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April 27, 2005
Papal Color Chart
The most facinating part of the coverage from this photographer's perspective. . . .
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Armchair Photojournalism
When in Arlington. . . .
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Orange Twins
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Orange Paint Brush
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April 20, 2005
Flicker test post
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April 18, 2005
School Bus Accident in Arlington
I heard the sirens around 8:45 a.m. as I was sitting on my deck enjoying my morning coffee. The fire and rescue vehicles seemed terribly excessive for an average morning rush-hour traffic accident. As I sat there, looking toward to direction of the Pentagon, I thought of how the sounds were so similar on September 11th. It was a clear, beautiful morning back then, just as it was this morning. I looked for signs of an explosion, but didn't see any. I came inside and checked my local news channel and didn't find any mention of anything unusual in my community. Then my cell phone went off and the house phone rang -- the callers notified me that it was a school bus accident just down the road on Columbia Pike.
I took my time getting there. I didn't want to see injured children. I didn't want to become part of the "media circus" -- I just wanted to document the incident and leave. What is compelling to me about these images is that we don't need to see dead or injured children to know that something terrible happened here. A child lay dead inside the school bus behind the red tarp in these images, but we don't need to see it. What purpose would that serve? Morbid curiousity?
Arlington County Press Release
Arlington County has released a new press release entitled:
School Bus Involved in Fatal Accident
ARLINGTON, Va. - An accident this morning involving an Arlington Public School bus and a trash truck resulted in one fatality. Parents of children have been contacted.
At approximately 8:40 a.m., Arlington Public School Bus #113/route #271 to Hoffman-Boston Elementary School was traveling westbound on Columbia Pike, attempting to make a left turn onto S. Courthouse Road. The trash truck was traveling eastbound on Columbia Pike and the two vehicles collided in the intersection.
A total of 17 people were involved in the vehicles; two adults, who were driving the vehicles, and 15 children. One child was fatally injured. Four patients including the two adults and two children were critically injured. The truck driver was evacuated by helicopter.
All passengers have been transported to local hospitals. Arlington Public Schools counseling teams are assisting parents at the hospital and children and staff at the school.
Arlington County Police Department's Critical Accident Team is handling the investigation, assisted by the Virginia State Police.
Release #2
Arlington County has released a new press release entitled:
Accident Claims Life of Local Arlington Student
NOTE TO MEDIA: This is a joint release from Arlington County and Arlington
Public Schools.
ARLINGTON, Va. - Nine-year-old Lilibeth Gomez was killed in a collision this
morning just before 9 a.m. between an Arlington Public Schools bus and a
commercial trash truck. She was a third-grade student at Hoffman-Boston
Elementary School.
Two children, ages seven and 11, were also seriously injured during the
accident. The bus was transporting students to Hoffman-Boston and was traveling
westbound on Columbia Pike. The commercial trash truck was traveling eastbound
on Columbia Pike and the two vehicles collided near the intersection of South
Courthouse Road.
"Today is a very sad day for all of us in Arlington," said Arlington School
Superintendent Dr. Rob Smith. "My deepest personal sympathies go to the Gomez
family; I cannot imagine the heartbreak that this family is going through. I
know everyone in the community will keep all the students and families in their
hearts and in their thoughts."
A total of 17 people were involved in this morning's accident - 15 children and
two drivers. Twelve children were treated and released at a local area
hospital. Two children remain hospitalized; one remains in critical condition
and one is in serious condition. The drivers remain hospitalized and in
critical condition.
Arlington Public Schools will continue to provide counseling and support to
Hoffman-Boston parents, students and staff. Arlington's Department of Human
Services will have outreach staff available for anyone in the community who
needs additional assistance; contact 703-228-5160.
A team from the National Transportation and Safety Administration, Virginia
State Police, and Arlington County Police Department's Critical Accident Team is
investigating the accident.
Arlington county news releases are also available online at www.arlingtonva.us.
