Earlier this year–January 1st to be specific–I had the opportunity to volunteer with Habitat for Humanity as a photographer to cover the Polar Bear Dip event.
Aside from the event itself, I was interested to see the media coverage. All the major TV organizations were represented. Beyond the film crews, there were probably around 30-40 photographers. I’m sure some were amateurs, there for the show, but others appeared to be from the media; their equipment and bantering suggested people more engaged than the week-end shootist.
In the overall scheme of national and international events, a Polar Bear Dip isn’t really of much significance. Yet, it was covered; the news crews were engaged and doing their job. It could have been by rote; going through the motions, following the process blindly until the outcome is realised. Whether this or a story that will impact the outcome of millions of people the same steps followed: set the context; who is there; why are they there; what are they doing; the action; the reaction, etc.
Everything we do can be boiled down to a series of steps and if we go through these steps more than just a few times our autopilot takes over. We then run the risk of losing consciousness of our actions and becoming a mindless cog. Taking charge and overcoming this mindset is sometimes more the challenge than the task itself. Witness the one photographer who arrived in hip waders so he could go into the Lake and get a shot no land-based photographer could get. He found a way out of the routine.
Leave a Reply