Covering a Tragedy is Never Easy
It may sound so normal that my day would include racing to a police press conference, but when the press conference is announced to address the death at home where a father took his own life, things get a little more serious. Covering tragedies is never easy. In this case, it makes you cringe, and want to call your loved ones right away to tell them how much you love them. These photos only took an hour to take, but it took me a whole day to realize what we do as journalists and sometimes that includes reporting on tragic events. After all, we are also human, and there is a human element to these stories, ones that need to be told through the written word and photojournalism. All crime scenes are different. In this case, detectives were gathering evidence, inside and outside the home. Waiting for the right time to capture an image is a matter of trying to convey the scene to the reader. Getting shots of the detectives doing their work was key, but it was not until later that I realized I had captured a photo of the Highland Park police officer, either getting emotional or wiping sweat from his brow. Either way, I didn’t talk to him nor care to ask. I thought it conveyed the emotions of the day. After getting back to the office and editing what I had captured, my cell phone rang. It was my son, Micah. After a brief chat and laugh or two, we ended the conversation, but not before I told him I loved him.
That’s why they say a picture is worth a thousand words. Your photo totally captures the angst and emotion of the moment. Thanks you for what you do!