[Leica] War Photographers

[stasys1 at cox.net (Stasys Petravicius)]

Dr. Ted- Glad you are with us!! Stasys
On Jan 10, 2012, at 2:47 PM, <tedgrant at shaw.ca> <tedgrant at shaw.ca> 
wrote:

> Being a "War Photographer!" 
> 
> WOW exciting can't wait to go!!!!!" Idiots who think like this will learn 
> it isn't like the Hollywood movies and some of the "fun read while in safe 
> areas!" Or may die?
> I  unfortunately fell inline thinking being a "War Photographer" was neat! 
> :-( I swallowed the stories from WW2 about the few big names from there 
> and a few later conflicts. I was a trained officer in the Canadian Reserve 
> Army as a "Zipperhead." A reference of those in the Armored Corp, Tanks, 
> Armored Cars etc. So I had some idea of the sounds and smells from weapons 
> in action.  BUT NOT BEING SHOT AT!!!!!!
> 
> My first war was 1967 Mid-East 6 Day War... Basically a no brainer 
> compared to the absolutely killings of the past several years and today. 
> 
> If one is going to their first war...... "ONE SHOULD NEVER GO IF YOU 
> HAVEN'T BEEN!" Oh I know there'll be challenges about that comment! "If 
> one is determined to go they should go with the Israelis' ! It starts on 
> Monday and over by Saturday and you're on a plane heading home on Sunday!" 
> 
> But if you haven't been to any and commenting only from reading the 
> stories we've just seen and or read about the "Big Name Shooters" during 
> the past 10 years, Iraq, Afghanistan etc. or before then? Don't tell me 
> somebody has to do it! And you feel it's something you'd be just fine and 
> can hardly wait to get wherever a war might be going on as it needs to be 
> shown! 
> 
> Trust me the first few days, if yer lucky and you can time zone 
> acclimatize for one thing before things are going bang bang... whizzz, 
> whizzz all around you. Or something goes really loud bang and you don't 
> hear anything much for the next three days.... then sounds begin to 
> slightly return, only to slowly find out you're going deaf simply because 
> you were taking pictures and not putting your fingers in your ears before 
> the "BIG GUNS FIRED A SALVO RIGHT BESIDE YOU!" Like nobody said... "Hey 
> cover your ears we're about to start firing!" OOPS!!! :-(
> 
> Well 1967 wasn't bad, I believe only two photographers? I had befriended, 
> Paul Shutzer of LIFE on the first day I was in Tel Aviv. But he was killed 
> the first night of battle. Yeah the half track he was photographing from 
> took a direct hit and all died. The reporter he was working with was in a 
> different half track and survived. Paul's cameras were recovered I believe 
> a week later? And the film was eventually developed and OK with his very 
> last pictures..
> 
> The second photographer, an Israeli, Ben Oyserman was shooting TV footage 
> on contract for the Canadian CBCTV and stills for his local Tel Aviv 
> newspaper. How close can one get to being killed? Mine?
> 
> I was about to go with Ben in his car and follow Israeli soldiers toward 
> El Arish to the south. However my reporter had another location to the 
> north, so I went with him instead of Ben.
> 
> Arriving back in Tel Aviv late that evening. Apparently, the Ben tour came 
> across a road block, the soldiers began to move it as Ben was filming 
> their actions and.... "BOOM!!!!!!!!" 7 DEAD SOLDIERS AND ONE DEAD 
> PHOTOGRAPHER! I saw his Nikon that had been hanging around his neck.....it 
> was riddled and ripped with shrapnel fragments into his chest and head! 
> Me? 
> 
> I cried because we had become very good friends in a couple of days, 
> buddies in arms so to speak. Then the other side came pouring in! "I HAD 
> BEEN GETTING IN HIS CAR AND PROBABLY WOULD BE DEAD ALSO!" If not for the 
> luck of the reporter taking me elsewhere! My wife would be a widow with 
> four children to continue looking after!
> 
> Got home like I'd just been away on some simple assignment.  Yep Ben's 
> situation and nearly mine? Oh it comes back once in awhile. But even that 
> didn't stop me from going to Viet Nam the next year, 1968.... 
> "HELL PHOTOGRAPHERS ARE SO STUPID AT TIMES THEY NEVER LEARN UNTIL THEY'RE 
> DEAD!"
> 
> I wasn't there very long before it became quite apparent "this was a place 
> to get killed very quickly if you stayed around!" That was after one 
> outing into a battle situation! The 6 Day War? Compared to there? 1967 was 
> a piece of cake considering the amount of weapons firing encountered in 
> 1968.
> 
> A first time confession.......... "I ran away from it and came home!" :-( 
> Never told that openly before! :-( :-( I was 41, a husband and 4 children 
> all came pouring in! And "I ran away!" My guilt trip has always been and 
> is to this day, I'm near sick telling this part of my career! "I ran away 
> when so many who couldn't, died!"
> 
> Being a war photographer?????????? NEVER!! No matter all the "good glory 
> stories Hollywood produces" And whatever glory stories written about the 
> so called "Exciting times !" It' all bullshit!
> 
> This is the first time I have openly offered this side of my photo life 
> other than to a few friends who had been there and understand. I realize 
> we have many American folks on the LUG family who were there. And I know 
> they will understand. NEVER AGAIN! :-(
> 
> Dr. ted :-( 
> 
> 
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