The magical power of a photo

So what is the magic of photography and what of the magic in the first image I saw?  Perhaps not the first image, but the first I can remember was from a family album.  Simple remembrance of past experience that binds us together, there is something sacred in there.  And the simple seeing of a likeness of me – “So that is what I look like.” 

It was only at second glance that this image made it into my selection.  It speaks of connections and the amazing power photography has over us all.  On one level our entire experience of the world has been transformed by the existence of photography – we can understand pretty much anything by looking at a photo and before photography our experience of the world was limited to the things we could experience first hand. 

Photography may bring us secondhand information but it is the only art form that has the potential to reveal things that can be accepted as fact.  Sure there are many other art forms but nothing has the ability to capture reality like a photograph, it makes photography unique and it is deeply ironic that so many images are edited to look like art, they trade in the most potent aspect of the original image.  

The first professional photos that caught my attention captured a harsh reality.  They were in a series by FSA (Farm Security Administration) photographers sent out to capture the plight of those struggling through the dust bowl of the 1930’s.  Photographers like Walker Evans and Dorothea Lange captured the heart and soul of people who did not know if they were going to survive.  The photos said it all.  They captured an emotion that cut to the core and moved people to action.  No need for words.

And as for this image?  It is simple – it captures the magic of seeing a likeness.  It is the same likeness that binds us all together. 

World Refugee Day

This photograph was taken on a rainy day – in fact when I left Beirut the rain was torrential, it seemed madness to set off to photograph a refugee camp on a day like this.   But it was the best day to capture what life is really like for these people.  The day before had been sunny, not only would the light have been harsh, everyone and the whole situation would have looked bright.  But the future for these people is anything but bright.  They may want to return home but the armed struggle and rise of ISIS makes this little more than a dream.  The light was perfect and the pictures tell the story, sure I got soaked through to the skin, my camera too – but this is what we must do if we want others to see what life is like for those living on the edge of survival. 

Each year in June, World Refugee Day marks another time to remember and act on behalf of refugees.  Worldwide over 40 million are displaced from their homes, mostly as a result of conflict.  When I met Syrian refugees last year everyone said they wanted to return home.  For them life is marked by three things, trauma, fear and the struggle to survive.  Syria accounts for about 9 million displaced people but we have been hearing many other stories.  Thousands escaping from North Africa – and then in Nepal after the earthquake in April this year, 8,000 dead and 2.8 million displaced.  Five years on from the devastating earthquake in Haiti, of the 1.5 million who were initially displaced 85,000 are still living in temporary shelter. 

This is a day to step up and make a difference, it may not solve the problem but it will make a difference.  Don't forget and let your voice be heard.

http://www.unhcr.org/refugeeday/us/

How far should we go?

Within the world of photography there is a clear divide between straight photography and the pictorialists.  One holds never to manipulate an image and the other to distort it out of reality.  For me this is a difficult line.   When an image becomes a piece of art does it change the reality of the struggles of those in it?  Not always, becomes my answer.  Now, if we remove vital details for sure it crosses the line, but if the image becomes more compelling, more striking, has more emotional impact without changing the reality then I think it is worth it.

This image of Syrian refugees was in my mind before I left home – that I found it was an amazing moment.  The girl in the foreground is Miriam.  After a bombing raid she had been injured in the face and when this photo was taken the doctors had just observed that she could smile again.  As refugees, the family long to return home to their farm and live in peace, but there is still no end in sight for this ongoing conflict leaving over nine million displaced from their homes.

Now, for me the question, 'How far should we go?' is compelling for another reason too.  I remember a story I once heard about two sons.  They were both asked by their father to go out and do some work.  One said, “Sure Dad, you’ve got it.”  The other was not enthusiastic and said so.  And so the story unfolds, the one with the positive words got distracted and never got to the task, but the other quietly got to it and worked hard until the job was complete.  We all know that words are cheap and that it is what we do that matters.  And so I ask this question first to myself.  I hope my answer always remains the same, "To the ends of the earth, Dad.”      

Getting Beneath the Skin

It’s been while since my last post, hopefully I will get back in the flow and my plan is to write about a single image. 

Getting beneath the skin is a difficult task, the kind of thing that we hear photographers speaking about but without a clear idea of how to get there.  It speaks of our quest for the truth in photographs, and given that photography is the only art medium that allows us to capture reality, this is no small thing to squander. 

My goal in this photograph was simple, to answer the question, ‘How does she feel when I am not there?’  The photograph itself gives the answer.  It comes from a clear working method.  

Now, one of the reasons I love National Geographic is that it is a picture driven publication.  Most of their photographers take thousands of images and a part of this is that the camera itself is the tool of exploration.  On a trip to Lebanon I found myself shooting on the street with a discreet camera, observing people going about their business, a couple sitting in a crowded café or, as on one occasion, in a coffee shop where on one table there were two young friends in modern clothes, chatting about the day, on the next table old friends in traditional clothing.  Times are changing and it is this kind of image that allows us to see how.

