The Providence news. (Providence [R.I.]) 1891-1906, 1897-12-16
PHOTOGRAPHIC FIRES.
Stirring and Picturesque Scenes
Caught by Amateur Firegoers.

There are in the city amateur photo
but whose Photographic interest in fires
is afver all, but secondary. They are
primarily interested in iires and flremen.
They arc iregoers, and with them though
| they may be we'll advanced in the art
| photography but adds to the interest they
find In fires, and serves for the preserva-
tion of stirring scenes, OF wonderful fire
and smoke effects. and of the working OF
the fire departments unde all sorts Of
conditions.
There are probably not more than half
a dozen OF the fire photographers here
referred TO. Many photographers who at
one time and another get picture of n
| fire: but only casually. ss opportunity
presents. A fire Is not like scenery, or u
house, or bridge that one can 90 out and
photograph when one wants TO, or when
the conditions are favorable, but 1t
springs up unexpectedly at all sorts OF
hours and in various places. and to 60,
photograph of it one must have knowl'
edge OF the fire. freedom OF movement,
anu camera always vt hand, besides
command of facilities for work after get
ting to the fire. These requirements
necessarily limit the fire photographers TO
very small number confined to the
ranks of firegoers.
There is probably no man whose blood
is not stirred by the sight Of a tire engine
dnshing along the street to fire: every
body is fascinated by the spectacle OF the
fire itself: all are interested in the fire
department and its work and everything
pertaining TO 1t; there are some for whom
these things have absorbing interest
These are the iregoers, with an intense
interest In tho fire department and IN
everything belonging to 1t, and like in
terest In fires
The firegoer may be business man; he
is likely To be q man whose time IS at his
own commando who can come and go as
he pleases. OF course he has fire badge
so that he is free within the fire lines He
is familiar with the working of the de-
partmept. An apparatus going nlopg tie
street has for him Significance quito
beyond that which il would have even
| not familiar with them there are various
| things about the movements Of appara-
| tus that TO him convey definite informa-
| tion. IL the fregoer is also an amateur
| photographer he has camera at his place
| of business or his office ready; but he
| photographs many other things about the
| department besides fires. He has for ex
| an alarm, the scene in the bunk room,
| with the lremen jumping out Of bed. He
| has pictures of the hooking up in the
| engine house, with the horses dashing
| for their places. and pictures of speed ex-
| hbitions taken at public displays Of the
depertment, and pictures of drilling, men
| jumping into nets, and that sort OF thing.
| AT the fire he may take, besides pictures
| of the fire itself, picture OF big stream,
of course, with the pipe and the men
| holding 1t. One who looks at a series OF
sach pictures realizes right away that ne
| is looking at something out of the ordi-
nary. The fire photographer takes,
| perhaps, n picture of the fire line with the
| policemen holding the people back and the
men and the boys composing it, the tire
| line that every body has seen. On a still
| day he takes smoke effect-a fra engine
with grear masses of white smoke rolling
up from the smokestack and broadening
out into great rolling plume above.
Here is n picture OF stream playing
diagonally upward and across street
upon n building on the other side; the
| drip from the stream makes q fine, thin
| haze that is like very thin. almost i'm
palpable veil, through which in the dis
| tance down the street. may be seen with
| perfect distinction the figures OF men and
! boys
After the fire he may take pictures of
the wrecked buildings, or OF n striking
| interior: he takes next day, it may be,
the burned building az il looks covered
with play bills. 1t Is not always possible
to get satisfactory picture OF the fire. 1t
| is comparatively easy to get good pictures
| of the incidental happenings Altogether
such pictures make n series Of great in
terest. The photographer gives copies to
| his friends and sometimes he has them
| mounted as lantern slides. Thus enlarged
and thrown upon screen they make pic
| lures OF most striking and interesting
| character. The Sun.