###
Please note that there may have been updates to this release since the sending
of this email. To see the current version of this release on the Arlington
County website, go here:
http://www.arlingtonva.us/NewsReleases/scripts/ViewDetail.asp?Index=1753
Posted by Lana at 3:12 PM | Comments (3) | TrackBack
April 8, 2005
"Memory Pictures"
Back in the early 80's, when I was training to become a licensed funeral director, the big buzz-word about the purpose of our jobs was to create "memory pictures" of our client's "loves ones." I was anything but a traditional funeral director who towed the party line. I felt that my job was to serve the families that I worked with by addressing *their* needs, not to get them to follow traditional Judeo-Christian death rituals. Of course if those rituals were important to them, then by all means, I was there to serve them in that capacity. But often times I bucked the system: I advocated that people should think outside of the box (no pun intended) and find a variety of fitting ways to remember their loved ones. Cremation was still largely considered disrespectful, but I didn't buy into that belief. HIV/AIDS "cases" were being turned away by other funeral homes who were too afraid of "Gay Cancer," while my business partner and I greeted these families with open arms. Even referrals to support networks such as Compassionate Friends (a parent bereavement group) was largely considered to be outside the scope of what funeral directors did, but I regularly encouraged bereaved parents to find a local chapter and meet other people who had suffered the death of a child.
I saw the importance of people having an opportunity to say their last goodbyes to a deceased loved one and thought that in many cases, the "memory picture" term probably accurately depicted a large part of what we did for many families who felt that seeing a loved one in a casket was an important part of the grieving process. When my own mother died last Spring, that was an important part of the process for me as well as something that honored her final wishes. But the pictures that we had displayed on boards at the funeral home were equally important -- they buffered the stark image of her laying there dead.
Today, "Lacey", "The Elder Statesman" who I wrote about in an earlier post, died. This was the last photo that I took of him and I am finding it particulary meaningful right now. He didn't look his best, the cancer was overpowering his shrinking body (a cancer that we didn't know he had until today), but he still looked like *him*. There was an observant quality to his eyes as he kept them on the dog -- his nemisis -- who was just outside of the field of view. He was in one of his favorite places on the back of the sofa, where he often slept for hours. . . . It is how I want to remember him. It is my "memory picture" -- the one that I would rather carry in my head over the final moments of his life.
As photographers, we not only create pictures, we create memory pictures. We create physical pictures that people can hold and look at over the years and often use to process traumatic mental images after a death -- and replace those with more comforting visual representations of their loved ones when they were alive and happy. What we do is important for the bereaved (even though we don't even know we are doing it for the bereaved at the time). It should never be underrated. Snapshots should never be underrated. They are often the most candid and lifefilled images that we and others create. We are in a sense acting as "funeral directors" when we document the living and offer those images as a source of comfort once someone has died. I have had several clients who have died, and the complimentary images that I gave the families where especially important to them -- they became incorporated into that family's "memory pictures."
Here are two of my last memories of Lacey -- the ones I am chosing to hold in my mind.
Posted by Lana at 12:34 AM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
April 6, 2005
Book Review: A Museum Guide to Copyright and Trademark
My Executive Director at my museum job asked me to review a 1999 book on copyright law that is geared toward the museum professionals' audience. Given that I am in charge of a project to digitize over 5,000 historic images from a critical civil rights campaign in this country and abroad, I decided that I had better get as current on this issue as possible (not that I wasn't already fairly knowledgable about copyright laws from my days in the publishing world, but museum copyright is different for a host of reasons, mainly because the work is not created by the museum, but merely acquired for collection and exhibition.)
The book is _A Museum Guide to Copyright and Trademark_ and it is published by the American Association of Museums. The authors are Michael S. Shapiro, and Brett I. Miller of the law firm Morgan, Lewis & Brockius. Christine Steiner edited and introduced the volume. This book is on the desks of every curator of every major museum in Washington (if not the country) and its authors are the leading authorities on the subject.
The book boasts a mere five chapters, however they are carefully broken down in to several subchapters that fill out the manuscript with minute detail about each topic that is addressed. Topics range from a general overview and history of copyright laws dating back to 1790 (and their subsequent revisions) to copyright laws and rights on the internet. It is well outlined in the Contents page and the book is comprehensively indexed.
