6:20 am… Photography and moral questions… I shot some really closeup and personal work yesterday of a man who I’ve been photographing for several years. I captured several really powerful images. I’m not posting any of them without telling the story behind them. To simply post the images, would be morally wrong, in my opinion. Somehow photography takes a backseat when shooting serious documentary work – it’s truly not about photography.
I’m also hot on getting in touch with his family to see what, if anything, can be done to get this man some help. He’s seriously mentally ill. More than that, he has drug dependency issues. I think this is what keeps people down more than their mental issues. I felt such compassion for this man, and even a bit exploitative yesterday. For me, street photography is much more than just TAKING photos. If you’re someone who approaches street photography as an art, then we’re doing different things.