danger zones – and to save it, the poor are pitching in
By Sanne Derks
From this video surveillance room, more than 1,100 cameras can be used to monitor Guayaquil and co-ordinate police, fire and emergency-response services.
Business
Business journalism is one of the core pillars of The Globe and Mail’s coverage. Visually driven business stories offer readers a look into a company or group that is operating in a novel way. These stories are often solutions-driven and tie in to some of the most pressing issues facing Canadians, such as the climate crisis, jobs, housing and pandemic recovery.
The sustainable family farm: How a mother-daughter team built a new life in rural Ontario
By Vanessa Tignanelli
A rainbow greets Tessa Uchikura and her staff as they harvest vegetables in Bobcaygeon, Ont.Vanessa Tignanelli/The Globe and Mail
Couple made well-timed real estate trades. Now, they’re taking their biggest leap yet
By Johnny C.Y. Lam
Mike and Laura play with their three children in the backyard.
‘Old-school’ local doughnut shop opens in Montreal – with prices to match
By Christinne Muschi
John Giannarakis hangs donuts in the storefront window at Bernie Beigne, a new donut shop in Montreal.
Opinion
In these visual features, the photographer’s voice is central to the story. Opinion photo essays present a point of view on our world through the experience of the photographer, and often give readers an intimate perspective through a combination of writing and photography.
The meaning of mixed, as seen through our family photo albums
By Amber Bracken
On the cover of Amber Bracken's family photo album is a baby photo of her grandpa. 'This book always seemed the template to me for what a photo album should be like: curated, comprehensive and with a sense of history,' said Bracken.
Resilience on reserve: How my First Nation and my family have endured this pandemic
By Zachary Skead
A picture of my wife and son months before we ever got word of an approaching virus. It's odd to reflect when we did not have to worry about being exposed to COVID-19.
How we stayed the blazes home: A family portrait from Nova Scotia under COVID-19
By Darren Calabrese
In front of our house in Halifax's north end, my daughters Harriet, 6, and June, 3, watch people line up at a distance on the sidewalk to get food from a mobile delivery service. Like other parents in this crisis, my wife Tammy and I have tried to soften our children's experience of the changing world around them.
Lifestyle and Arts
These features can span topics like music, arts, fashion and travel. They can expose our readers to parts of Canadian culture they may not be familiar with, and are often exploring novel solutions or new perspectives.
Paving a new road for rap
By Michelle Siu
Toronto rapper Tasha Schumann.
On the Tsuut’ina Nation, fashion designers are connecting with roots and reclaiming Indigenous identity
By Sarah B. Groot
At her family ranch on the Tsuut’ina Nation in Treaty 7, Indigenous artist Livia Manywounds, 34, stands behind high school graduate Autumn Jules, 18.
First person
Personal features are produced via the perspective of the photographer, but aren’t opinion-driven. They offer a way to connect with readers on universal topics, and also to experiment with format and approach beyond traditional documentary news photography.
The mothers’ days: Two friends comfort each other through pandemic parenthood
By Chloë Ellingson and Michelle Siu
Michelle Siu holds her son, Sekou Siu-Wing-Hung Jalloh, at home in Cambridge, England.
Underexposed: My photo journal of the pandemic’s isolating year
By Lucy Lu
Day 138: I was visiting my family in Richmond Hill, after one of the longest times I've gone without visiting them; I went on walks with my sister on a trail near our house.
Motherhood in the coronavirus pandemic
By Cindy Blazevic
Not a day goes by without someone spilling milk. I know I’m not supposed to cry over spilt milk. I don’t cry. I have irrational meltdowns over it. This image depicts my parallel existence in which I’ve accepted my fate.
Long-term projects
We will also consider pitches that involve projects that photographers have been working on over a longer term. Sometimes we will publish selections from larger bodies of work, or in-progress projects that eventually evolve into something larger.
We live in The Prairies. Will you see us
By Kyler Zeleny
Judy, a retired Albertan, spends her days picking up garbage on Highway 22 near Lundbreck, Alta.
The Frozen Front Line
By Louie Palu
On reconnaissance outside Resolute Bay on Cornwallis Island, Nunavut, Canadian Arctic Operations Advisors walk on the wreckage of an airplane that is slowly being swallowed by the snow.
Collaborative projects
On occasion we will commission visual stories that involve multiple photographers across Canada. The example below began as pitches from a few photographers on the same theme, and evolved into a larger project.
Graduations and vaccinations collide: Getting the jab means a return to the small joys of teen life
By Darren Calabrese, Gavin John, Sarah Mortimer and Alia Youssef
Juaria Mohamed, 17, a graduate of C.W. Jefferys collegiate institute in Toronto receives her first vaccine at Downsview Arena.Sarah Mortimer/The Globe and Mail