>>2905294In terms of photographing riots the first thing to remember, like all assignments, is to capture the atmosphere as close to reality as possible.
For example I'm going to use Corentin Fohlen's World Press Photo Second prize Spot News coverage of the 2010 Bangkok riots.
http://www.worldpressphoto.org/collection/photo/2011/spot-news/corentin-fohlenAs you scroll through his images you'll see how well he's captured the intensity of the violence, the danger encountered by those participated, the heat and sweat of Thailand's weather coupled with toxic smoke that clogged the air, the culture and passion behind the people, etc. - Overall, he well and truly told a story.
In terms of actually taking the photos, to get images that are this raw, you need to be in the thick of action - that means in terms of your safety, you need to be just as vigilant as the rioter's your photographing. Standing and photographing while everyone else ducks for cover is a quick way to get a bullet rip through your skull.
Don't bother fiddling with your camera in Manual - this isn't Photography class, you don't have to prove how well you know your light to shutter speed predictions - chuck your camera in AV and stop thinking about the camera.
