Combat photographer

News > Combat photographer braves bullets to tell stories Photos 1 of 4 A crew chief from the 159th Air National Guard preflights an F-15 Eagle Oct. 23, 2002 for Exercise Cope Snapper 2002. Held at Naval Air Station Key West, Fla., Exercise Cope Snapper 02 was a multi-aircraft exercise that engaged dissimilar air combat training with on fighter data link and joint operations with the Navy. The members involved in Cope Snapper consist of the 159th Fighter Wing's F-15, F-16 Fighting Falcons from the 169th McEntire Air National Guard from South Carolina, maintenance crews, and the Navy's F-18 Hornets and F-14 Tomcats. (U.S. Air Force photo/Staff Sgt. Jeremy T. Lock)  Download HiRes Related Links • Charleston Air Force Base, S.C. • Military Photographer of the Year Combat photographer braves bullets to tell stories Posted 6/8/2007  Email story   Print story       by Gerry J. Gilmore American Forces Press Service 6/8/2007 - WASHINGTON (AFPN) -- An award-winning Air Force photographer routinely braved bullets and bombs to tell the military's story through the lenses of his cameras to be named the Defense Department's Military Photographer of the Year for 2007. Combat photographer Tech. Sgt. Jeremy Lock also earned that honor in 2002 and 2005 as he has photographed U.S. servicemembers in action during multiple tours in Afghanistan and Iraq. The 15-year Air Force veteran is assigned to the 1st Combat Camera Squadron at Charleston Air Force Base, S.C. Combat camera photographers document military operations from around the world, and their photos are routinely viewed by senior Pentagon leaders, Sergeant Lock said. "We're the eyes and ears of the Joint Chiefs of Staff," he said. Sergeant Lock's photos have appeared in major publications, including the New York Times and the Los Angeles Times. His photos also are featured in the book titled, "A Day in the Life of the United States' Armed Forces," along with work by 125 of the world's-best photojournalists. "A good photo will tell the whole story in a split-second of a frame," Sergeant Lock said. "It leaves a lasting impression and will be etched into your mind." Combat photographers "are pretty much given free rein" wherever they're sent, the 36-year-old said. Working in Iraq last summer, Sergeant Lock took photos of military operations in Mosul and Ramadi. "We go and search out stories" to photograph, the Dayton, Ohio, native said, noting that combat photographers are normally paired with military combat videographers and embedded with units as they perform their missions. Sergeant Lock employs two Nikon D2X digital cameras, one fitted with a wide-angle lens, the other with a telephoto, when he photographs combat-zone actions of U.S. servicemembers during "patrols, raids, whatever." One of Sergeant Lock's most poignant photos among his award-winning portfolio was taken in Iraq in August 2006. The image depicts a grimacing Iraqi citizen sprawled across a Ramadi street. The Iraqi was caught in the middle of a firefight between U.S. troops and insurgents, he said. "We really don't know who shot him," Sergeant Lock said. "We did a traffic control stop, and right before we mounted up, one of our Soldiers took a bullet to the back and we got into a gunfight. After searching houses, this guy was found lying wounded on his side." The Iraqi had been hit in the hip, Sergeant Lock said, noting the injured man received medical treatment by U.S. medics and survived. The wounded Iraqi's photo was intentionally taken from an angle, he said. "I just tried to show the viewer something different than what the normal eye would see," the veteran photographer said. Sergeant Lock carries a 9 mm Beretta automatic pistol along with his Nikons, "so that when we're put on a team with the Army, Marines and special forces, we become an asset, not a hindrance." Combat troops and their photographers take turns "watching each others' backs," he said. Sergeant Lock said he has been shot at "quite a few times" during his war-zone tours, but has emerged unscathed. He said his blood pressure rises during such situations. During firefights, "adrenalin starts rushing, and your training kicks in," he said. "I tend not to be scared until the night before a mission or just afterward." Despite the danger, combat photographers have "the best job in the military," Sergeant Lock said. "If I want to go flying in a plane one day, I can do that. If I want to go ride in a tank the next day, I can do that," he said. "We have the freedom to be creative and tell stories about many, many people." Comment on this story (comments may be published on Air Force Link) Click here to view the comments/letters page Comments No comments yet. Add a comment

The Official Web site of the United States Air Force

Actual Vietnam War Combat Footage

Actual Vietnam War Combat Footage

"Lest We Forget"

   

Average age of 58,148 killed in Vietnam was 23.11 years. (Although 58,169 names are in the Nov. 93 database, only 58,148 have both event date and birth date. ( Event date is used instead of declared dead date for some of those who were listed as missing in action) [CACF]

  Deaths        Number          Average Age      
      Total     58,148          23.11 years
      Enlisted  50,274          22.37 years
      Officers  6,598           28.43 years
      Warrants  1,276           24.73 years
      E1        525             20.34 years
      USMC 0351 1,122           20.46 years
      11B MOS   18,465          22.55 years

One man killed in Vietnam was only 16 years old (RABER, PAUL J.)  [CACF]

The oldest man killed was 62 years old (TAYLOR, KENNA CLYDE). [CACF]

11,465 KIAs were less than 20 years old. [CACF]

Branch of service	Number serving Worldwide	Number serving Southeast Asia	Number serving South Vietnam	Killed	Wounded	Missing
Army	4,368,000	2,276,000	1,736,000	38,209	96,802	532 {A}
Marines	794,000	513,000	391,000	14,844	51,392	212 {B}
Navy	1,842,000	229,000	174,000	2,566	4,178	365 {C}
Air Force	1,740,000	385,000	293,000	2,586	931	532 {D}
Coast Guard				7	59	0 {E}
Civilians				49[37]		31 {F}
Total	8,744,000	3,403,000	2,594,000	58,269	153,303	1,672

South Vietnamese military deaths^[3]

Year	Regular	RF/PF	Para	Total
1966	4,418	7,535	-	11,953
1967	6,110	6,606	-	12,716
1968	12,930	11,393	3,592	27,915
1969	8,652	10,286	2,895	21,833
1970	9,647	11,738	1,961	23,346
1971	8,864	13,118	756	22,738
1972	38,697		890	39,587

North Vietnamese Deaths

According to the government in Hanoi, 1,100,000 North Vietnamese Army and Viet Cong military personnel died during the Vietnam War^[4] Rummel reviewed the many casualty data sets, and this number is in keeping with his mid-level estimate of 1,011,000 North Vietnamese combatant deaths.^[1] He further calculated a mid-level estimate of 251,000 Viet Cong military deaths.^[5] Thus, Viet Cong forces accounted for about 22% of the total communist military deaths. What percent of the 849,000 North Vietnamese regulars died in South Vietnam is unknown, but a reasonable assumption is the vast majority occurred in South Vietnam. If 80% of the North Vietnamese casualties died in South Vietnam, this equals 680,000 men, plus 251,000 Viet Cong for a total 931,000 deaths.