This 1972 documentary on the brilliant photographer Diane Arbus contains her own words which turn out to be quite possibly some of the most penetrating observations and comments about the art of photography that one will ever hear. She says she never takes a photograph that she intended. She says what a photograph is of is more important than what it is.
Tracey Shelton, a photojournalist working for Global Post was on the Syrian civil war front lines in the city of Aleppo, covering a group of rebel fighters who were manning a barricade position. She was using a Canon 7D DSLR camera to take video as the fighters prepared for the possible approach of some tanks. They were caught unprepared and her camera captured the moment when they were killed by a tank shell. The resulting images have become some of the most direct examples of just how suddenly death can come in war. They are a shocking reminder of war’s brutality. The bravery she must have to sneak around those streets with only a camera to defend herself from snipers, tanks and rocket propelled grenades is astounding. I think I would simply put my camera away and run.
DSLR News Shooter has an in-depth article about the photographer.
The photo of Tracey Shelton is by Niklas Meltio.
The original video of the terrible moment in a short documentary is shown here:
Here is an interview with the photojournalist about how she got her images:
