Something Different

I'm tired of whining about being tired. Need to talk about something else for a change.

American Photo magazine has a great feature right now on Heroes of Photography. At first I wondered what on earth it could mean, but looking through the bios of the people they chose, it's a mix of people who have shown personal courage in continuing their careers despite obstacles and those who have used their cameras to expose injustice in the world.

The one who caught my eye is Hazel Thompson, a British photojournalist who recently shot the conditions in Philippine children's prisons. The images are striking and heartbreaking. The picture at the top of this blog is hers (and yes, those are kids in prison).

What kept my attention longer was a set of photo essays she's done called "Modern Day Crusaders". This series includes Christian Bikers in the US, cowboy church, surfer outreach projects, hip hop church and the 24/7 prayer team doing outreach in the clubs in Ibiza, Spain.

How very cool to find someone who blends their faith with the passion for photography to expose injustice and to record some of the most interesting areas of missions in our world.

Definitely check out her pictures. She's now among my top 10 photographers.

A Thousand Words

Though in a crisis moment everyone tends to turn on the tv to see video of events and hear the latest information, I've always felt that still photos do a better job of capturing emotion and creating the lasting image of events. When I think of 9/11 or Hurricane Katrina, it's the still photos that I remember. Video conveys the immediacy, but it's usually franetic and often comes with audio commentary that later proves to be wrong or caught up in the emotion of the moment.

I may be biased because of my own love for photography, but I think it's the photojournalists who really preserve history for us and help us understand tragedy. The talking heads on television end up becoming a blur. As usual, it's the photographs coming out today that have made me cry. The best photo essay I've found is from Time. I think the photos express what even 1000 words could not capture.