The application of this book for photographers is great. Especially if the photographer ever intends to allow works to be entered into private collections or public museums. I have work entered into the permanent collection of several museums (as well as the private collections of many civil rights leaders and high-ranking elected officials) and the copyright forms that are given to the artist can be somewhat complex and confusing if the artist is not familiar with current copyright laws as well as the potential use of the work by the institution (i.e. marketing, exhibition, online distribution, reprinting in books or other publications, fair usage rights of patrons to distribute the work for educational purposes, etc). The other application for this book is, of course, the photographer who is employed by a museum or undertakes contract work for a particular institution as either a photographer and/or a photography department chair (which are the roles that I fulfill at the institution where I work on Capitol Hill). I should also note that photographing artwork created by other artists is covered as well.
The volume goes far beyond copyright of images and addresses essentially every conceiveable item that a museum could collect. For example, marriage licenses of historically significant people are covered, as is personal correspondence, deeds and wills, etc. Fair usage and public domain are comprehensively addressed, as is copyright expiration and extension.
Trademark laws are also covered as comprehensively as copyright. Photographers who market themselves and select a company name need to pay close attention to these particular laws. Creating a logo or selecting a company name that is similar to another's could be viewed as a trademark infringement and be subject to monetary penalties. The photographer would also have to remake their advertising materials, which could also be a costly endeavor.
While the text is rather academic, it is written for the museum professional, not other lawyers, so it is easily digestible.... Photographers who are interested in learning more about copyright and trademark laws should find it similarly readable. And ending note: Copyright law is regularly expanded in the judicial/civil and legislative realms and keeping current on recent court decisions and congressional action is as important as understanding the fundemental laws that are addressed in this book.
Posted by Lana at 11:04 AM | Comments (0)
An Excellent Resource on Reporting on victims of Trauma and Violence
I just finished re-reading portions of William Cote' and Roger Simpson's excellent book on _Covering Victims of Violence and Trauma_. I can't recommend this book enough for photojournalists, as well as any photographer who happens onto the scene of a breaking news story, any documentary photographer who is doing an essay on victims of trauma, or anyone who just wants to better understand what victims of trauma experience at the time of the event and afterwards, and how we as photographers can either help them of cause "secondary trauma." The book encourages and teaches journalists to report on the issues in an ethical and responsible manner and to pay careful attention to how they are personally responding to the event (is the reporter becoming traumatized as a result of being a witness?). Having been on both sides of this issue, as both victim involved in a sexual abuse trial as a child and as a photographer who has covered violence, I can comfortably refer this book as one that I know was well researched (I know one of the authors....) I know that Roger has developed the Dart Center for journalists and that extensive work on the topic of trauma and journalism has been done post 9/11, but I am hoping that another book will be offered soon that incorporates the knowledge that we have gained since the book's first release.
Here are the Contents
Preface
Introduction: Journalists and Violence
A Witness for the Community Scott North
Slain Mother's Love Manages to Find Daughter Scott North
1. Trauma: Assault on an Essential Human System
2. The Journalist's Trauma
3. Reporting at the Scene
Uncovering What's Already There Rick Bragg
Piedmont Journal: Tried by Deadly Tornado, An Anchor of Faith Holds Rick Bragg
4. The Interview: Assault or Catharsis?
Focusing on the Humanity Jeff Gradney
The Deep Familiar Pain Jeff Gradney
5. Writing the Story
6. Pictures and the Sounds of Trauma
Photos that Connect Lynne Dobson
The Test of Fire Michele Stanush
7. Reporting on Rape Trauma
Charting the Course of Recovery Debra McKinney
Malignant Memories: It's a Long Road Back to Recovery from Incest Debra McKinney
8. Reporting About Children
9. Using the Spotlight with Precision and Sensitivity
10. Oklahoma City: "Terror in the Heartland"
11. Conclusions
The Dart Award for Excellence in Reporting on Victims of Violence
A Note About Trauma Training
Bibliography
Posted by Lana at 10:59 AM | Comments (0)