Horst-Fass Dies

I started this forum for any collecting hobby and it turned into my camera collecting and using forum. I use it mostly to keep a record of my photo adventures. Nobody but me seems to have photo adventures that visit here....but however. I have so many cameras now that I forget which is which and which ones work and which ones don't. If you have cameras and adventures you would be welcome to post here.

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DuncaninFrance
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Horst-Fass Dies

Post by DuncaninFrance » Sat May 12, 2012 2:23 am

Duncan

What contemptible scoundrel has stolen the cork to my lunch? -- W.C. Fields
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Re: Horst-Fass Dies

Post by 24626151 » Sat May 12, 2012 9:39 am

I was a Tim Page fan and not really aware of this gent, his work was undoubtedly powerful and used a lot!
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Re: Horst-Fass Dies

Post by Niner » Sat May 12, 2012 10:18 am

His photos have a lot of evil, hurt, and killing in them. Great eye for what he wanted to show. Very powerful..and blood and pain photos earned the big bucks for what passed as the "real" war. Like somebody now days seeking out a horrific traffic accident and taking photos of the bloody carnage and selling it to the local version of the exploitative press.

I've notice over the years at my 6/31st site, after collecting thousands of infantry made photos, that the "real" combat soldiers didn't record the blood on film for posterity. They learned soon enough they wouldn't need a photo.. their minds would carry the horrific images around for a long time after, even though that wasn't what they wanted at all. And over the years most have learned to either ignore or make friends with those images when they come knocking.

I saw a photo at another general site where one long ago REMF mechanic posted a photo of a dead VC. He didn't kill the man. He got the snap shot from a friend who took the picture while passing by the remains on side of the road. He now proudly keeps it in his physical souvenirs of his tour in Vietnam and proudly posts it on the Internet to prove his proximity to a death event. He needs to present himself as having been immersed in something while at the same time he proves he wasn't by the very nature and motive of his post. Such people, even though they probably don't realize it, are evil.

Horst-Fass was a professional doing a job he was paid to do. He got the result he set out to get. If ultimately he helped to end the war sooner it was a good body of work.
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Re: Horst-Fass Dies

Post by Niner Delta » Sat May 12, 2012 7:45 pm

As I've always said, the REMFs seem to have the best war stories....... :roll:

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Re: Horst-Fass Dies

Post by DuncaninFrance » Sun May 13, 2012 3:19 am

I posted the link for 2 reasons.
First, some of you may have known if him and perhaps did not know of his passing.
Second, he, like many other war photographers were paid to do a job. Some become more involved than others in the intricacies of war and I am curious to know why such people capture the images they do.
Is it ego, prize seeking, storytelling, pay. Do they have a need to record as much destruction and cruelty for posterity or for self promotion.
War photographers very rarely make good 'peace' photographers IMO.
From Roger Fenton and Alexander Gardner to Robert Capa, Don McUllin and Adam Ferguson- The Crimean war to Afghanistan - I suppose the one thing they have in common is the recording of man's inhumanity to man.
Duncan

What contemptible scoundrel has stolen the cork to my lunch? -- W.C. Fields
"Many of those who enjoy freedom know little of its price."
You can't fix Stupid, but you can occasionally head it off before it hurts something.
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Re: Horst-Fass Dies

Post by Niner » Sun May 13, 2012 10:20 am

What you say is true enough Duncan. But photograpy doesn't tell the whole truth a lot of the time. As for why the professional photographers did it...maybe for adventure, a challenge, money, fame, to call oneself professional...and or a combination of things.

I'm reading again Ernie Pyles Books...This is Your War, Brave men. What he wrote about the WWII that he saw close up is far more sustaining and valuable as a record, to me, than the complete short photo work of Robert Capa whom you mention. As you know Capa made the D Day in France landing. Took a few photos. The developer screwed up the developing and only a few pretty blurry ones remained to be published in Look or Life or whatever pulp mazazine of the day.

While I'm on the subject of Capa and war photography. Remember that famous one he took in the Spanish Revolution of the soldier at the moment of death? The one where the bullet has ended the soldiers life but his body is only starting to head for the ground? The question remains as to if it is as represented and..... if it is .. what does it tell us that we would like to know?
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Re: Horst-Fass Dies

Post by DuncaninFrance » Mon May 14, 2012 2:10 pm

Capa made the D Day in France landing. Took a few photos. The developer screwed up the developing and only a few pretty blurry ones remained to be published in Look or Life or whatever pulp magazine of the day.
I think they were published in LIFE but I understood that the film was damaged by the sea water when he landed and the ones that were 'saved' were saved by the darkroom tech!
While I'm on the subject of Capa and war photography. Remember that famous one he took in the Spanish Revolution of the soldier at the moment of death? The one where the bullet has ended the soldiers life but his body is only starting to head for the ground? The question remains as to if it is as represented and..... if it is .. what does it tell us that we would like to know?
Personally, I think it is a genuine image and it is, like all other images of this kind, published because the Editor wanted it. Unlike everyday people who mostly 'snap' pros take many many images and may only select 5 or 6.
When I was doing commercial work I would take maybe 4 or 5 x 36 films just to get 40-50 good images to consider .
Duncan

What contemptible scoundrel has stolen the cork to my lunch? -- W.C. Fields
"Many of those who enjoy freedom know little of its price."
You can't fix Stupid, but you can occasionally head it off before it hurts something.
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