Sebastião Salgado remains one of my photographic hero’s and many years ago he spoke about the need to detach from preconceived notions of a situation to really be able to explore and understand.  I have never had much extra time to spend while on assignment, there has always been the pressure to hit the ground and start shooting.  Within this I developed a method of question and answer.  I ask myself a question and seek out the answer with my camera.  I have a standard set of questions, the two most important are, ‘What is it like when I am not here with my camera?’ and, ‘What is the most important thing in the lives of the people I am photographing?’  I have found the results always bring home the bacon and help me get beneath the skin with the story that really matters.

REPORT BACK: West Africa Food Crisis, Mali 2012

Long Road to Normal:  Mali 2012

As the food crisis continues across West Africa Mali faces a double challenge.

Jihadist rebels have taken over the North and the local population, both Moslems and Christians are at risk of violence and death, not only from starvation but now also at the hands of the rebels.   

Sisly Niaga is blind but along with six others he was able to escape.  He walked three days and three nights, with just a bottle of water and eating nothing.  He spoke of acts of violence against women and his sister Miriam, and other atrocities.  He called the rebels devils. 

Sisly is now in Bamako, the capital of Mali, and he is safe.  But for the most vulnerable, the young and elderly, those unable to make the journey - they now face the unthinkable.

But there is the possibility of hope for these people.  The Red Cross in Mali has plans to transport and distribute 312 metric tonnes of rice over the next three months, until the next harvest. 

They will cross rebel lines and risk everything to save these people.  But, as in the words of Aboul Cisse, the president of the Red Cross in Mali, “If they do not get this aid they face a catastrophe, people will die of hunger.”

Each one of us can continue to help.  By giving the little we can we will know we have done our part for this crisis.  We will pass on 100% of your gift to the Red Cross in Mali.

Donations can be made to:  Community Partnership/Sahel, PO Box 2172, Clayton, GA 30525, USA

On behalf of the people in Mali, thank you. 

Success

I met Margaret late in the afternoon while taking a walk through the slums behind my accommodations in Kenya.  I was with a group of three or four others and she was preparing an evening meal for her grandchildren.  It was the only meal for the day, hot cocoa prepared over an open fire in the street.  The mugs were not clean, they were chipped – not the kind of thing you want to serve to a guest.  But there was no place for pride here as Margaret filled our mugs with hot cocoa, to the brim and overflowing. 

It can be amazing how the little things can have the most impact and measuring the success of our lives can be a precarious thing.  The fact is that the best thing we ever do could be quite insignificant in our own eyes.  It may be that we reached out to another at just the right time, perhaps we wrote a card to someone and this simple act made all the difference.  It may be that we sacrificed to ensure our child went to a good school and had the opportunity we could never experience, which led them to a great act.  My money is on taking hold of the opportunities, at least with the intent to make the best of every one.  And on this day it was Margaret who took hold of an opportunity.  She became my teacher and gave me an object lesson in generosity, faith and the importance of being connected.    

© Copyright Jim Loring.  No reproduction without permission.

This blog is a response to the needs I see.  My plan is to find grassroots projects that are addressing both the root causes and immediate needs of those living in extreme poverty.  I will pass on 100% of any gift given to help.

Checks should be made payable to ‘Community Partnership of Rabun’, marked ‘MyWorld/Haiti’ and sent to Community Partnership/MyWorld, 196 Ridgecrest Circle, Clayton, GA 30525, USA 

Thanks!   

The Antidote, Part II

As a photojournalist I want my images to help us bridge the gap, make a connection and understand the diversity of other cultures.  And I want to get beneath the skin of my subject, bringing back images that reflect how people really feel about their daily lives and not merely to record their meeting with a westerner. 

My approach is to ask myself questions and seek out images that answer these questions.  How do these people feel about their predicament?  What are their hopes?  How do they think they are going to move forward?

My travels have taken me to many parts of the world with hard hitting subject matter.  There have been many adventures and many lessons learned.  That we all share so many of the same struggles and joys.  Love for our children, the need for work and an education, the need for peace.  Observing suffering creates a unique blend of reactions – it has for me anyway.  Guilt is in there but mostly it is a sense of responsibility to do justice to the stories of those I have photographed.  I hope my images inspire us all to work toward a better future for everyone in the world.  Like it or not, our futures are linked, surely we know this after experiencing the failure of the world economy, we all suffer. 

The antidote may be hard but it is often simple – a helping hand to those who are doing everything in their power to help themselves.   The chance of an education where there is no access to education.  The chance of work where there is no work.  Safeguarding the supply of food where there is no food.  Access to healthcare where there is no healthcare.  Clean water to places that have no supply of clean water.  You get the picture – but really it needs more than words, and more than photos.  It needs a touch of the heart before we can really make a difference.  And making a difference is the thing I am most interested in.  Reaching the point where there is genuine connection that changes the way we think and the way we act.  

 © Copyright Jim Loring.  No reproduction without permission.

This blog is a response to the needs I see.  My plan is to find grassroots projects that are addressing both the root causes and immediate needs of those living in extreme poverty.  I will pass on 100% of any gift given to help.

Checks should be made payable to ‘Community Partnership of Rabun’, marked ‘MyWorld/Haiti’ and sent to Community Partnership/MyWorld, 196 Ridgecrest Circle, Clayton, GA 30525, USA 

Thanks!   

© Photo copyright Jim Loring.  No reproduction without permission.