The great Robert Capa

[IpseLux]

We are fast approaching the passing date of one one photography’s heroes of mine and I’m sure of countless others: Robert Capa.
Here are some very basic facts:

Born: Oct 22, 1913, Budapest, Hungary
Died: May 25, 1954 (40 years), Thai Binh Province
Cause of death: Landmine explosion
Education: Deutsche Hochschule für Politik
Siblings: Cornell Capa
Full name: Endre Ernő Friedmann
Parents: Dezső Friedmann, Julianna Henrietta Berkovits
Awards: World Press Photo Award for General News
Form: Photography

Every time I read a camera or lens review of some new, and much improved piece of equipment, especially in this digital age of greater MegaPixels, VR, less vignetting, no chromatic aberration, and less than f/1.0 apertures I think of this man.
His photos did not depend on today’s technological advancements but on sheer will.
Fortitude is landing WWII Normandy with no weapon, just a camera. Fortitude is Spain’s Franco war, unarmed. And photographing while men around you are blown to pieces.
The love of his life perished in España.
He himself died at the young age of 40, blown up by a mine.
Capa is said to have said something to the extent that if your photos are not good enough, you are not close enough.
How very true.
A 35mm lens’ hyper focal distance at f/11 is just over 12’. That means at f/11 everything from 6’ to infinity is relatively sharp.
400 ISO film and shooting at the inverse of the focal length (1/30th second) buys you quite a bit of latitude on not so sunny days. A good flash does the rest.
Six feet. And courage.
Blessed be Mr. Capa’s memory, as is his tremendous work.

 

[Terrence Brennan]

I saw an exhibition of Vietnam war photography, by photographers who were killed during the conflict, at the Chicago Cultural Center, in, AFAIR, 2000. Capa’s photos were among the many exhibited, including the last two exposures he made (the second last was B&W, the last was colour) he made before stepping on the landline which ended his life.

There was a display of photographs by the photographers who had died, including Dickey Chapelle and Larry Burrows, and many others.

There was also photographs of the photographers, and if I remember correctly, most were North Vietnamese.