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Jim Richardson
Hatteberg's People
Reporter: Larry Hatteberg
| May 16, 2004--On Hatteberg’s People, two covers this month on National Geographic, all taken by a Kansas Photojournalist.
He is Jim Richardson who for years, has been one of National Geographic’s best.
He travels all over the world, yet lives in Lindsborg. |
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“When you see all those buffalo going up over the hills in the grass in the evening in South Dakota, you know that is quite a lovely thing to see.” |
Jim Richardson has seen quite a few lovely things in his career. He is one of National Geographic’s best photojournalists --- producing pictures from all over the world. Pictures that become frozen moments of history. |
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“You can go out every day and take good pictures, but once in a while you’re standing in front of something and my gosh, this is something pretty special. I can’t take all the credit for it. I go to a lot of work to get to that place of standing in front of the right thing. Then, every once in a while, it happens.”
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Richardson could live anywhere in the world…yet he is most comfortable in Lindsborg Kansas chatting with friends about the meaning of life.
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In this little close-knit Swedish community Jim and his wife own a Gallery in Lindsborg…and when Jim is not traveling for National Geographic --- he surrounded by pictures that come alive with memories.
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“Pretty soon there was a wall of fire behind them….it was dramatic as heck….just wonderful.”
In this issue of National Geographic, Jim has two major picture
stories….the great plains….and Cuba Kansas. A town he has spent the
last 30 years documenting…and has produced an incredible historic
document of small town life.
“The Cuba, Kansas piece gave us a chance to really look at a place that
if you had no other way of evaluating it besides the census data, you
would say, these places are doomed, yet they aren’t because something
else is going on that the census data doesn’t reveal.
You have these people there who are dedicated to the place, who understand it, who know how to make community happen and when they virtually nothing to make it out of and they are very talented at being a community.”
One of my favorite pictures from Cuba Kansas is this picture of Betty Klaumann and her geese.
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“I looked a the geese and they were several months old and I said Betty what happened to last years geese? She said: “Oh we ate them, they are so good you know.” |
Extraordinarily gifted, Jim Richardson is a Kansan whose work makes people think about the Midwest…worldwide. |
“Beyond the ego, then there is this deep satisfaction of being able to bring to folks these pictures and get them to watch it for just a little bit maybe, and pay attention.”
In Lindsborg…I’m Larry Hatteberg. |
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Pictures courtesy National Georgraphic Magazine.
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Larry’s Note: Jim Richardson’s gallery is located at 204 N. Main in Lindsborg, Kansas.
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