| Author | Thread |
|
|
05/30/2008 01:38:33 PM · #1 |
Changing Iraq one picture at a time.
Comments?
I'll give this 10 posts until someone goes off on an anti-US tirade, people stop discussing the images and what impact they have, this thread devolves into another pointless debate on the war and gets moved to rant. I hope I'm wrong, but I kinda doubt it. |
|
|
|
05/30/2008 01:47:54 PM · #2 |
It's hard to respond to this except by discussing what "we" are doing there as contrasted to what "he" is doing there (taking the pictures I mean), and such discussion automatically breaks your rules. So I will refrain.
R.
|
|
|
|
05/30/2008 01:48:50 PM · #3 |
People, not unlike you and I. Really a fresh look at Iraq and it impacts me to see their smiles in what is a not so happy situation. Gives perspective to my life--maybe little troubles like $4 gas aren't so bad after all.
eta-- not sure about the impact of the pictures, at least beyond the personal level.
Message edited by author 2008-05-30 13:49:48. |
|
|
|
05/30/2008 01:50:23 PM · #4 |
| Due to reading at work, cannot access the entire story, but the images...beautiful and haunting some of them. I've a PAO friend stationed at Speicher right now and throughout his various deployments, he's taken photographs of the locals and it's a universal thing. Everyone loves to see themselves in photographs. These are beautiful shots! It's so awesome that he takes these shots and then gives the subjects a copy of the photograph. What a great jesture. I'll look at the entire story tonight when I get home. Thanks for sharing.... |
|
|
|
05/30/2008 01:57:18 PM · #5 |
| It can only be good to see how beautiful other people are. |
|
|
|
05/30/2008 02:37:19 PM · #6 |
Like Bear says it is pretty tough to separate the two issues, impact of photos and the war itself.
However, with the mind set that I'm only seeing his small vision of Iraq through his own filters then I can enjoy looking at the photos. It is always good to humanize people involved in conflict and see that we all have common ground. I'm also always amazed how people from the most depressing of circumstance can still enjoy life, at least to the limits of their surroundings.
As for his photos changing Iraq one photo at a time I would doubt it has any significant impact other than his own sense of worth and the momentary joy it brings the people he shares them with.
|
|
|
|
05/30/2008 02:40:53 PM · #7 |
| Its a hard subject to talk about without breaking your rules, however I have seen both sides and will try not to break the rules. i used to be a navy combat photographer, the last time I was in or around Iraq was in the early 90's. Back then we never saw the real Iraq and all that goes on everyday for "normal" citizens. The one thing that they and all people have in common with one another is that no matter how horrible things look, there is always love. I know sounds corny as hell, but true. I find it facinating that he is just a normal GI with a camera doing something he enjoys and is willing to share with the people whose country we've become involved with. The article states that he has become famous and villagers will come out in there best cloths just to get him to take their photos. For many of them it will be the only photo of family they will ever have. Recently, i was shooting an event here at work and was asked if I could do a family portrait of an Iraqi family that had been resettled her in the US. They spoke no english and their youngest was terrified of everything. With camera in hand, and using no words I expressed what I wanted to do and then got down to the childs level and showed him some shots on the LCD. That was the ice breaker. Once the shot was taken, i again got down on one knee to show the family but more importantly to me to show the child what I had done for them. The smile on that child face will live with me forever. the gratitude and tears I shared with this family, again will stay with me forever. For me it was a way to give back something that I was at one time apart of taking from them. They came to the US with only the clothes on their backs. The photos I took of them are now hanging in their apt. and they are so proud of them, they were never allowed to have such things in Iraq. So, my hats off to the Sgt. may we all learn to open our hearts to others in need the way he has. |
|
|
|
05/30/2008 02:45:47 PM · #8 |
Originally posted by jbsmithana:
As for his photos changing Iraq one photo at a time I would doubt it has any significant impact other than his own sense of worth and the momentary joy it brings the people he shares them with. |
You think the photos he gives to the families will have no lasting impact on those people? Keep in mind that, as the article says, these people rarely have any photographs of themselves or family members. The value of a family member's image for you may be so diluted since you likely have hundreds or thousands of them and can easily get more. I'd say that these simple (to us anyway) photographs are more likely to be cherished objects the way dageurrotypes were for people in the US in the late 1800's. |
|
|
|
05/30/2008 02:55:25 PM · #9 |
It is quite interesting that people in these communities have such a grand appreciation for receiving a picture or even being photographed.
Sharbat Gula (the famous "Afgan Girl" from the cover of National Geographic) commented she distinctly remembers being photographed...because that was the only time in her life that it had happened. And that was 15 years earlier...
