Pictures of the month — and your chance to ask our photographers about them
Jack Hill, James Glossop and Richard Pohle talk us through their favourite shots — post your questions below and James will answer them on Wednesday
, Photographer |
Jack Hill
, Chief News Photographer |
Richard Pohle
, Photographer
The Times
Have you ever wondered how our photographers get the perfect shot?
James Glossop will be online from 1pm on Wednesday to answer your questions. You can ask about anything, from equipment and lighting to how he gets into prime position, in the comments below.
I've always loved photographing aircraft so it was with some excitement I was assigned to go to Poland to photograph the the jets of Poland, Britain and Sweden taking part in a tri-nation operation to intercept Russian aircraft flying too close to Nato borders. Here a Polish MIG 29 screams low over the Polish air force base of Malbork after returning from a training exercise
TIMES PHOTOGRAPHER RICHARD POHLE
John Healey posed at Wentworth Woodhouse near Rotherham for The Sunday Times before an interview about Monday's strategic defence review. I got about eight minutes to do this shoot, but managed three or four different setups. I used a deliberately stark lighting style and something called a Gobo projector, with a narrow slit in it to channel light into the spot where the defence secretary stood
TIMES PHOTOGRAPHER JAMES GLOSSOP
I had a fascinating assignment in Goma, Democratic Republic of Congo, and the surrounding areas, now under M23 control after government forces were pushed out in January. With permission we visited the mines at Rubaya, a punishing three-hour drive on one of the worst roads I've travelled
TIMES PHOTOGRAPHER JACK HILL
Rubaya is a critical mining town producing coltan and manganese, key minerals used in modern tech. I chose this shot for its scale — I wanted to convey the enormity of the operation and the conditions involved
TIMES PHOTOGRAPHER JACK HILL
Before VE Day, the Tower of London planted 30,000 ceramic poppies. I was there mainly to photograph the volunteers tirelessly assembling and planting the poppies but was aware the pictures weren't quite working as nothing I was photographing said 'Tower of London'. Towards the end of my time there I saw several yeoman warders watching from the side. I knew then that this was the picture I needed. I quickly asked permission to photograph one of them and asked if he could plant a poppy and he readily agreed. I was delighted when this image made the front page of The Times the following day
TIMES PHOTOGRAPHER RICHARD POHLE
I was in Ramsgate, Kent, for the 85th anniversary of the astonishing rescue of British troops from the beaches of Dunkirk in 1940. To mark the anniversary of Operation Dynamo many of the original Dunkirk Little Ships made the crossing again. I was lucky to secure a spot on a pilot boat that accompanied them partway into the Channel
TIMES PHOTOGRAPHER JACK HILL
Soldiers at Pirbright barracks in Surrey carry the flags of the Commonwealth as they prepare for the VE Day parade in central London. I always like to photograph the rehearsal for a state occasion more than the actual event as you can get much closer to events and catch little moments of detail before discipline takes over
TIMES PHOTOGRAPHER RICHARD POHLE
On the Farne Islands off the coast of Northumberland, the annual puffin census involves birds being weighed using an unusual method: placing them upside down in a jug. I knew from the moment I shot this picture that it would be the one that got used, because it hadn't been seen before
TIMES PHOTOGRAPHER JAMES GLOSSOP
Earlier in the month, I travelled with Sir Keir Starmer to the European Political Community summit in Tirana, Albania. I liked the symmetry and formality of this frame — the grandeur of the honour guard welcoming our prime minister to the Presidential Palace for his meeting with the Albanian president, Bajram Begaj
TIMES PHOTOGRAPHER JACK HILL
Ukrainian recruits are put through a seven-week intensive battle training course in East Anglia run by British and other Nato soldiers intended to give them more 'survivability'. I spent a full day with them as they were put through their paces by the Irish Guards. Here a group of Ukrainians carry a mock casualty away from a battle area. The British soldiers admitted a bond grows through the training and the Ukrainians' inevitable departure to war is always an emotional day
TIMES PHOTOGRAPHER RICHARD POHLE
Before the Great Ouseburn Garden Festival in North Yorkshire on Sunday, a retired headteacher called Caroline Smale restores some of her fellow villagers' colourful garden gnomes to their former glory. A light into a large brolly helped to fill the foreground in this image while maintaining the outdoor feel
TIMES PHOTOGRAPHER JAMES GLOSSOP
