When I first moved to Memphis from Chicago, people would say “Really? Why would you want to do that?”
I came for a job, like many of us. I came to Memphis for what I thought would be a year or two.
That was over 30 years ago.
As a young photojournalist, Memphis was one of the best places to be at the time. The Commercial Appeal had a stellar reputation as a fantastic photojournalism paper. While owned by Scripps Howard, it was one of a handful of newspapers in the country that really respected and supported high-level photojournalism.
What does that look like in real life?
It was a newspaper that hired top talent and it gave its staff all the support they needed to produce high-quality work. We had the best equipment; we took our time with each story in a relentless pursuit of the best pictures. Once we captured them, we had brilliant photo editors selecting the perfect images, talented designers laying out pages worthy of lingering over. We were given the space to run large, beautiful photos to share an intimate story in depth. We had exceptional headline writers that would boil the story down to its essence and choose the perfect few words to draw you in.
We won many state and national awards, as a staff and individually. In the days when newspapers were still robust, it was a very desirable place to work.
So, I stayed in Memphis, got married, started a family. I began to enjoy the simpler life away from Chicago. The weather was better, the cost of living was better, the traffic was better; life was just easier, and the people. I loved the kind people.
Things like going out to hear music, attending a festival, or going to the zoo were not giant undertakings like they were in Chicago. I did much more because things were so easy to do here.
From the start I loved the Memphis Zoo.
I loved the animals and the ease of getting around the zoo made it a favorite place for me to visit. As a photographer out looking for pictures on a slow news day, or as a young mother looking for a place to have fun with my children, I’d go to the zoo. I’d take visiting friends or sometimes I’d just go to get in some steps, in a nice and safe atmosphere. It became one of my favorite places to spend time, on and off duty.
During my 25 years at the newspaper, I worked very closely with the zoo, doing photos and stories about the animals, researchers, the vet and zookeepers. I considered it my beat.
Today, I am an independent photojournalist.
My photos have showcased the Memphis Zoo locally and worldwide.
Back then I shot Memphis for Memphis. Now I shoot Memphis not only for Memphis but for the rest of the country and the rest of the world.
One of my most popular photos is a photo of a mother and newborn giraffe nuzzling. It has been going viral for over a decade.
A variety of my zoo photos have been in newspapers and magazines as far away as Sweden, China, Germany, England, Estonia, The Netherlands, Japan, Poland, Africa and South Korea to name a few.
Some of my other Zoo exploits:
- I accompanied the Memphis Zoo on a trip to China and documented them bringing the pandas to Memphis.
- One of my Memphis Zoo panda photos was the cover of Time Magazine for Kids.
- I’ve captured rare giraffe sound in a video that has gotten millions of views and has intrigued researchers.
- I did a story for Memphis Magazine when a zookeeper retired and had to say goodbye to his elephants.
- Some of my pictures from the Memphis Zoo were used in the America 24/7 project where photojournalists across the county documented a week in the life of America. I chose to show what was happening that week at the zoo.
Those are just a few things from over the years. There have been many wonderful stories from the zoo.
I have always been proud of our zoo, which has gotten better and better during my time here.
While at the newspaper, the editors often preferred a bit harder news; but I knew my readers enjoyed my pictures of the animals, and they would let me know. I’d see my photos clipped out and hung up on bulletin boards around town. People would reach out to me for prints or just call to tell me my photo had been a bright spot in their day.
The highlight for me at the zoo was always the zoo babies.
I was blessed to see Baby Winnie the hippo, baby Rowan the orangutan, what is cuter than an awkward baby giraffe? I’ve been lucky enough to photograph endangered baby tigers and snuggling baby jaguars.
It’s not all just about producing adorable baby animals for us to coo over. Conservation efforts by our zoo have reproduced many animals that are endangered and fighting extinction.
It has never been enough for me to just take beautiful photographs. I want to share what I see.
Now, I have put together a collection of my photos that highlight the Memphis Zoo mothers and their babies in a children’s book sold at the Memphis Zoo gift shop, Memphis Zoo Babies. Proceeds from the book are being donated to the zoo.
Karen Pulfer Focht is a freelance photojournalist. She has won numerous awards in her career, many for in-depth projects about children and families in Memphis. Her work is regularly published in newspapers and magazines around the world.
You can also order the book online and see more of Karen’s work on her website @ www.karenpulferfocht.com
She also sells cards that feature Memphis at Novel and Feelin Memphis. (And a few other places around town.)
The zoo gift shop sells her cards and art also of the animals!
Follow her on social at:
Instagram: @karenpulferfocht
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@karenpulferfocht-vids
Twitter/X: @karenfocht
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/KarenPulferFochtPhotojournalist
