es·ca·la·torby
AlbanyDaveComment by AlbanyDave: OK,
First off, thanks for the comments fellow photon wranglers. And secondly, hold on to your hats 'cuz this is not a short reply.
So here's the thing... I was at
The Egg in Albany (see my
Portrait From Behind Challenge entry) figuring I could grab a shot for
Outside Looking In with the huge egg, and marble and all there, and two weird things happened: first this guy, the guy in my
Portrait entry, suddenly appeared while I was shooting outside
The Egg. He had a camera and tripod and decided not only that he wanted to take some shots but that he didn't give a rat's a$$ where he was in relation to me and my gear. Even though I had been there first and was clearly taking shots which he decided he would put himself into. Kind of like kind he didn't have a clue about any photographic etiquette or just simple civility. He just waddled and plunked himself right in, basically, the middle of my shot which I then had to put on Pause. Turning lemons into lemonade has not been my long suit, but it dawned on me that since he
did have his back to me, I could use him for
Portrait from Behind and, so, that shot materialized out of the ether. I thought it was a fairly decent shot, too, yet there it is, a middlin' 5.0. But I digress...
Anyway, after taking the shot of the photographer in front of the sculpture, by
The Egg, under the moon, surrounded by the other impressive architecture, perfectly in sync with the Challenge theme, I shifted back to
Outside Looking In mode. Moving closer to
The Egg to take some shots of cool sunset reflections in the entry doors and windows, I saw this guy lying on the floor. I got closer, noted he was breathing (I had been a medic in the Army and EMT for a couple of years after that) and appeared to be in no distress. I also saw that he was wearing this kind of orange uniform thing that several other folks milling about inside were also wearing. You can see one of them in the far left hand corner of the shot although that person had on what appeared to be supervisory apparel--slightly different cut than just the vest this guy and a couple of others had on, but basically the same color. Also, since the guy on the floor was next to the escalator in fairly plain sight, apparently none of these other uniformed people thought anything out of the ordinary was going on. So I went ahead capturing some images.
I shot almost forty pics of this guy, about a third with flash. Finally, though, the last one (had to be since I decided it was a good time to leave) startled him into consciousness and he got up. I expected to get yelled at or something as I was walking away but heard nothing.
The next day I was talking to a friend who works for New York State (
The Egg is owned and operated by the state) about the incident. He surmised that the guy was just napping on the job. The orange uniform, he said, was that of the crew of low security prisoners from the local Division of Corrections âshopâ who are assigned to clean up around the facility. And that's that story. Kind of like an MSNBC
Lockup Raw but in still photo mode and totally unplanned and not behind bars. On second thought it's not at all like
Lockup Raw. OK, forget that. Sorry.
So, guys, what do you think? Kinda funny and weird, right? Especially the serendipitous nature of both the
Portrait from Behind thing and also stumbling upon this guy asleep behind a set of doors, perfect for the Challenge I had originally set out to shoot. Neither shot had been planned in any way. The only thing I thought I was going to take was some shots around
The Egg.
Elsewhere, there has been much written regarding code of ethics relating to shooting people in pain or personal tragedy--Susan Sontag, for example, or the NPPA Code of Ethics. With this shot and situation, I feel I was on solid ground. This is a good point to bring up in the comments. The picture, of course, begs this discussion. In taking the shot, and with some medical background, I did, first, evaluate the situation, saw him breathing, appearing to be in no distress, and with others dressed in his garb walking around nearby and judged there to be no need to intervene. That assessment turned out to be confirmed when he woke up and went on his merry way. Funny thing, though, is the picture so mediocre that out of 248 views only five people would comment?
Does anyone know if there is a thread or other reference here in DPC regarding code of ethics vis-Ã -vis shooting persons who may be in need of assistance? The NPPA Code states, âWhile photographing subjects do not intentionally contribute to, alter, or seek to alter or influence eventsâ. That certainly seems open to some interpretation and discussion. What's the word here on this? If there's not a thread, or even if there is one, think it might be worth rehashing?
Photographer found comment helpful.
