Forum 5

"It's What I Do" - Lynsey Addario

The sights she is able to see and capture are really rare to the average human eye. Traveling through the desert without enough water when they knew they had left canteens in their truck, arriving at their destination only to be greeted by brutally beaten women, willing and grateful to tell their stories of grief and massacre, a city with a woman with the only pot in the community, and a living toilet along the outskirts in the shade- most wouldn't dare to get their mind so opened to the human experiences, but she admirably jumps right in alongside the soldiers, the women, and alone.

Lynsey's adventures through life behind the camera, to me, hold such a potent energy of raw, feminine, curiosity and independence. Her ability to shape shift into an effective energy in different situations, seems to be one of her most influential skills aside from her photography presence. When they were traveling to Fallujah and they were stopped and taken as prisoners, she was able to use her stereotyped femininity of "concerned and fearful" to her groups advantage. Changing her attire based on the situations also seem to be a proper way to move about more comfortably and wisely. Luckily she had worn her abaya on their travels that day so she could hide their American passports in her underwear easily.

I enjoyed the photos in this section of the bit more than the others. They seem to hold a deeper potency, perhaps she is more comfortable behind her camera now, able to step into the peoples groups with more of a sense of purpose. At one point she comments about how people in the states had started offering her money for her photos, and how this originally confused her, making her second guess her final decision. I think her move towards evaluating her purpose behind revealing her photos, and finalizing on that if selling them means they will reach more peoples minds, it was worth it simply for the educational factor. This decisive moment seems to have contributed to the quality of content in she pushed herself to capture.

I would say that her ability to deepen her purpose and push passed the differences in poverty between herself and those she is photographing, is something that is a good lessen for people who truly are wanting to educate the population at large and contribute to greater awareness of life.  I also feel that her ability to utilize her "place as a woman" to benefit her groups and help the men in her clan relate to the soldiers and natives to the land they may be in, is also an important skill. It seems to be a much more grounded way to work, and necessary for her own survival as well. Constantly overcoming fears.

Her personal sacrifices are time spent with family and being able to show up for "important" life moments for them and friends, and love in a stable relationship. I honestly have kind of struggled with this state of mind - impermanence in exchange for purpose and involvement- for a quite a few years. It's definitely a hard decision to make, and I think it takes not acting on our emotions as much as we think is proper or reasonable. I think that I would definitely take the opportunity to do so if it felt right, though it would definitely be a larger risk than if I was in a state of single, independence.

"He knew that I knew. And he and I both knew I no longer cared." pg. 106
I like this quote because it perfectly captures a catalyzing moment between lovers when they finally allow themselves to simply be intuitional and allow the natural course of their experience together run it's course.

Tips I could take for my photojournalism: take the opportunities, work with your team and comrades, know when to let lose, but also be daring. Grow with the camera, don't hide behind it.