image brain-bank 9/11

[Luis]

I've seen a lot of murders,in Colombia almost everyweek is a massive killing by leftists guerrillas or paramilitary forces,however one image I keep posted in my brain is one from Associated Press in Sarajevo, a little child around 7 years old killed by a sniper, and the other one, is when the people jump out of the towers 9/11.
what are the most sad and happy images that you keep in your brain?

[Widescreen]

Unfortunately it's the unhappy images that stay with us and we often struggle to remember the good ones. How easily I can recall a car accident in which a whole family died on the way to their holidays. How vividly the images of a small child lying on the road after being in a hit and run. How the haunting face of an aids patient that you know is going to die stays with you.

Many a time when I have had a student with me, I have so easily slipped into 'storytime'. We all have them. As a young shooter it was easier because there was a sence of excitement about it, but now, especially as I now have children and a family to think about, I come home and think how lucky I am.

When I do stop and think about it, and I often take photos @ work, I have many good memories and funny things, often those....you had to be there moments. I would think that this forum would make it difficult to express in words some of those images, both good and bad.

[shootcam]

Luis: I have worked in your country, with some government based organizations and by heavens I know what you are sayiny about death every day. I will never forget, as we were slowly moving in traffic, in Bogota, in our bomb proof jeep, what i saw. There was a young boy standing on the side of the street selling cigaretts and newspapers. There was a very graphic, in color picture, with the bold headline that read DEAD GRINGO FOUND! That is obviously only a piece of my freaky Columbian experience. I should have known I was in for trouble as I got on the Zuliana airlines prop plane, and all the oxygen masks were hanging down, and chickens were running up and down the isle! Maricibo, one of the largest cocaine distributors in Columbia, was just as scary. I passed through 5 countries with my "escorts" and never had my passport checked! My ego was severly bruised after that solo trip. I was scared man! Everybody in front of a bank is standing there with a submachine gun or shotgun! Man or boy, they all had them. I was definitely the unwelcome ugly American. I also noticed a lot of people with missing limbs. Have any comment on that? La Prensa was also bombed during my "visit." Man my hat is off to you, I know you all do a great job and take a great amount of risk, compared to most of us gringos. Respectfully, man wid da cam... :eek:

[Luis]

Hey Chance..just curious, what government based organizations you worked for over there?.
as I got on the Zuliana airlines prop plane, and all the oxygen masks were hanging down, and chickens were running up and down the isle! Maricibo, one of the largest cocaine distributors in Columbia, good for us, Zuliana Airline doesn't exist anymore, they were from Venezuela and was the cheapest flight from Maracaibo-Venezuela to Miami

I also noticed a lot of people with missing limbs. Have any comment on that? Are you talking about the victims from land mines?...I saw a lot of them...sad for us that's normal and one get used to see that and a lot of attrocities...

La Prensa was also bombed during my "visit." that was long time ago, and in the four years during "president Pastrana" (if you can call president to that garbage), that was the worst season for the media, for the civilians, for everybody except for the guerrillas, they were in heaven....

if you're interested, take some time and check out my (Ex)webpage about attacks on the press in Colombia, some links are in english...
http://www.angelfire.com/la/PRENSALIBRE/index.html

see ya :cool:

[Dave McCain]

I've shot a lot of crime but it's the accidents that are sometimes difficult to predict. One bad moment I'll never forget was seeing a gas truck go up in flames in Reno, back in 1998. It just rained, thereby making the road slick, which caused the truck driver to lose control and resulting in a horrific crash. I got to the scene about two minutes after the truck blew up
( KOLO, the station I was at, was near the street where accident happened ). When I got there, I just started rolling on anything. One image I captured was that of the truck driver, still encased in his cab, being burned alive. Needless to say, we didn't show that on the air. But like some images from 911, you just don't forget stuff like that.

However, my favortie piece I ever shot was that of an old friend enjoying a beautiful sunset, over the mountains. That reporter, John Tyson, and I were in Ely, Nevada, doing a story about John getting to fullfill his dream of being a steam train engineer. That sunset was the most amazing image I've EVER seen! We were on board one of those trains, finishing the story when the sunset appeared. I'm telling you that image alone made me feel so good about what I do. :)

[Luis]

I have another one...
I was in Bogota and an airplane Cessna crashed onto a house in a residential and popular zone, I arrived there when the fire was extinguished and get into the house,I saw this little teddy bear totally burned, the room of this child was obviously destroyed too, like a bad, bad dream,... she died there...ugly scene. one can smell the the moments of death of this family. I saw the big scratches of the airplane on the walls, and in the first floor the body of the pilot, raising his hand and holding a crucifix,...it was the picture for some newspapers next day.and that image was in my brain for a long time and I forgot it till today.

[<best and worst>]

i rolled tape on a man that was hit by a train. he was still alive. we happened to be in the neighborhood and only a block away from where it happened. the police on scene didn't have their still camera or video camera. they asked me if i would shoot this guy for them. they wanted to document his position before the medics took him. boy was he mangled. his limbs were all broken and the joints in places were turned backward. his skull was split open. he was face down in the gravel beside the track. with every breath he took, the crack in his skull would widen and narrow. it was wierd seeing his brain and the expanding and contracting crack in his head. there wasn't much blood at all. i still have that video somewhere....

one of the coolest things, i shot a hot air balloon being filled up. i was shooting the interior through some vent in the top of the balloon. with the balloon half full, and morning sunlight hitting the sides, it was very cool. two little people in the opening hitting the gas creating a burst of flame. good nats, too.

[Luis]

now that you mention the coolest thing...
I saw the van inside that was tracing Pablo Escobar, that was more than cool, imagine like spy movies, full of tv monitors, wave monitors, phones, cables, switchers, consoles, I mean, a lot of equipment and just a little space for a chair, the outside was a white van with tinted windows and some weird antennas. I was told that they sent that info to a learjet that was flying above a hotel in Bogota where he was hiding, so he called his family, the van got the signal, sent it to the jet, the jet with help of CIA satellite traced him but they lost him many times before he was killed.if anyone research about this man?, he was a genious, really...
read the book Killing Pablo, it says some exciting things about his capture.

:cool:

[shootcam]

Luiz: If I tell you, I will have to kill you! Just a saying, that's supposed to be funny, nothin you haven't heard before I am sure...Peace out, puff daddy, it's all good... :)

[Luis]

Luiz: If I tell you, I will have to kill you! Just a saying, that's supposed to be funny, nothin you haven't heard before I am sure...YOU'RE RIGHT,...sadly. :cool:

[Sentinel94]

like some images from 911, you just don't forget stuff like that. ....nor should we.