I've always been attracted to the older man and woman - in a photographic sense. Faces full of character, weathered and lined from the passage of time and generally a story or two to tell from their greater life experience.
This week I had the honour of attending the 100th birthday of Tom Barker but it was certainly no ordinary celebration. Friends, family and members of the Royal British Legion gathered outside Tom's Darlington home to pay respect to the D-Day veteran, including Commander Ian Berry, Deputy Lord Lieutenant of Durham, who presented Tom with a Veterans’ Medal.
Capturing the occasion as it took its course, at the back of my mind I was determined to get a nice candid portrait of Tom. Conscious that he wasn't overly steady on his feet and that I couldn't interrupt the proceedings, my moment came soon after the medal presentation ceremony. Two women from the Salvation Army approached the centenarian for a photo. One of them made a quip to make Tom smile, and I quickly shot a burst of frames to capture the moment while composing him with a background of the dark hall behind his open front door. A small tribute on my behalf to a man who gave so much to defend his country.
#ddayveteran #warveteran #hundredyearold #darlington #tombarker #royalbritishlegion #thenorthernecho @thenorthernecho @PoppyLegion
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