Remember

As a slight tangent today, I'd like to take a moment to recognize the 9/11 anniversary. It is a day that will always stand out in my memory and in our nation's history. There's a lot of media coverage for the day so I'll keep it simple and just post a few photos.

After beginning to post lots of general patriotic photos, I realized I had enough images to target a specific theme. 9/11 gave us many heroes ranging from ordinary citizens to members of our military. I think we can all agree that the first responders at ground zero, especially the firefighters, embody this hero spirit more than any other. I'm posting a few firefighter-themed photos to honor these individuals.

This photo, to me, represents the fact that firefighters (and other responders) typically exist unnoticed in the background, stored away somewhere out of sight and out of my mind. But when tragedy strikes they are the first on the scene ready to protect property and lives while risking their own. Thank you.

Boots and coveralls stand ready for a quick exit.

Fittingly enough, here are some photos from the 9/11 memorial in Seattle, WA.

While visiting the memorial and making photos, I heard sirens in the distance. As the ambulance flew by I was able to position myself in time to capture this image. The statue firefighters look on as real-life heroes respond to a call.

In St. Petersburg, a couple watches as a neighbor's house is destroyed by fire.

Firefighters risk their safety on the roof to vent the building. I previously posted these photos to my blog and after going back to see when I took them I realized I posted them on 9/11/2007 as a coincidence.

I haven't seen a lot of the 9/11 coverage today, but I did catch part of the History Channel special "The Day the Towers Fell." This amazing documentary focuses on photographers (amateur and professional) at the scene and includes some truly extraordinary images. There is something about a still image that captures the full emotion of an event more than any other medium (in my opinion). Look out for reruns.

House Fire

Unfortunately, there was a pretty bad house fire a few streets over this past weekend. Smoov J was riding his bike over to hang out on the newly completed deck and heard all the commotion. He saw flames coming out of the windows and it looked pretty bad. It sounded like an event that might make for some strong images, so I grabbed the camera and we headed over. Luckily, the fire department had gotten things under control very quickly. We stuck around for a few minutes and I made a few quick pictures.

This situation presented me with a common photojournalism ethics dilemma. The family that lives in this house was in a neighbor's yard consoling each other. Obviously it was a very difficult time for them. The exterior doesn't look that bad, but I am pretty sure it was a total loss on the inside. I pretty much kept my camera pointed at the trucks and the house, but I kept one eye on the family because that is where the strongest moments are likely to happen. Some neighbors were helping them, bringing them water, etc. I noticed a little neighbor girl walking toward the family with a teddy bear in her hand. Seeing the moment start to take shape, I squatted in the street as discreetly as possible and waited for the action to unfold. Some members of the family realized that I was paying them some attention and it was obvious they wanted none of it. I gestured that I understood and made a point to throw the camera strap over a shoulder. As I walked away I peeked back at that little girl. She walked over to a young girl that lived in the house and handed over the teddy bear as a comforting gift. It was a very touching moment that would have made a very powerful image. Legally speaking, I had every right to photograph that situation, but photojournalists understand that sometimes a line must be drawn based on their perception of what is appropriate at any given time. Getting that picture would not have been worth upsetting members of the family after what they had already been through.

Neighbors comfort each other as they watch the emergency crews get the blaze under control.

I grabbed my mid-wide angle lens so I was forced to get a little creative in my composition since I could not zoom in on the house.

An emergency worker rushes to the house. Of course, I was walking around the truck as he came tearing around the corner, so I didn't have time to frame a shot. I just put the camera to my face and clicked a frame. Ideally, I would have been in the same spot as the above shot so the truck and the house would be featured prominently in the shot. Even as the crews got the fire under control, smoke continued to pour out of the windows.

A brief St. Pete Times article mentions that the Salvation Army is providing support for the family.