Monday, August 9, 2010

Photographing Hiroshima On August 6, 1945 (From The Ground)

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Mr. Yamada took the above ground level photo from approximately a little over four miles northeast of Hiroshima a few minutes after detonation.

Hiroshima, 6th August 1945 -- Iconic Photos

Today marks the 65th anniversary of the dropping of the Atomic Bomb on Hiroshima. Whether you agree with the decision or not, the facts were there: Hiroshima was an important army and navy base. Of about 350,000 people living there on that fateful day, the majority were women and children, since most adult men were fighting at the front.

Nuclear blast and wind destroyed buildings within its 1.5-mile radius. Yoshito Matsushige was barely out of this radius at a little over 1.6-miles from the ground zero. Heading out to the citycentre, Matsushige took the only photographs taken of Hiroshima on that calamitous day. Matsushige himself was not seriously injured by the blast, but the scenes of carnage and dying people prevented him from taking further pictures. (He had 24 possible exposures, in the 10 hours he spent wandering the devastated city, but only seven came out right)

Read more ....

Update: Photographing Hiroshima -- Iconic Photos

My Comment: I am two days late with this post, but the pictures are still very haunting.

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