Every two years the members of what must be the most exclusive club in the world — the Victoria Cross and George Cross Association — attend a service of remembrance and a royal reception. To stand among these incredible people is an absolute honour, and although a couple can't be photographed for security reasons I was greeted warmly. Here one Victoria Cross recipient, Johnson Beharry, waits for the King to arrive at Windsor Castle. In the background other members of the association talk among themselves
TIMES PHOTOGRAPHER RICHARD POHLE
King Charles exits his car on arrival in Bradford, where he made a number of visits relating to the city's status as 2025 City of Culture. I like the way he appears to be staring me down
TIMES PHOTOGRAPHER JAMES GLOSSOP
With a sense of circularity I found myself near Dunkirk again later in the month, this time working on an immigration story. I'd seen groups near the camps heading towards bus stops, some carrying life jackets. With ideal weather forecast for the next day, I travelled to Gravelines beach at dawn. The sunrise revealed hundreds of people, either hidden in the dunes or gathered along the foreshore, waiting to board a dinghy
TIMES PHOTOGRAPHER JACK HILL
When boarding begins, it quickly becomes organised chaos. It must be a nerve-racking ordeal for everyone involved
TIMES PHOTOGRAPHER JACK HILL
I used a DJI Mini 2 drone to capture this scene of swimmers at Ilkley Lido in West Yorkshire on its opening weekend. The distinctive shape of the pool helped catch the eye of the picture editors
TIMES PHOTOGRAPHER JAMES GLOSSOP
There are several dress rehearsals for Trooping the Colour; the first is known as the Brigade Major's Review. This is always great to photograph as we can stand in positions usually reserved for TV cameras that give a unique view that isn't available on big day. No members of the royal family are present, so I can concentrate on the precision drill of the guardsmen. Using a 500mm lens, I focused in on the tight formations to create this view
TIMES PHOTOGRAPHER RICHARD POHLE
Year 11 school leavers celebrate their 'graduation' by throwing mortarboards in the air in what has become an annual tradition at BBG Academy near Bradford, West Yorkshire. There are very few cases where I use my Canon R5's full speed ability to capture 20 frames per second — you simply end up with too many images to edit — but this was one of them
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The Guardian
5 hours ago
- The Guardian
DC rally protests cuts to US veterans programs: ‘Promises made to us have come under attack'
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Organizers said that in addition to the march in Washington, there were more than 200 corresponding actions across the country, from watch parties to vigils held at VA clinics. Many veterans told the Guardian they came to the nation's capital on their own after hearing about the rally online. The VA secretary, Doug Collins, has said the efforts are designed to trim bureaucratic bloat and will have no impact on veterans' healthcare or benefits. Reporting by the Guardian last month found the agency, which provides healthcare to more than 9 million veterans, has already been plunged into crisis. Across the nation, appointments have been cancelled, hospital units closed, the physical safety of patients put at risk. Demonstrators said the Trump administration is seeking to destroy the VA, the largest integrated healthcare system in the United States, with 170 government-run hospitals and more than 1,000 clinics, and replace it with a private voucher program that will provide substandard care. 'We're a generation of service. We volunteered and stepped up to lead. Now we are seeing the promises made to us come under attack,' said Kyleanne Hunter, the chief executive of Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America and a Marine Corps veteran who flew multiple combat missions as an AH1-W Super Cobra attack pilot. The administration's proposed budget for the VA, released on Friday, slashes spending for 'medical services' by $12bn – or nearly 20% – an amount offset by a corresponding 50% boost in funding for veterans seeking healthcare in the private sector. 