It's What I Do

This book surprised me so much. At first I was surprised because I did not expect it to be about a freelance photographer in second and third world countries, mostly stricken by wars. I did not really not know what to expect, but it was not the life that Lynsey Addario lives. 

My favorite parts of the book was in the beginning of the book when she was just getting started in the more dangerous parts of her life. I found it amazing how she got started in her career. I also found it comforting that she was worried about her safety and if she would do a good job. That was so comforting to me because as I am closer to going out into the world and starting my career I have those same concerns sometimes. Reading about her struggles and how she overcame them showed me that it was possible to do what you want and make a positive difference in the world if you put your mind to it. 

One of my favorite things about Addario and her style is how much she cares. Reading about the times that she needed to get out of a bad situation, but she would still pause to take a picture or two if she felt compelled. She cared about her subjects, and the state that they were in. She cared about the places that were being destroyed by wars. 

I understand Addario's sense of responsibility to go out there and report on what is really happening there. She does not want to sit on the sidelines and tell a story that is not complete. I respect her opinion a lot and share that understanding with her. But I do not think that I would be able to do her job. I would probably be too scared to do it, but I love that she can do it without fear. The closest I would get to her line of work is going after the wars to see the damages done. 

I did not use much of her methods per say, but I did acquire more confidence in myself to go up to a stranger and ask them if I could take pictures of them. One of my biggest challenges of being a photojournalist was getting out of my comfort zone and taking more pictures of people and places where people congregate. I think the other aspects of her work I just did not have the capacity nor the resources to use some more of her technical methods.

This is my favorite picture because it is so simple. I like it more with the slight blur to it than if it was clear. To me, it shows how hectic it was there and then, but there was only one goal: win the war. Because it is so dark it shows how depressing it was and how bad people felt at times, but they kept moving forward. If I were to have taken this picture, I feel that it would have been one of those "good accidents." One that was unintentionally taken at that angle or blurry, but when it all comes together it just looks so good. 

One of my favorite quotes from the whole book is from the chapter "How Many Children do You Have?" The quote is, "I thought of Mohammed from the visa office, the working city women stuck at home, the widows in the countryside, the maternity hospital with its ghastly conditions. Mr. Faiz, in his grand office at the Foreign Ministry in Kabul, represented everything millions of women across the world have fought... But perhaps there were many women in Afghanistan happy with how they lived: their days spent baking bread in the countryside and caring for their families in the crisp, clean Afghan air. My own life choices must have been equally as confounding to people like Mr. Faiz." I like this quote because it sums up how she felt doing her job often when she was in different countries. She often thought of women and their suffering, but also acknowledges that maybe some enjoy their lives and think that she is the crazy one. She was okay with women who liked their lives, and did not want to intervene in how they lived, but she wanted everyone to be treated equally. 

I would definitely recommend this book to anyone. Regardless if they were a photojournalist, or if they liked photography at all. This book is so much more than a lesson book on how to be a good photographer, but it is not all about people suffering. It has the perfect amount of adventure to get your adrenaline going, and tells you about Addario's life to really relate to her as a book character. This book is a perfect mix of a little bit of everything.