//en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sharbat_Gula
|
|
|
|
05/30/2008 03:16:58 PM · #10 |
Originally posted by Spazmo99:
Originally posted by jbsmithana:
As for his photos changing Iraq one photo at a time I would doubt it has any significant impact other than his own sense of worth and the momentary joy it brings the people he shares them with. |
You think the photos he gives to the families will have no lasting impact on those people? Keep in mind that, as the article says, these people rarely have any photographs of themselves or family members. The value of a family member's image for you may be so diluted since you likely have hundreds or thousands of them and can easily get more. I'd say that these simple (to us anyway) photographs are more likely to be cherished objects the way dageurrotypes were for people in the US in the late 1800's. |
I agree. Maybe I was a bit short on my answer and should not have used the term momentary. The photos he shares with the families obviously would become treasures for them. It is a good thing he is doing. I was speaking in the broader context of the war and making any significant change in Iraq itself. But I do belive that we each choose what type of interaction we will have with our fellow man and he is chosing the right path. I just wish we could say that in the broader context.
Message edited by author 2008-05-30 15:17:22. |
|
|
|
05/30/2008 03:18:36 PM · #11 |
Originally posted by jbsmithana:
Originally posted by Spazmo99:
Originally posted by jbsmithana:
As for his photos changing Iraq one photo at a time I would doubt it has any significant impact other than his own sense of worth and the momentary joy it brings the people he shares them with. |
You think the photos he gives to the families will have no lasting impact on those people? Keep in mind that, as the article says, these people rarely have any photographs of themselves or family members. The value of a family member's image for you may be so diluted since you likely have hundreds or thousands of them and can easily get more. I'd say that these simple (to us anyway) photographs are more likely to be cherished objects the way dageurrotypes were for people in the US in the late 1800's. |
I agree. Maybe I was a bit short on my answer and should not have used the term momentary. The photos he shares with the families obviously would become treasures for them. It is a good thing he is doing. I was speaking in the broader context of the war and making any significant change in Iraq itself. But I do belive that we each choose what type of interaction we will have with our fellow man and he is chosing the right path. I just wish we could say that in the broader context. |
True, but big changes often start off as many small changes. |
|
|
|
05/30/2008 04:09:42 PM · #12 |
It is my humble opinion that this man is connecting with the Iraqi people on a human level. His service and actions go way beyond what we will ever read or see in these photos. I think that it is an amazing thing that he is doing and wish him the best and safe travels. Sometimes the smallest actions are bigger than any of us can ever imagine, I'm sure that this man's actions, however "small" or meaningless some of us may think they are, will change someone's life forever.
My hats off to you Sgt. Cox.
|
|
|
|
05/30/2008 05:16:16 PM · #13 |
| I like the idea of promoting peaceful relations with other countries in personal ways. I'm reminded of this book I recently saw discussed (I hope this link to Amazon works): The Candy Bombers: The Untold Story of the Berlin Airlift and America's Finest Hour. |
|
|
|
05/30/2008 06:37:18 PM · #14 |
| In case no one clicked, the images are available after 2 clicks in a huge size. Interesting windows into that soldiers travels. I noticed that many of the children are wearing clothes that have words in English on them. Made me wonder how throughly western culture has penetrated their culture. Or maybe these particular children are being assisted by the various troops that are in country. Thanks for posting the URL Spaz Man. |
|
|
|
05/30/2008 07:27:31 PM · #15 |
I used to travel (often to the third world) with a girl who would bring both her DSLR and a Polaroid. She shot the DSLR for her self and would hand out the Polaroid shots to the people she photographed.
The people to whom she gave the photographs greatly appreciated and cherished the pictures, but I still do not believe that the pictures changed their lives. Made the people happier, yes. It's a wonderful idea, but not life-changing.
The article said, "...it was clear to me that Cox was capturing through his lens, the humanity that is often lacking in our coverage of Iraq." Funny how that by "humanity" they mean "children." How are pictures of people (adults) living in a bombed-out city during a war lacking humanity compared to pictures of people (children) living a halfway-normal, albeit a very poor life in the countryside during a war? They are basically saying that his pictures have more worth because they show the calmer, less war-torn (aka: closer to what most of us are accustomed to living in) side of life in Iraq. I think what the article meant is that it is easier for westerners to look at pictures of smiling poor children than it is to look at pictures of injured adults. Both contain humanity. One is just a more preferred form of humanity than the other.
Please note that this post is not anti-US, just anti- the presentation of the article. |
|
|
|
05/30/2008 09:24:15 PM · #16 |
Theres quite a bit of this that goes on behind the scenes so to speak. I had a friend over there that is a great CG artist and has worked in some of the best VFX studios and is a reservist in the US. He organized a couple times where he got some of these VFX studios ( Blur Studios was one of the largest donators ) to send over a couple hundred packs at a time full of books to write in and coloured pencils and basic school supplies and the like to Iraq to donate to the children I have quite a few photos and videos of some of the things he did over there. I'm not naming names ATM, but if there's interest Ill see if I can get permission to post them some where for others to see...
|
|
Home -
Challenges -
Community -
League -
Photos -
Cameras -
Lenses -
Learn -
Help -
Terms of Use -
Privacy -
Top ^
DPChallenge, and website content and design, Copyright © 2001-2025 Challenging Technologies, LLC.
All digital photo copyrights belong to the photographers and may not be used without permission.
Current Server Time: 08/25/2025 05:40:05 AM EDT.