'We're already being starved,' said Sharda Fornnarino, a Navy veteran and one of about three dozen nurses brought to the rally by the National Nurses United union. Fornnarino, who works at the VA in Denver, Colorado, said that while politicians in Washington debate permanent staff reductions, essential healthcare positions are being left vacant. With fewer staff on the floor, veterans on hospice 'are being left to die in their own piss and shit', said Teshara Felder, a Navy veteran and nurse at the agency's hospital in Atlanta, Georgia, said. A blue-ribbon commission established by the agency last year found veterans received significantly better care at lower cost from the public system. Private providers operated with little oversight, they wrote, and 'are not required to demonstrate competency in diagnosing and treating the complex care needs of veterans nor in understanding military culture, which is often critical to providing quality care for veterans'. The VA says the budget submission 'prioritizes care for our most vulnerable veterans, including those experiencing homelessness or at risk of suicide' and 'eliminates nonessential programming and bureaucratic overhead that does not directly serve the veteran'. The march was held on the 81st anniversary of D-day, when Allied troops stormed the beaches of Normandy, a decisive turn in the war against Nazi Germany during the second world war. Organizers said their inspiration goes back even further – to the 'Bonus Army' march on Washington in 1932 during the depths of the Great Depression, when thousands of first world war veterans gathered on the National Mall to demand promised benefits, only to have the US military deployed against them. Christopher Purdy, an Afghanistan war veteran and organizer of today's march, said the Bonus Army rally helped set the stage for the New Deal social programs and eventually the GI Bill, which provided higher education, healthcare and home ownership to veterans returning from the second world war. Other speakers criticized Trump's decision to impose a travel ban on visitors from 12 countries, including Afghanistan, where many of the demonstrators served alongside translators who risked their lives for the US. Shortly after taking office in January, Trump ordered a pause on the US refugee admissions program, putting translators' safety in doubt. 'We all left behind people who are now marked,' said Nadim Yousify, who immigrated to the United States in 2015 after working as a US government translator in Afghanistan and later joined the Marine Corps.
The Independent
10 hours ago
- The Independent
Transgender troops face a deadline and a difficult decision: Stay or go?
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For others, it's a call to arms. 'I'm choosing to stay in and fight,' a noncommissioned officer in the Air Force said. 'My service is based on merit, and I've earned that merit.' The troops, who mainly spoke on condition of anonymity because they fear reprisals, said being forced to decide is frustrating. They say it's a personal choice based on individual and family situations, including whether they would get an infusion of cash or possibly wind up owing the government money. 'I'm very disappointed,' a transgender Marine said. 'I've outperformed, I have a spotless record. I'm at the top of every fitness report. I'm being pushed out while I know others are barely scraping by.' Some transgender troops decide to leave based on finances Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has said this is President Donald Trump's directive and what America voted for. The Pentagon, he said, is 'leaving wokeness & weakness behind' and that includes 'no more dudes in dresses.' Sen. 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But she said she felt 'backed into a corner' to sign the voluntary separation agreement, fearing she would have to repay an $18,500 reenlistment bonus. 'My commander basically said it was my only option in order to make sure my kids are taken care of,' Ferrell said. The Marine, who has served for more than 25 years, said she had planned to stay and fight, but changed her mind. Lawyers, she said, told her an involuntary separation would put a code in her record saying she was forced to leave 'in the interests of national security.' That designation, she said, could mean those involuntarily separated could lose their security clearances, hurting future job prospects. In a statement Friday, a defense official said the code 'is not intended' to trigger clearance revocations and that gender dysphoria is not a security reporting requirement, according to the director of national intelligence. The official spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss internal deliberations. Cynthia Cheng-Wun Weaver, senior director of litigation for Human Rights Campaign, said it's important for troops to talk with judge advocates general in their services to ensure they understand the different procedures being implemented. Other transgender troops plan to stay despite the ban The Air Force service member and a transgender officer in the Army National Guard both said they plan to stay and fight. Lawsuits over the ban continue and could change or block the policy. For troops involved in the court battles as plaintiffs, leaving voluntarily now would likely hurt their standing in the case. For others, it's simply dedication to their career. 'I've really embraced military culture, and it's embraced me,' the Air Force member said. 