Ideology

"Writing the Package" makes a great point about the idea of the story being the first step, then the field work simply a reflection of that. It is important to know the purpose of your story, rather than trying to find one once you have identified a powerful visual. The text of the story then comes from what was actually found at the scene. It is too risky to start with the second or third step. Too often nothing will be found, and a potential story is missed, that would have been seen while researching. Do not confuse research with scripting or staging though. There is a clear difference, one is to ensure accuracy, the other is simply laziness.