[PREV<<<<][FIRST][HOME][>>>>NEXT]
This is my first real foray into exploring the more human side of photography, aside from taking a few self-portraits. I showed this picture to my wife, who works as an RN in a local psychiatric ward at a hospital, and she said he looks like he's talking to himself, and that he looks like a lot of the patients that they get. Well, she's right. He was talking about marathons with some person named Amy. In retrospect, I wish I would have gone up and asked him if I could take his picture. Hiding and taking pictures of him, if he noticed, will probably only complicate his schizophrenia, and was probably insensitive. Not only that, but I probably would have gotten something better if I could have gotten closer.
This is my first real foray into exploring the more human side of photography, aside from taking a few self-portraits. I showed this picture to my wife, who works as an RN in a local psychiatric ward at a hospital, and she said he looks like he's talking to himself, and that he looks like a lot of the patients that they get. Well, she's right. He was talking about marathons with some person named Amy. In retrospect, I wish I would have gone up and asked him if I could take his picture. Hiding and taking pictures of him, if he noticed, will probably only complicate his schizophrenia, and was probably insensitive. Not only that, but I probably would have gotten something better if I could have gotten closer.
4 Comments:
That's hilarious..hiding a taking a picture! Nice work though.
Hope you don't mind, I found you through Miss Ann Thrope and linked you on my site!
Why would I mind? I noticed that, and thanks a lot for linking me!
I just want to add that I know I committed one of the deadliest sins of photography here--the tree is sticking out of his head. I did it intentionally, though, because I thought it added to the sense that this guy's thoughts are kind of messed up. Also worth noting is that his feet aren't quite on the ground, and his eyes are focusing on nothing in particular, which both add to that feeling.
I also want to add that I don't think I'm insensitive to mental illness. I just find this guy to be really interesting, and I'm trying to depict him honestly. I wish I could spend a whole day some time taking pictures of mental patients because I want to show their humanity, their individuality.
Normally I'm of the "street photographer" school of photography, which means that the shapes, shadows, colors, and lighting are paramount and the picture isn't really "of" anything, or at least that's not important. But I don't think you can do that when you explore the human side of things.
Well said! ;)
Post a Comment
[HOME]