In the Name of Art

Sometimes photographers go to dangerous lengths to capture a photograph, perhaps even putting personal safety at risk to bring to light scenes that might otherwise go undocumented. Today was my first foray into such "danger zone" photography.

Okay, so I wasn't embedded with the U.S. forces in Iraq or tracking Maoist rebels in the mountains of Nepal like a certain friend of mine who is a for-real photographer, but today was as close as I have come to risking life and limb for a photo.

I was shooting on the fire escape.

On the fourth floor.

Only three levels of these rusty metal bars between me and a very unpleasant landing.

Why brave such dangers in the name of photography? Well, The Noticing Project has invited their readers to share photographs of things they notice this week, and as a New Yorker in a comparatively small apartment sometimes I just feel I have "noticed" (and photographed) every little thing there is to notice. I wanted a different angle.

I thought to shoot a photo of something on the windowsill, but by the time I got home from work the sunlight had already left the sill and migrated onto the fire escape. I just followed the light. It wasn't until I had two feet out the window and was shifting my weight onto the suddenly quite shifty fire escape that I thought perhaps I'd better make this a quick shoot.

All right, in reality a heart-stopping second or two does not equate to any real risk to life and limb, but I know now that if there is a fire in the building I am going to start making a rope out of my sheets. 40 neighbors fleeing the building down that rickety structure is definitely not a good idea.