If you don't mind, could you explain how you captured #4? It's really striking.
No problem, but I will start from set up.
It is shot with a Nikon D800 and a 70-200 2.8, so I can get nice close shots, but stay out of the way, so I don't impact on the training. I know I would get pissed if I had to deal with a 'civi' as I was trying to take a building.
Anyway, this was on house 3 of a 3 house platoon level attack. One after another, enemy forces fall back, some get 'killed' as they sweep the houses. It is to test communication in what is a very hectic situation. Blank rounds are very loud, and when put indoors, deafening. The skills of 'urban combat' are,by now, second nature, so this tests the ability for people to let their boss know what is happening, and for the boss to calmly, but with aggression, control the situation.
So I was playing enemy for this serial, survived and dropped back from the initial contact, but died in the second. Once I have died, I drop my rifle and, staying out of the way, pick up my camera which is left in a backpack and make my way outside.
this shot was taken at a slight angle from the entry point of the third house. one section had taken the first floor, and this is the 'runner' who communicated the state of the houses rooms, any enemy, any casualties back to the second house, where the platoon commander is, so he can dictate the flow of the situation. I shot it in manual, in RAW, and metered for the shadows. The original image has most of the door frame in the frame, and the shadows are bright enough to see a person moving in the hallway.
These kind of things, like most subject based photography, is a lot about knowing the situation. I knew this guy would be there. I knew he would look back towards myself at some point. I knew the shot I wanted, I knew how to set up the camera to bring that image from my brain to the memory card.
After that, it was about 40 mins in Lightroom cropping it down a little so that I had no unnecessary distractions, gal;anded the highlights and shadows to bring more focus on the eye, and there is the shot. Over a week long course, I only managed to take maybe 70 shots, which for someone who does a lot of motorsport and has managed as much as 3-4,000 in a weekend, it was a nice change of pace.
Thanks for all the kind words guys, and Brickhouse, I know where you are doing from.
Section attack training by Wil Collins, on Flickr
Section attack training by Wil Collins, on Flickr
Section attack training by Wil Collins, on Flickr
5 FS BN FIBUA training by Wil Collins, on Flickr
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