PAGE 2 4, THURSDAY, JANUARY 25, 1972, WHITBY FREE PRESS, Photograph by-Alex Kainins.. ..credit where credit 0 's due -by Judy Durkee, News Editor A customary pocketful of stale cookies is just one of the many eccentricities that makes photographer - writer Alex Kaînins the unusual char- acter ho is. Soi-e trade quirks, liko an over-stuffed shopping bag of laundry parked at the foot of his sometimies-typewriter ini Canadian ncwspaper offices, cani be attributed to Alex, the bachelor. Others, such as appearing wildly dishcvcled ini pyjamas at the scene of an early morn- ing fire, can be attributed to Alex Kaînins, press photo- grapher. He's been thrown out of newspaper offices across North Amnerica-and gone out on assigniments for some of the same newspapers only days later. He 's pcrsevered at the scene of activity long after ail others have Ieft, driven by a sheer sense of stubborness alone, and can be fouind inost weekends at the office of the Toronto Sun or Whitby Froc Press complote with stale cookies, billowing laundry, or bot. But shrcwd editors will take Kainins, cookies, laun- dry, pj's and ail, because des- pite ail character quirks hie's a danced good photographer, in fact onie of the best ini this a rca. To date. Kaînins lias had his pho tographs d isplayed on thc front page of' the former Toronto Telograin, in the Newv York Tines, the NiaiiFier- aId, Toron te Daily Star. Mon- treal Star, the Globe and Mail and mnost rccently un Uic front pages and ini the Toronto Sun's popular conter spread. He's traveled on assign- monts hiaîf way arourid the world and back, has been tossed out on his car by dis- gruntied editors only to go back a few days later with a fre sh and more enthused approach. So Kainins in the richest sense of the phrase, "hias been arouii. One thing that seerns to have clung througlhout hiis years in gctting to the top is his remnarkable perseverance, whichi Alex personally con- siders the whole kcy to uiews phiotography. 1I just neyer give tip," hoe says. "Sonmetinies if an editor tells you to get lost, ilt may bc hie's just hiaving anl off day. It doesn't inecessaýýrily nmean lies nlot inîpressed witlî ymir work. litnfac t. Soict unies lie mnay not even bother lookîng at your work bccause hce's simiply niot in the iiiood." Speaking about editors, disgrunitled and othcîwise, hie's iniet just about thein al ini both Canada and the U.S. The nîiost differen t editoi, hie knows, hoe readily dubs oni Ed Monteith. Managing E'di- tor of the Toronto Sun. "1 would caîl hin icenîost dif- feront ini a vcry pleasanit senise," says Alex, "and that is one noever finds him thie saine. Ho cari give nie a job froin his office, mecet mie at the bottomn of the stairs, or phono to wake mie up quite nonchalantly in thc wee liours of the nliorning. But, above ail, Ed knows his job and demionstrates suchi infinite versatiîity. Editor Mon reithi is îlot the type wlio lias to run about telliingcverybody abot his importance as an editor. Fie decsn't hiave te. Lvervonie kniows it. 'lhoiercgular staff and frec lance people cani't hielp) but respect anid admire -Cenipard tively speak ing. at the Toren te Star one rarelv gets te sec the maniaginig cdi- tor. You'll bc refcrred te a city editor whuos aIse invari- ably busy. A letter asking for an appoiintit could take wecks in cffccting a writicon responise, and your assignimnlt and enthusiasm will have diim- inishied by thaï.ttune." "in my estimation, a good editor is nover too busy to see anybody. One neyer knows, besides that is his job, Alex displays photographic drame in this photo, from his coll- ection called, 'The Strong Arms of the Law'. assessing featurcs and phloto)s' But front page phiotos on miajor North Ameirican ncws- papers is il long way l'roll' Alex's bcginning aýs a photo- grapher. Froni tiere on 1illoved t() the Ot tawaiJou rn ai w e re 1Ian d- cd ajol)as a pio t cgra pli er a nd writec." "Nex t, I wenît lî work for a nmajor vomit re.-l comm ercialI one rarely sees Alex without a camera and as can be seen here, sometimes with'out several cameras. 1atvian - hein. Gerinan raised Alex Kaîins camie te Caniada wlîoîî lie was1I(), a fte r a ycar of "ýobserviig" Paris. in thoso days lic was at- tending Rycrsen iun the evenings t'or business adinîii- St ration. "I pickcd tmp a hiabit of study ing nmagazines and newspapors, nîost partictilarly for their phiotographic dis- plays," hoe recalîs. "In my Toronto apartmient you could always find newspapcrs and magazines of every description by the stacks. Iii comparison to what 1 liad seen ini Europe, 1 found their quality poor. 1 remnembor thinking that there must bo roomi for somneone with imnaginationi, and 1 began taking pictures. Quite acci- dciitally 1 ran iflt() a city cdi- tor hy the naine of Bob Turn- bull, now Travel Editoir at thie Globe & Mail. If I should thank anybody for any breaks 1 got in get ting int this field, il would have to be Turnbull. 