'It's not about money. It's the career that I love.' The Guard soldier echoed that sentiment, saying he will stay on "because it is important to me to serve. Frankly, I'm good at it, I'm well trained so I want to continue.' Others without bonuses to repay or who have been in the military only a short while and won't get much in separation bonus pay may opt to stay and see what happens. National Guard troops face a particular problem National Guard members who are heading to their monthly drill weekend or annual two-week drill in June could be required to go but serve as the gender they were assigned at birth. That means they would have to wear uniforms and haircuts of that gender, use that bathroom and be referred to as 'sir' or 'ma'am' based on that gender. For many, that could be close to impossible and create uncomfortable situations. 'If I were to show up to drill this weekend, I'd be expected to use all female facilities, I would be expected to wear a woman's uniform,' said the Army Guard officer, who transitioned to male about five years ago and says others in his unit know him as a man. 'I don't look like a woman. I don't feel like a woman. 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BreakingNews.ie
12 hours ago
- BreakingNews.ie
Watchdog looking into possibility of aide deletions in Hegseth Signal probe
The Pentagon watchdog is looking into whether any of defence secretary Pete Hegseth's aides was asked to delete Signal messages that may have shared sensitive military information with a reporter, according to two people familiar with the investigation and documents reviewed by The Associated Press. The inspector general's request focuses on how information about the March 15 air strikes on Houthi targets in Yemen was shared on the messaging app. Advertisement It comes as Mr Hegseth is scheduled to testify before Congress next week for the first time since his confirmation hearing. He is likely to face questions under oath not only about his handling of sensitive information but also the wider turmoil at the Pentagon following the departures of several senior aides and an internal investigation over information leaks. Mr Hegseth already has faced questions over the installation of an unsecured internet line in his office that bypassed the Pentagon's security protocols and revelations that he shared details about the military strikes in multiple Signal chats. US President Donald Trump has given his backing to Pete Hegseth (Niall Carson/PA) One of the chats included his wife and brother while the other included President Donald Trump's top national security officials and inadvertently included The Atlantic's editor-in-chief Jeffrey Goldberg. Advertisement Neither the Pentagon nor the inspector general's office immediately responded to Friday requests for comment on the investigation. Besides finding out whether anyone was asked to delete Signal messages, the inspector general also is asking some past and current staffers who were with Mr Hegseth on the day of the strikes who posted the information and who had access to his phone, according to the two people familiar with the investigation and the documents reviewed by the AP. Democratic lawmakers and a small number of Republicans have said that the information Mr Hegseth posted to the Signal chats before the military jets had reached their targets could have put those pilots' lives at risk and that for any lower-ranking members of the military it would have led to their firing. Mr Hegseth has said none of the information was classified. Multiple current and former military officials have said there is no way details with that specificity, especially before a strike took place, would have been OK to share on an unsecured device. Advertisement 'I said repeatedly, nobody is texting war plans,' Mr Hegseth told Fox News Channel in April after reporting emerged about the chat that included his family members. 'I look at war plans every day. What was shared over Signal then and now, however you characterise it, was informal, unclassified co-ordinations, for media co-ordinations and other things. That's what I've said from the beginning.' Mr Trump has made clear that Mr Hegseth continues to have his support, saying during a Memorial Day speech at Arlington National Cemetery in Virginia that the defence secretary 'went through a lot' but 'he's doing really well'. Mr Hegseth has limited his public engagements with the press since the Signal controversy. He has yet to hold a Pentagon press briefing and his spokesman has briefed reporters there only once. Advertisement Signal is a publicly-available app that provides encrypted communications, but it can be hacked and is not approved for carrying classified information. On March 14, one day before the strikes against the Houthis, the defence department cautioned personnel about the vulnerability of the app.
