Book report

In "It's What I Do," there are lots of intense and tragic passages, as well as good messages and the overall feeling of awareness. What I found most compelling about the book was the kidnapping. It stood out to me because though she was in a dangerous environment, she was just doing her job and wound up with her life in question. What's even more amazing is after it was all over, she continued to document the lives of people around terrorism and poverty and mislead government. I think that's a big part of what makes Addario's style-- the bravery. She was literally in the midst of crossfire and with all those booming guns, and the worry of her life, she still continued to do what she believed she was meant to do. I definitely cannot relate to her "sense of duty" in war zones. That's insane. Lots of soldiers feel that way when fighting for their country, but I never heard of a photojournalist with such bravery and dedication to volunteer themselves to film an ongoing war.

The book had good overall messages, but I wouldn't really say I incorporated the lessons I learned in this book to photojournalism, but I would say I learned from the way she thinks. At a young age, Lynsey started to see life in images and knew that you never know when you might perfectly capture your reality, or capture a masterpiece. I guess you could say I incorporated that skill into my photos by bringing a positive mindset to the subject and trying to capture the reality. 

My favorite pictures from the book come between pages 210 and 211, in the "Of love and war" section. There's a picture of a boy with a bandaged face and tears in his eyes and that photo clings to me because it shows the devastation and torment on children in this war-zone. Children should never be subjected to war or the sightings of war, and it's sad and powerful to see the look on that kid's face. My other favorite photo was the mother making a fire with her children near. In the midst of all the battle, there's still civility and everyday activities that go on in the life of this area. 

This is also one of my favorite photos from Lynsey Addario because it's just beautiful and captures nature so well. The man and his horse bring a bonding feel to the photo, while the sunlight and grass and trees add beauty and wonder.

“I found that the camera was a comforting companion. It opened up new worlds, and gave me access to people’s most intimate moments. I discovered the privilege of seeing life in all its complexity, the thrill of learning something new every day. When I was behind a camera, it was the only place in the world I wanted to be.” This quote resonates with me because I never thought about how much a camera can add to life. To everyone in the Middle East, she was just some Palestinian girl, but with the camera in her hands, she was the woman documenting the beauties and horrors of this life and lifestyle. People were open to her, and were more responsive and genuine with her than others because she had the storytelling device in her arms, depicting every moment.

Overall, it was a great book, and I recommend it to photojournalists everywhere, especially those interested in war photography. Also, I recommend common good-book-readers to partake in reading it because it has lots of good stories and it keeps you intrigued the whole time.