A soldier's pictures of Iraq

fascinating…thanks for the link PHil…..

bob

Wow ! I looked, and looked and was hooked
Thanks for the link Phil

Christian

rare view
cheers, kk

Wow.

Another wow!

and another wow!

Some amazing work, think I’ll tell him I think so..

Very fucking cool, man.

Yeah, when he’s done with EOD I think he might have a little fine art photo career going.

Makes me wish I had spent a year there instead of 5 weeks.. Did I just say that?.. I take that back.

Really really good!!!

Hey Phil!!!

You are right. ….thanks for sharing!!

Hello everyone! Just wanted to drop in and give a quick thanks for all the support and compliments. Thank you.

As a photojournalist once back in the day, I felt that I could never be a war correspondent unless I filled the boots of the ones in the thick of it. So here I am…doing just that. Now in my second deployment here in Iraq I think i’ve earned it alright. It’s been a crazy journey but certainly a priceless one at that.

In less than 10 months I will become a civilian again and will trade in the rifle for a second camera body, thus joining the ranks of all of you. After a much deserved break I’ll take the first employer that hands me a ticket back over here.

It’s that ride that I was born to take.

Thanks again and hopefully I’ll see a few of you around some day. And…I’ll go ahead and do a little something with my Lightstalker profile; I’m a terrible networker as you can see. If any of you have any questions about Iraq in general, within OPSEC regulations of course, then feel free to email me. I’d be happy to help.

Graviora Manent Ergo Bibamus

Once again Jonathan, great work and thanks for your service.

Stay safe..

Jonathan,
fantastic work… absolutely great.
good luck.

Jonathan!….

I think, photographically, the work is powerful and intimate (how often do we find intimacy during war?: almost never, and yet what is war, if not the intimacy of death and survival, of groping amid the carcass and jungle of humanship as a means of trying to convey that which most of never taste, understandably, honestly: that there, before us, our brothers and sisters, our mothers and fathers, depart in the blink of an eye, in the spurt of blood that is evaportating…that photography should understand this kind of physical intimacy, is for me, a necessary truth…and yet, it often, seldom, abounds….your work, is born of that closeness……this is one of the requisite, for me, truths of war, that most people and most photographers never trully understand: the intimacy of terror and fear and bond and anger and love and death) and I, as a photographer, am thrilled that you have shared this work….both straightforward and strange….

as a photographer, strange myself, I cannot iterate how strong and poignant and important the work is….

thanks so much………

stay safe….

bob

Ergo Bibamus !! Good luck and good light Jonathan :)

jonathan…beautiful work. really nice.

Jonathan, did you rob a leica truck? Nice work man, stay safe. But seriously, did you rob a leica truck?

Jonathan,
That is excellent work, man!

Are there any (military) limitations on what you are allowed to photograph?

Again, excellent work!

Sivert.

Great work man, Keep it up and stay safe.

really great work. stay safe.

Jonathan, great work! just stay safe there.

Cheers and thank you, Jonathan.

Deo favente, carpe diem.

There really is some great work in that Iraq series Jonathan, sensitive and observant.

I must admit, I am intrigued by the balance of photographing and soldiering Jonathan, and how you will approach your photography when you come back to Iraq as a civilian with a camera.

For example, would you go back embedded, and if so do you think you’ll have any conflict between picking up your camera, or picking up a rifle should your unit be under attack?

Also, do you feel that you’d have more or less freedom to photograph as a civilian (both what the Army would give you and what you would personally feel you’d have)?

All the best for your current deployment.

Tyler

Tyler,
I can speak from personal experience about going back after being there as a soldier. No, I don’t feel the need to pick up a weapon. The only restriction is on releasing photos of wounded without their written permission to do so AND release of photos of dead before their families are notified.
Cheers,
Bill.

Again…thank you for the comments and support. To answer a few questions:

No, I did not rob a Leica truck. I think the only theft involved is that I’m missing the other third of my lenses with the M8. Seriously though, soldiers can save a lot of money while over here if they are smart. Not that I’m perfect with my money but I did invest in quite a bit of Leica tools as I call them.

As far as limitations? Of course there is. OPSEC is the big one. Secondly is what I feel is sensitive on a personal basis, like the identities of interpreters, etc. And when I do make it back over here…I really don’t know what I’d do. I suppose it depends on the situation. EOD is an odd beast. I’d be like a fireman watching as people burned in a house. It’s all speculation right now though.

When it comes to balancing the soldiering and photographing, the act of looking and seeing has helped both. I can only say this because of the results. In comparision with my peers, I can locate 300% more IEDs. Why? It’s because I am looking for images, not that I have a gift or am working with the insurgency as some of the guys tell me.

Whether I’d get better photos being embedded…that I can only speculate as well. The access is truely with me right now, that I do know. With that access bears the job too, so it’s hard to say. I can attest that i’ve witnessed a few Pulitzers, but at those moments my camera was dead weight.

Bob Black…wow. I couldn’t have said it better. Such eloquent words, well said. I agree that the images are strange as you suggest. War is strange. I think if any Hollywood movie that comes close to the experience itself, it’s Apocalypse Now. When I see many images from journalists shooting over here, many of them are just trying to fill in the perceived notion of what war is and isn’t. I don’t want to get into who has done a good job and who hasn’t but there are some very accredited photojournalists who are farthest from what any of this is like. Capa and Smith are still my favorites.

Wow, I really winded this reply. Thanks again; I am most indebted to all of your continued support for us soldiers, and especially the crazy one with the camera.

jonathan

Jonathan, please make certain to tell your buddies that we are indebted to all of you and are thankful for and proud also of your bravery, loyalty and sacrifice, especially the one with the camera…

Amazing photos Jonathan!

I thought you all might be interested in another soldiers photos of Iraq. Army photographer corporal Adrian Harlen