As i was looking through Eugene Richards, “Stepping through the Ashes” (A collection of a series of shots taken after the tragic events that took place on 9/11) One shot stood out the most to me. The photograph displays a burned down and destroyed building and a fireman in the center of the image. The fireman’s posture and the fact that he was staring down at the ground, shoulders slumped helped add a sense of sadness to this image. As well as him resting on a broken piece of wood of the building. The strays of smoke surrounding the image, as well as the construction vehicles help with the overall sorrowful aspect of the image.
Photographer Eugene Richards did an excellent job in capturing the mood of this tragic situation. The fact that the fireman is in the middle of the frame, it automatically directs the viewers attention to him. If the photographer would have captured the photograph closer up it would not have had the same impact. The small size of the fireman in this photograph helps display the overwhelming feel from this disaster. The right side of the image has higher contrast levels than the upper left portion caused by the smoke and direction of sunlight. It helps create a dark, hazy and gloomy feel to it. The image has a symmetrical balance as the fireman splits the image down the middle. The surroundings also equally take up the same amount in the frame.
