Thoughts on 9/11 and the POWER of photography, and a side note about 7 years ago.

I am directly copy/pasting this eloquent post from my peer Skip Cohen.  It couldn't reign more true.



"There are times when we get so wrapped up in our own thoughts and concerns that we miss some of the bigger moments.    When I wrote today’s blog, last night actually, I wasn’t even thinking about what today is – the anniversary of 9/11.  Everybody in the world will be writing about it today.  I want to as well, but I’m going to take a little different perspective.
Think about the photographs you saw of the people who lost their lives in this awful tragedy.  Because so many of them were so young and it was a business environment, we repeatedly saw professional portraits, graduation, wedding shots and business head shots.  These images were often the last photographs taken of the victims.   To me it made a statement about quality and the importance of being a professional photographer.
Every photographer has a responsibility to NEVER compromise on the quality of every image they create.  It’s  your job to provide every client with outstanding images, never having a doubt you did your very best.  You never know how the images you capture will be used later on.
And there’s another aspect to 9/11 people rarely talk about…without “Imaging”,  and I’m including both photography and videography, the visuals of 9/11 would have been reduced to drawings and long winded paragraphs describing the events.   I’ve said it before, with the exception of modern medicine, no career field has given the world more than everyone in the imaging industry.
So, the next time you’re feeling down in the dumps and frustrated with the challenges of the economy, think about what it is you’ve chosen to do for a living as a photographer and then just smile and be proud!  You guys are magicians, capturing the moments of joy, pain, sadness, surprise and growth of the world – all on a single frame or a chip and you do it every time and it’s there to be shared with everybody.
What an incredible industry we’re all a part of!" -Skip Cohen


On a side note, it was 7 years ago today that I was introduced to the man who would be my future husband.  We were both singing in a memorial concert for 9/11 in college.  I thought he was so handsome in his tux.  He thought I was quite flirtatious.  We looked a little something like this...

We were the best of friends and did everything together.  About a year later we started dating, and about a year after that we wed.  Today we remember the tragedy of 9/11 and the lives that were lost with solemn hearts, but we also celebrate it because it was the day that our lives crossed paths and joined together.