Tim Hetherington

Other side of war photography

Libya, April 9, 2011. (Self-portrait by Tim Hetherington. - ©TIM HETHERINGTON / MAGNUM)

Tim Hetherington (5 December 1970 – 20 April 2011).

British-American photojournalist, filmmaker.

"Hetherington was known primarily for his coverage of conflicts in West Africa and the Middle East, employing photography, writing, and film to bring awareness to the human side of war and the suffering it invokes. His work was humanistic, foregoing any attempt at a holistic view of conflict. Instead, Hetherington worked to portray the lives of soldiers and civilians who were caught in the unfolding drama of political and social unrest." By Lindsay Comstock on April 12, 2012 for American Photo Mag.

We are used to see very graphic images when we think of war photography, that somewhat dehumanizes people and make them fit into stereotypes of the good and the evil, and fulfill the characters everyone expect to see: the victims, the assassins, the corpses, the blood, the misery. What separated Tim Hetherington from this, was the urge to look further; to look deep into the life these people lived while surviving conflicts, find their humanity, show their routines. He looked for camaraderie in soldiers, for the human side of warrior children, the consequences of war in the series and how they overcame it.

This month will be dedicated to Tim Hetherington and in this first post I share with you one of the things that I consider helped him convey his message, his search: the used of medium format.