Diverted attention: Another look

"Crowd member’s attention is diverted as a girl is tossed around the crowd during The Roots performance at Tigerfest at Towson University, Saturday, April 27. The Roots performed at the end of Tigerfest. The band played an hour-and-a-half-long set, which they finished up with their song “The Seed 2.0.”"

I engulf myself in photojournalism; it's not just a job, but a way of life. I always have a camera on me; I am always viewing others work. I live, eat and sleep it.

After shooting an event and moving images on deadline I always need to look at my take again before bed. While I’ll often shoot two, three, four assignments a day, after I get home I have to go through my assignments at least once more. Editing more images that I find tell a story, whether or not it's interrelated to the assignment or are just visually graphic.

Last night, after eating dinner I came home to continue writing my final paper of the semester, a 10 pager on a unique critical methodology I found within a movie of my choice.

Being a huge fan of the Coen Brothers, this paper and others I wrote revolved around "Fargo" the entire semester.

Since we had to come up with our own critical analysis using one methodology, this assignment not only got me viewing movies differently than I had before, but my photos a little differently, too.

The above image is one I found a day after shooting Tiger Fest; the annual spring concert at Towson University.

This image was not moved, although it was fitting of the concert… any concert. Anyone whom was in the crowd of fans could attest to its truth.

Crowd surfing isn't anything new. For those unaware, people are hoisted up onto the crowd and carried along the soup of people with help of others hands.

Before submerging myself into the wrath of the crowd, I was sure to get something off beat.

I got pushed around, smoothed by sweating loud attendees and often had to watch for falling bodies when those around me decided not to hold up crowd surfers anymore, but it was worth it.

Having never actually paid to get into a concert, I found it odd that males usually surfed for a couple seconds before being dropped to the ground. Conversely, women would be held up for a longer period of time, and everyone wanted to help push them along.

I debated putting this image up, but after another look, it tells the creepy side of humans during concerts.

This was a hail mail image, as I was crunched between bunches of screaming (some drunk) fans. But I saw the hands coming in from every angle as people tried pulling the girls clothes off and forced to lay a finger on her.

Although this is a dirty image (no pun intended), one can see the sea of hands, pulling up her skirt, pulling down her shirt and groping her.

But what I like is not the rough, blurriness that fits the scene, the depth of her feet and others hands, the truth of the moment, but how and all eyes laid on her instead of the concert. More concentrated the one audience member who fits perfectly, uncovered in the center of the frame.

This is one of many images just from this single assignment that I never moved. It is one reason why I love this profession. Seeking the truth and the ability to capture it. In addition, the chance to go back look for different moments at later points in time.

As for any woman that crowd surfs, including this girl, they have to know they will be groped when deciding to crowd surf.