Midterms Exam Extra Credit

1. Explain what happened to the man that was killed by the subway and how the photographer was able to take the photo.

Answer: The man who got killed, Ki Suk Han, was attempting to calm down a lunatic who was harassing passerby. The lunatic pushed him into the path of the train, and he was unable to lift himself out. R. Umar Abassi, a photographer who happened to have his camera, tried to warn the train driver with the flash of his camera, Unfortunately, he was unsuccessful, and Han was killed. Abbasi later noticed that he had captured the scene very clearly, and the image was later used on the cover of New York Post.

2. Why did the photographer say he took the photo?

Answer: Abbasi said that he took the photo so that the flash would grab the attention of the driver, in hopes that he would stop the subway train in time. Many he think that he did it for the photograph, but that does not seem likely to me. The lighting in the photo is dark, only lit by the lights in the subway. This supports that he did not adjust the settings on his camera, and didn't care about the outcome of the photo more than the man's life.

3. Do you think the photographer should have taken the photo?

Answer: No, he should have focused on a better way to save the man rather than trying to alert the driver.

4. Do you think the photographer did the best thing he could have done in this situation? Why or why not?

Answer: It was a good idea to try to warn the driver with the camera flash, but Abbasi probably could have helped some other way. Judging by the photograph he took, it looks like the train was far away enough so that he could have lifted Han out in time. It depends on how fast the train was moving. Using his camera was probably the only thing Abbasi could think of at the moment.

5. Do you agree or disagree with the decision to run the photo on the front page of the New York Post? Explain why or why not.

Answer: It depends. While it does make an attention grabbing cover and story, it should only have been used if Han's family gave consent for such a gruesome image to be used.

6. What is more important to a photojournalist, capturing images of life as it happens or stopping bad things from happening? Why or why not?

Answer: Most of the time, photojournalists only care about capturing the image and telling the story, rather than intervening and ruining what they think would make a great headline. They always take the shot when they see something interesting. Some like Abbasi have good intentions, but many care only about the photos.

7. Do you think it is ever ethically acceptable for a photographer to involve himself/herself in a situation that he or she photographs? Explain why or why not.

Answer: Yes, they should never just stand there and take photographs. Taking photos of people without permission is objectifying, especially if they do nothing to help the situation.

8. Should photojournalists always avoid influencing events as they happen? Explain your answer.

Answer: If they want to capture the moment as it is, they can't really intervene, but they can later prevent things from getting worse.

9. After reading the responses from the professional photographers, what stands out as the most appropriate response for a photographer to this situation.

Answer: The second comment was right; It is rather tasteless to use the gruesome image of Han's incoming death without his family's consent. There were many other witnesses who could have helped him, but didn't, even after he tried to calm down a lunatic who was harassing them.