1 subnnitted semie accident photos. 1le saw tleic and the groy old Globe acceptcd itheni at $5 a picture. In tthose days ( 15 years ago) I thioughit thiat was big inoney." "Although i1 realized a need for miuch more experience, it was thon I realized that jour- nalisrn and îîot business ad- rnînîstratîLi was my bag." "T'he first opportunity I had for a fuiltiime job relating Io) journalisin was with a Thîomson nowspaper in Tini- mins. That's wlhere 1 began to lcarn basic writing and picture taking througli that old pro- cess, known as trial and error. that 1 learnled thicteclmn ical side et pheotegraphy, dcvclep- ing and prînting. Tis coin- pany hiad a cenitract withi the Mentreal Star. and subh- .equently. I began submitting pictures to thieni." 0f all tic newspapers withi whîcli Alex lias been con- nccted, lie says lie rememibers bost the Thomson chai, be- cause "thiey are the stingiest lot." lHe substantiates this by explaining that working con- ditions arc prettý' poor by any standards. For instance, hie says, in Timmins he put i n about 14 Iîours a day for the princcly suin of $70 weekly. There were no expenses and cabs and cven emergencies were out of the question, he said, cxplaining that employ- ecs could use a company car on assignimcnt, but that there wcrc usually fîve staff incm- bers waiting for it before you. lus experience with the Thomson chain dates back fiftecn ycars ago, "but from what 1 can tell things haven't inmproved niuch," Alex says. ln ail fairness to the Thom- son newspapcrs, hie says, thero arc 110 gencrous newspapers in Canada, but there are some ini the United States. lHc cites the Miamni Herald as a prime example where the purse strings are a little more flexible. They will feature both black and white and colour. In Canada this would be an unusual thing, hie cx- plains. The New York Times is another newspapcr that he considers is a pleasurable place to work. 1 find with most Amlerican ncwspapers an en- terprising free-lance photo- grapher or writer has only to present a good idea to the editor. Having donc so with the New York Times for ex- anmple, lie found imself ini London. England, for a full- page travel feature. Having been in newspaper ut l'ices across Canada and the Uinited States, Alex lias met nianv e)*t the better known wrllitor's and coluimniits. XVhen asked xlo hoe\vould consider niost colortul , hliimiediately tltlghr t t'Jean lSuiten (Fa- shien editer) and Paul Rini- stead (celuinnist), both of the Tronto Sun. Joan Su t ton, according to Kaîins turned uip at the Sun's newsroom omie Sunday after- noomi last year wearîflg only a bikini. "h was a jazzcd up version and she made a fan- tastic scerie arnîdst A the re- porters and photographers.- Ail hands on deck, ho ex- The oîd and the new. Toronto City Hall Iooms lots now occupied by the Four Seasons Hotell. plained and more specifically the maie reporters stopped typing their copy and just blinked away. About the inimatable Rim- stead he said, "At the mo- ment I'd go so far as to say he's defînitely the most off- beat newspaper character in Canada. He does everything, contrary to accepted newspaper principles, but he stili manages to corne out on top. He just can't stand dis- cipline, but then too much discipline inevitably stifles creativity. The Sun seems to be one newspaper that under- stands this and I would say, despite Rimstead's unortho- dox ways, the paper benefits by his character." As a free-lance photo- grapher Alex has worked on hundreds of assignments and has shot literally thousands of photos. lncluded in one of his most bizarre assignments is the ex- plosion covered for the Tor- onto Telegram. "The explosion was in Scarborough and not too far froni my apartment," he re- layed. "I was the first photo- grapher on the scene, before police could manage to close off the area for public safety. It was an impressive sight witli oi barrels expioding in the air. At one point, I was so close to the action that the explosion shiook mny camera. Taken at a slow speed, it showed on the film and it mnade suchi a spectacular shot that the Tely featured it as a six coin mn front page photo the following day. At the tie 1 didn't thiink of the potential danger to myseif. Thiese hiuge tlimes were soar- ing hutndrcds of feet; it was like a front row seat to a live draina - unbeliovable!" Another incident as biz- arre says Alex was Kruschev's first visit to the United Na- tions in New York. It was the most massive security 1 have ever encountered in my work. To get even close to the Soviet Premier 1 was frisked about fifty times de- spite my specially issued press starkly in the background across rubble-strewn