Kicking off the new year in our news, sports, and entertainment feature we鈥檝e spoken to Richard Milnes a freelance photojournalist based in Sydney, Australia. Richard photographs a variety of different news topics and specialises in protests and red carpet events. We gain insight into why Richard wanted to be a news and entertainment photographer, how he gets his images online to us quickly and the most challenging event of his life so far.
LP: Can you tell us a bit about yourself and what first drew you to photography?
RM: I actually first started out writing for an online news site. To illustrate my stories, I needed photos and I ended up migrating more towards photography. I bought myself my first DSLR camera which was the Canon 7D and that allowed me to take professional quality photos and made it easier to get media accreditation.
LP: What made you want to become a news and entertainment photographer over other photography areas?
RM: Generally, I would say that news and entertainment photos will generate more revenue normally. They usually record moments in time that won鈥檛 happen again so there is more exclusivity about them. Stock photos of buildings or locations for example don鈥檛 change much, if at all over time so there will be so many people with similar photos. Also, I like the excitement of covering news events, particularly protests. Protesters are usually very passionate about their cause, and you can try to capture the emotions of the event.
The entertainment industry is very glamourous and as a photographer you get to experience that, and can get to photograph many famous people. I like to be able to report events truthfully and factually without the bias and agenda that much of the mainstream media has been pushing to such an extent that we have reached a point where trying not to offend people has become more important than reporting facts and the truth and a distorted version of reality is being presented to people.
LP: Do you have a favourite story that you have covered so far?
RM: Difficult to say, but I like covering Royal visits. It鈥檚 very exciting and also the reaction of the public is great.
LP: How do you get your images onto 17吃瓜在线 so quickly? Do you do it yourself or do you have a team of people that help?
RM: If you have someone to assist you, you can even FTP the images from them directly from the camera and they can edit them and send them out as you go. I work by myself though, so the key is to make sure that you have Wi-Fi from your phone or a modem and bring your laptop with you. Also, you should really have the heading, description and keywords written before-hand where possible. Write them on a Word document or Notes and then copy them across to your photo editing software.
I usually use Photo Mechanic to quickly edit the photos down and crop them if necessary and then transfer the edited photos to Lightroom.
LP: What has been the most challenging event you have covered?
RM: The most challenging event that I have covered so far I would say was without a doubt the Bondi ISIS terrorist attack on the Jewish Chanukah by the Sea, on 14th December 2025. I had attended thinking I would be photographing the Jewish people celebrating the first night of Hanukah and the lighting of the menorah candle, but ended up being shot at for over 6 minutes as I tried to hide my head behind my rucksack with my laptop in, lying flat on the ground with someone [who’d been shot and killed] only a couple of metres from me, thinking that that would soon be my fate. I literally thought I was going to die. After the shooting finally ended, I was able to get up and document the event. It was difficult to judge how to cover such a horrific event where numerous people were dead and seriously injured. I tried to be as sensitive as possible and mostly stood quite a long way from the action using my Canon 28-300mm lens. 15 victims were killed and about another 40 wounded. Another photographer at the event was killed.
LP: What do you think is the best way to get your photos noticed by the media?
RM: You need to make sure each image has sufficient information so that it can be used in a media article. For example, include the names of any people, explain what is happening in the photo if it is unclear. Getting photos out quickly is very important.
听尝笔: What鈥檚 your go-to photography equipment?聽
RM: I have just bought the Canon R5 Mark II but haven鈥檛 started using it yet. I currently use the Canon 5D Mark IV (and have the Mark III as back up). Usually I use the 28-300mm lens if I only want to carry one camera body and want a good range and have enough daylight to not need a bigger aperture. If I am shooting with two camera bodies I usually use the Canon 5D Mark IV with the 24-105mm f4 lens and the Canon 7D Mark II with the 70-200mm f2.8 lens.
LP: Any advice for fellow photographers who would like to work within the news sector?
搁惭:听There are lots of newsworthy events that you can cover without needing any sort of press accreditations. Think of regular festivals such as Christmas, Easter and so on. You can also cover protests.聽Aim to send out roughly 20 to 30 images from an event. Sending them out quickly is crucial. Even stop and send out a few of your best photos while the event is still ongoing if possible.
We hope you have found the first of many spotlights for this year interesting and helpful.聽 Check out Richard’s full 17吃瓜在线 collection here and find him on and .聽 Be sure to pop back next month for our next spotlight.