Everyday Life Amidst War: Capturing the Poetry of Ukraine
This chapter explores the speaker's experiences photographing Ukraine during wartime and their desire to capture everyday life amidst the conflict. They discuss visiting a zoo that reopened as an escape from the war's realities, the lack of inspiration at former battle sites, and their focus on photographing people and hidden aspects of everyday life. The chapter also delves into the process of creating a story about wartime Ukraine and the meaningful conversations had with Ukrainian people about their experiences.
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Richard Morgan is a professional photographer and photography education from London. He recently authored a powerful article in June 2023 issue of Street Photography Magazine titled The Poetry of Everyday Life in Wartime Ukraine about how life goes on amid the relentless Russian attacks on their country.
His passion for street photography started when he went to Russia to study Eastern European and Russian culture and politics. His father gave him an Olympus OM-1N with several rolls of black and white film, and he began exploring the streets of St. Petersburg with his camera. Over time, he developed his skills and techniques and won the 2018 CBRE Urban Photography of the Year Award.
He has continued to photograph in Poland, Russia, London and most recently in Ukraine, by capturing everyday life during times of conflict and political turmoil.
In his experience with clients, Morgan has learned the importance of adapting his approach to meet their unique needs and expectations. He incorporates a combination of candid street-style photographs, portraits, and mini-documentaries of a particular element of an event to capture a full-bodied reportage. Ed emphasizes the significance of building trust with the subject and finding unique ways to make a portrait stand out, such as getting their hands involved or asking them to show a meaningful tattoo or necklace.
During our conversation Richard said, when in a place or at an event, don’t photograph “the thing”, but the moments that happen around or a result of “the thing.” We talked about a lot during our hour together, but that one comment really struck home.
Ed stresses the value of practice to better photographer. He encourages street photographers to take their time, be patient, and wait for the right moment. He says that If a location is good, but nothing is happening, come back again (and again).
