Comments on: We Are Not the Dead

We Are Not the Dead

sweetkid — Mon, 12 Nov 2012 12:35:04 -0800

Portraits of Soldiers Before, During, and After War "Photographer Lalage Snow, who is currently based in Kabul, Afghanistan, embarked on an 8-month-long project titled We Are The Not Dead featuring portraits of British soldiers before, during, and after their deployment in Afghanistan."

By: spacediver

spacediver — Mon, 12 Nov 2012 12:46:32 -0800

As weathered and worn as their skin or sunken in faces may appear, it's their dilated eyes that are the most telling. I definitely noticed this in many of the men, but why would this be so? As I understand it, pupil dilation is a physiologic response to drugs, sexual attraction, increased light levels, etc., which are all short term environmental variables.

By: sweetkid

sweetkid — Mon, 12 Nov 2012 13:15:18 -0800

I looked that up with a quick Google, spacediver, and nothing. I'm not sure either.

By: jb

jb — Mon, 12 Nov 2012 13:18:49 -0800

It looked like the Afghanistan portraits were done with more daylight - it's not just the pupils are smaller in the middle image, but the eyes also reflect more light. I don't think it's a good idea to draw psychological/physiological conclusions when the lighting the photos were taken in changed.

By: Mister_A

Mister_A — Mon, 12 Nov 2012 13:20:17 -0800

I wouldn't read too much into that, it's most likely a function of varying lighting conditions from one shot to the next. That said, wow, a lot of lines gained, a lot of thickened brows and a lot of subcutaneous fat lost in 1 year.

By: ericb

ericb — Mon, 12 Nov 2012 13:23:13 -0800

Previous related FPP: Marked -- "Photographer Claire Felicie photographed the marines of the 13th infantry company of the Royal Netherlands Marine Corps, before, during and after their deployment in Uruzgan."

By: helion

helion — Mon, 12 Nov 2012 13:25:30 -0800

I may not be a good physiognomist but, with a few exceptions, I could not see signs of a devastating experience in most after war pictures. Only those taken during their service look somewhat different, the men look rougher and more alert - and these pics were taken in different light.

By: ZaneJ.

ZaneJ. — Mon, 12 Nov 2012 13:26:03 -0800

In photo sets like these it tells the viewer more about their perceptions of what they should be feeling and thinking more than anything else.

By: How2BHuman

How2BHuman — Mon, 12 Nov 2012 13:48:53 -0800

I believe the author is suggesting the dilated pupils are indicators these men suffering from lingering effects of battlefield fear/trauma exposure , which may be true, but no mention of controlled photographic exposure conditions weakens the correlation. Stunning nonetheless.

By: rtha

rtha — Mon, 12 Nov 2012 14:08:50 -0800

I wonder, if we were presented with these photos so that we didn't know which were the before, during, or after versions, would we* be able to tell which was which? * Where "we" is mostly people who haven't been in combat and/or worked closely with soldiers and veterans.

By: availablelight

availablelight — Mon, 12 Nov 2012 14:10:11 -0800

I strained to find a difference in these until I realized how ridiculous that was, and that maybe the story is that you can't tell by looking.

By: obol

obol — Mon, 12 Nov 2012 14:10:39 -0800

The only difference I saw with consistency was that many seemed thinner in the middle picture.

By: rtha

rtha — Mon, 12 Nov 2012 14:13:23 -0800

And, actually, one thing I (thought I) noticed when I first looked was that the in the "during" portraits, most of the men look more relaxed, and somehow younger. But then I started thinking about that and now I don't know.

By: Lanark

Lanark — Mon, 12 Nov 2012 14:15:09 -0800

Well at least they didn't go running

By: parrot_person

parrot_person — Mon, 12 Nov 2012 14:26:36 -0800

The lighting isn't just different in the "during" photos, it's obviously different in the after photos as well (at least as far down as I looked). The "thickened brows" and "subcutaneous fat lost" in the first one, for example, seem due to harsher lighting coming from the top. You can see the shadow on his neck. It makes his brows look thicker because there is a shadow there too, and the cheekbones stand out more, same reason. I really detest photographers who make their own points of view known rather than honoring the subjects they photograph. It's *using* people, and very very unattractive.

By: Max Udargo

Max Udargo — Mon, 12 Nov 2012 14:56:46 -0800

Like others, I saw the most difference in the "during" photos. It does seem that the lighting is substantially different in those photos, but for whatever reason the men seem to be in a very different state of mind, more alert and focused.

By: arcticseal

arcticseal — Mon, 12 Nov 2012 15:08:54 -0800

Terrible mobile interface. Completely booked on my tablet, chopped the top off the photos. Photos were interesting, commentary not so much.

By: jeffburdges

jeffburdges — Mon, 12 Nov 2012 15:15:53 -0800

U.K. Man arrested for burning a poppy on Armistice Day : 2012, 2011, 2010, etc.

By: snsranch

snsranch — Mon, 12 Nov 2012 15:28:22 -0800

Hey sweetkid, thanks for posting this on Veterans Day, formerly Armistice Day.

By: KokuRyu

KokuRyu — Mon, 12 Nov 2012 16:21:29 -0800

I can't tell the difference.

By: wilful

wilful — Mon, 12 Nov 2012 17:00:30 -0800

This sounds like a lot of pseudo-scientific pop psychology bollocks to me. But, interesting photos nonetheless.

By: Miko

Miko — Mon, 12 Nov 2012 20:38:32 -0800

I guess this is an all male unit?

By: the man of twists and turns

the man of twists and turns — Tue, 13 Nov 2012 03:51:02 -0800

Miko: more photos on the photographer's website.

By: Slap*Happy

Slap*Happy — Tue, 13 Nov 2012 05:50:07 -0800

In many of the "after" photos, the "round edges" have been worn away when compared to the "before" - this may be a result of military physical conditioning, tho.

By: Miko

Miko — Tue, 13 Nov 2012 06:24:53 -0800

And/or stress.

By: Damienmce

Damienmce — Tue, 13 Nov 2012 06:58:54 -0800

Not sure if its the lighting but their eyes look much bluer in the middle photos, though that could be all the spice in Arrakis.