Photo Editor

The Houston Landing is growing our team of passionate people on a mission to advance democracy in our communities and strengthen the lives of all Houstonians one story at a time. The Landing is an independent, nonpartisan news organization devoted to public service journalism. Initially supported by three of Houston’s leading philanthropies including Arnold Ventures, The Houston Endowment, and the Kinder Foundation, we are building a team to support our efforts in sustainability and revenue growth. At the Landing, we are expanding our newsroom team to include a talented and empathetic photojournalist who can share photo editing responsibilities with the current two-person team supervised by the director of photography, Marie D. De Jesús. The Landing’s visual journalists are seeking to craft stories that are impactful, accurate and compelling while always demonstrating empathy and respect for the community.

As a hybrid photo editor and photographer at Houston Landing, you will be crucial in photographing and curating visual journalism that complements our news stories. This dynamic position requires a multifaceted skill set encompassing photo editing, photography, collaboration, project management, and the ability to conceptualize stories visually.

Requirements

What you’ll do:

• You will focus primarily on local Houston-area news and work on a wide range of stories, including hard-hitting investigations, traditional articles, and narratives.
• You will photograph and edit still photography and be able to recognize urgent news stories.
• Produce compelling and impactful visuals that can stand alone in journalistic value and complement news articles and other editorial content for Houston Landing.
• Be equipped and willing to utilize innovative and inclusive coverage techniques for our news site, newsletter and social media platforms.
• Must be able to respond urgently to news coverage. This position might be responsible for some weekend and holiday coverage. 
• You have the ability to work on multiple projects at the same time. This person will closely work with the director of photography and other members of the newsroom.
• Ensure all equipment is in good working condition and follow appropriate safety protocols.

This position is designed to be a hybrid photo editing and photojournalism role, supporting the team several days a week with photo editing and assigning photo requests, and taking in photographing responsibilities the rest of the week. As photo editor, you will coordinate assignments to staff and independent photographers and ensure timely delivery and adherence to project requirements; provide clear guidelines and expectations for freelancers and coordinate with them throughout the process; edit and sequence photos to meet the highest standards of visual storytelling and convey narratives in collaboration with the editorial team; thoroughly check and verify captions for accuracy and relevance to ensure the integrity of our stories; work closely with writers, editors, and other teams to align visual content with the overall editorial vision; use creative thinking to conceptualize and visualize stories in a compelling and impactful way; translate editorial concepts into visually engaging narratives; communicate effectively with team members and freelancers; foster a collaborative and positive work environment; demonstrate flexibility in managing multiple projects with varying deadlines; and adapt to evolving news priorities and contribute creative solutions.

Who you are:

• You have proven experience in photo editing and photography, preferably in a news or media environment.
• You have strong organizational and project management skills.
• You have excellent interpersonal and communication skills.
• You have proficiency in photo editing software.  
• You are enthusiastic about community engagement and storytelling through visual mediums.
• You have the ability to conceptualize and visualize stories in a compelling way.

Benefits

Our Values

EXCELLENCE: We wake up every day with the intent to be the best at what we do. We hustle. We have grit. When we make mistakes, we’ll learn from them.

INCLUSION: We aren’t all the same, and those differences are what make us better. We’ll respect each person’s uniqueness. Perspective, context and life experiences help us to tell the story.

AMBITION: We will be bold and creative, open to all ideas big or small. We really mean it.

FUN: We are not making widgets, although there is nothing wrong with widgets. We tell stories and stories are often fun, so we believe in having lots of fun.

‍COLLABORATION: We are all in this together. We may not always agree, but we will listen to each other and communicate candidly and respectfully.

Benefits

• Compensation commensurate with experience
• 401(k)
• Healthcare 100% premium paid for employee and 50% for dependents
• 20 vacation days
• Ten personal/sick days
• Generous paid parental leave
• Hybrid work policy (initially we all work together to build culture)
• Stipend for development / learning

We’re committed to building an inclusive organization that represents the people and communities we serve. We encourage members of traditionally underrepresented communities to apply, including women, people of color, veterans, LGBTQ+ people and people with disabilities.