Stranger with a Camera

1. How did Hugh O'Connor's daughter find peace with her father's death? Wouldyou have felt the same?

She found peace with her fathers death because she learned more about his killer. She knew the man (i forgot his name) was from Kentucy and lived in a very poor part next to the mines. He felt that what her father and his crew were doing was wrong. he felt that they were making fun of him and his people and taking pictures to expoliate them. Realizing how this man felt when her father was on his land, she understood why he pulled the trigger. O'Connor's daughter learned more about the man and his background and i believe that is why she found peace with her fathers death.

2. Barret says that some filmmakers "wanted to show that contrast [between those who prospered from coal mining and those who didn't] to bring about socialchange. Others mined the images the way the companies had mined the coal."What does that say about the power of the visual image? What (if any)responsibility do filmmakers have toward their subjects?

The power of image can say a lot. A picture is worth a thousand words. people can take a picture of a scene and leave out certian parts to create a whole different meaning. One thing that the people didnt like was that the pictures made them look bad. They had taken pictures of kids bringing muddy water up to their face. it made the kids look like they were starving but really they were well feed. Film makers do have responsibility to what they capture on the camera, but they do not have responsibility of what people think about it. They have the choice to film what they want and how they want to. it is their responsibility to capture a certain image they are after, and make it look a certain way; althought they do not have any responsibility of how it is viewed by others.

3. Colin Low, director of the Canadian Film Board, said the camera is invasive,exploitive and like a gun because it's threatening (42:23). What does he mean bythat statement? What are some specific steps you can take as aphotographer/filmmaker when photographing a sensitive subject or social issueto make the camera less exploitive and invasive?

A camera is threatening because it captures things how they really are. it shows the public how things are. it can hurt someones reputation because it is a form of evidence. it is also threatening because it can capture moments that shouldnt be captured. For example capturing a celebrity at a bad moment or like the kids bringing the mud up to their face. its hard to control what people think about something. I guess just be careful what you shoot on film.