YakimaHeraldPhotos.com

Like it or not, tragedies are a part of life. Because we photograph  life in central Washington then we must cover the bad as well as the good.

I always have mixed emotions when covering tragic events. I love to make photos that convey the emotion of the situation to our readers and viewers, great story telling photos. At the same time, I don’t want to intrude on a person’s grief and make a bad situation worse with my presence. In these situations, I simply do my best to respect the subjects while making the best photos possible. This may mean standing as far away as possible while take photos.

Or it may mean taking only one or two frames to minimize camera noise rather than motoring off 10 or 20 frames.

Or, it may mean not taking any photos at all.

That respect extends to the photo editing process. I try to pick those photos which tell the best story while taking into account the feelings of the subject and what possible damage I could do to them by publishing a particular photo.

Regardless, I always feel badly for the subject and hope they will eventually learn to cope with the tragedy and its attendant sadness.

A couple of days ago reporter Melissa Sanchez was invited by the family of an apparent drowning victim to visit and talk. I met Melissa and the family on the bank of the Yakima River where the family and friends had gathered to conduct their own search for a young man who had disappeared in the river several days before when his raft capsized. Local search and rescue personnel hadn’t yet found Jesse MorÃ¥n Castro and the family was frustrated with the official search and so launched their own.

And they wanted to talk about their son and their frustrations. Though the conversation with Melissa was all in Spanish (and my Spanish is poor) the language didn’t matter. The sadness was in the mother’s voice and in the father’s eyes and quiet demeanor.

To get the family used to my presence I first made photos from a distance with a 70-200 mm lens.

Jose Manuel Moran and his wife Adela Moran Castro talk about their missing son.

I shot only a few frames and began to walk around the area looking for more opportunities.

A scene setter:

Family and friends gathered on the bank of the Yakima River near Parker on May 13, 2009 as they continued to search for Jesse Moran Castro, who has been missing since Sunday, May 10 when his raft capsized in the river.

A makeshift memorial to Jesse and a rafting companion who had drowned and whose body had been found had been set up on the trunk of a car and I figured that memorial could help tell their tragic story. I began to hang around the memorial, hoping for a photo. The wind blew out the candle so Mr. Moran re-lit the candle.

Jose Manuel Moran lights a candle to be placed in the makeshift memorial to his son Jesse Moran Castro, left, and Alberto Ramirez on May 13, 2009 near Parker. Ramirez drowned in the Yakima River May 10 when the raft in which he and Castro were riding capsized in the river. Castro remains missing and family members and friends continued to search the river for Castro. Two others in the raft survived.

No one seemed to mind my being there and making photos and I did my best to be quiet and respectful, taking only a few photos.

The mother and other relatives and friends began to gather around the memorial as other people arrived at the river side. Melissa and myself simply became a part of that gathering, standing quietly.  Soon, one of the survivors of the rafting accident came into the circle.

Ricardo De La Torre hugs Adela Moran on the bank of the Yakima River Wednesday, May 13, 2009 as the search continues for Moran's son Jesse Moran Castro. Castro disappeared in the river Sunday, May 10 when the raft in which was riding capsized. DelaTorre was also in the raft with Castro but made it to shore. A makeshift memorial to Castro and Alberto Ramirez, whose body was found Monday, has been set up on the river bank near Parker in an area which is serving as a staging area for family and friends who continue to search for Castro.

I shot just a few frames with a Canon 5D equipped with a 17-35 mm lens. I knew this was going to be the best photo so I left soon after, not wanting to wear out my welcome.  This was the photo that led A1 the next day. The rest were in a photo gallery on our Web site.

Before leaving I thanked the mother and father for their kindness towards us and wished them the best. Castro’s body has not yet been found. I still feel sorry for the family and hope they will somehow achieve closure in this tragedy.