The DVIDS Journalist of the Month, Cpl. Michael Petersheim, shoots past other journalists during September with his photography covering training in Djibouti for the 24th Marine Expeditionary Unit.

With 10,706 views more

The DVIDS Journalist of the Month, Cpl. Michael Petersheim, shoots past other journalists during September with his photography covering training in Djibouti for the 24th Marine Expeditionary Unit.

With 10,706 views for the month, Petersheim's photos have more views than photos of any other journalist, who submitted to DVIDS during the month. The next closest journalist has 3,200 fewer views. His photos have not just been viewed more, they have been downloaded 1,055 times and picked up by the media more times than the photos by other military journalists.

Why is his photography catching so much attention? His photography skills and the way he frames his subjects are the primary reasons.

In one of his photos of an otherwise routine military event, he shows a different view of the marksmanship training -- the view through the lens of a scout sniper observation telescope. Disregarding the pun, it's a "great shot," just as a comment on DVIDS Flickr photostream said.

Another photo from the same gallery includes a photo of Lance Cpl. Martin Williams, an automatic rifleman, firing a M-249 Squad Automatic Weapon. More than 3,900 people have seen it on Facebook. The way he sets up the photo makes it a appear less like a training exercise and more like it could be a scene pulled from a gallery of Afghanistan photos. Petersheim continues to give the 24th MEU training in Djibouti a more live-action feel throughout his images.

In a gallery of photos dubbed a "Gas station in the Sky," he helps show Marine aircraft from a variety of angles, including a Marine leaning out the back of a KC-130J Hercules for a peek at the refueling mission with an MV-22B Osprey.

The way Petersheim sets up his photos is just one example of his photography skill. He is also adept at using depth of field to highlight his subjects and make his images stand out.

Petersheim's ability to freeze the emotion of the troops he photographs also helps capture attention. For example, because of the emotion captured in his photo of Lance Cpl. Kevin Midgley, DVIDS shared it on Facebook. More than 3,400 people have seen the image on Facebook, and it has 111 likes.

Besides the emotion in his subjects' faces, Petersheim also increases the focus on his photographs by including the unusual, like his photo of a camel crossing the path with 1st Lt. Michael Moore in Djibouti.

By using his photography skill to document the story of the 24th MEU, he elevates the mission of his unit to more people.

"Cpl. Petersheim has been invaluable to the overall mission of the 24th Marine Expeditionary Unit's Communication Strategy Team," said Capt. Rob Shuford. "His ability to seamlessly integrate with the various units of the 24th MEU and consistently provide superb imagery support for a myriad of missions has helped highlight the flexible, multi-faceted capabilities of the 24th MEU to a variety of audiences world-wide."

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