Extraordinary Stories From An Ordinary Guy: One Of My Favorite Photojournalists

It was an ordinary day. Surfing on my computer and looking once again at a few photographs taken by long-time photojournalist Dan Marsha who lived and worked in Lancaster, Pennsylvania. Dan has been with the Lancaster Newspaper for years. He has taken photos of just about anything imaginable from photos of Kings, Queens and Presidents to photos of horrible accident scenes. It was Dan's job and he had no choice but to take the photos of what he was told were needed for a story in the daily newspaper in Lancaster, Pennsylvnia. Dan was one of my go-to photographers when I needed a speaker for one of my photography classes at Manheim Township High School. He always found time to spend in my class and explain to my students how each photo was taken and for what story in the daily newspaper. The students loved to hear his stories and to see the images he would project onto the screen in my classroom. Some photographs were beautiful while others were horrific. My only request of Dan was that he wouldn't present any photographs that wouldn't have been acceptable for the local newspaper. I made that request of Dan, since I had seen a few of his photographs that would have been overwhelming for my high school classes. For many years Dan captured his images in black and white, but eventually they were taken in color which would be used as

Photojournalist Dan Marscha

a color image in the newspaper, but still could be changed over to black and white if needed. Dan explained how many of the photos were taken, both in black and white and color. Explanations of lighting, movement in the photo and if the photo was to be in color or black and white were explained to my classes. His camera and the lens he used were examined as well as the type and speed of the film that he used. Dan was one of my classes favorite guest speakers. Never had to tell them to behave themselves or to make sure they arrived to class on time when they knew he was to be my speaker. I have included a few of the photos that he presented and talked about during my classes in the past as well as a photo of himself. Many thanks to Dan for the many times he made visits to my classes when I was teaching at Manheim Township High School. I enjoyed his presentations as much as my classes did. Check out a few of the photographs that he had taken that were published in the Lancaster Newspaper. It was another extraordinary day in the life of an ordinary guy. A few photos that Dan took for the newspaper follow...... (click to enlarge). PS - Dan was one of about a half-dozen professional photographers who spent time talking to my photography class. I will add a few other stories in the near future to tell you about their visits and the photos they presented.