Generally in my photography, I aim for intimacy and photograph my subjects up close. I try my best to capture the beauty and the soul of the person I photograph. Usually, I achieve this by filling the frame of the image with my subject. But sometimes you can reveal more about a person from a distance, such as in this photograph. Or, am I revealing more of MY feelings about this addict and his life choices.
While he may be someone’s father, he is definitely the child of two parents that surely envisioned a different life for him. When I see people living this life it breaks my heart. This hits very close to home for me. My eldest son is a heroin addict. He has struggled with his addiction for years, the only time he has been able to stay sober for more than 6 months is when he has been in prison. It breaks my heart every day. There is no forcing him to change. When he is out of prison he surrounds himself with people who enable him to continue with his addiction. But this isn’t about him.
In photographing this gentleman somehow felt a little hope for my son. If there are old addicts, maybe my son will live long enough to find sobriety? It is certainly my hope that he overcomes his addiction. He struggles at a distance, in his own world like the man in this photograph.
