The Ohio Democrat. (Logan, O. [Ohio]) 1886-1906, 1898-01-07
PHOTOGRAPHIC FIRES.
Stirring anil Picturesque Scenes Caugh
by Amateur Firegoers.

by Amateur Firegoers.
There are in the city amateur
photographers who make speciality
of fires, but whose Photographic in
terest in fires Is, after all, but sec
ondary. They are primarily inter
ested in fires and firemen. They are
firegoers, and with them, though
they may be well advanced in the
art, photography but adds to the in
terest they find in fires and serves
for the preservation of stirring
scenes of wonderful fire and smoke
effects and of the working Of the fire
department under all sorts Of condi
| tions.
There are probably not more than
half a dozen of the fire photogra-
piers here referred to. Many pho
| tographers at one time and an
other get picture of n fire, but only
casually, as opportunity presents. A
fire is not like scenery, or a house,
or bridge, that one can go 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 get photograph of it one
must have knowledge of the fire,
freedom of movement and camera
always at hand, besides command of
facilities for work after getting to
the fire. These requirements neces-
sarily limit the fire photographers
to a very small number, confined to
the ranks of firegoers.
There is probably no man whose
blood is not stirred by the sight of a
fire engine dashing along the street
to a fire. Everybody is fascinated
by the spectacle of the fire itself; all
are interested in the fire department
and its work and everything pertain
ing to it, There are some for whom
these things have absorbing interest
These are the firegoers, with an in
tense interest i'll the fire department
and in everything belonging to it
and like interest in fires.
The firegoer may be a business
man. He is likely to be man whose
time is more or less at his own com
mand, who can come and go as he
pleases. Of course he has q fire
badge, SO that he is free within the
fire lines. He is familiar with the
working of the department. An ap-
paratus going along the street has
for him significance quite beyond
that which it would have even for
one interested in such subjects, but
not familiar with them. There are
various things about the movements
of apparatuses that to him convey
definite information.
If the firegoer is also an amateur
photographer, he has q camera al
ais place of business or his office
ready, but he photographs many
other things about the department
besides fires. He has, for example
a picture of the men turning out OF
an alarm, the scene in the bunk
room, with the tiremen jumping out
of bed. He has pictures of the hook
ing up in the engine house, with The
horses dashing for their places, anG
pictures of speed exhibitions take1
at public displays of the department
and pictures of drilling men, mer
jumping into nets, and that sort Of
thing.
AT the fire he may take, beside:
pictures of the fro itself, picture
of big stream, of course, with the
pipe and the men holding it. One
who looks at series of such pic
lures realizes right away that he il
looking at something out of the ordi
nary. The fire photographer takes
perhaps, picture of the fire line
with the policemen holding the peo
pie back, and the men and the boys
composing 1.-THE fire line that ev
erybody has seen. On still day HI
takes smoke effect---a fire engine
with great masses of white smoke
rolling up from the smokestack ant
broadening out into a great, rolling
, plume above.
After the fire he may take picture
of the wrecked buildings or of /;
striking interior. He takes next day
, it may be, the burned building as j
looks covered with playbills. 1t i
: not always possible to get satisfac
t tory picture of the fire. 1t is com
4 paratively easy to get good picture
e of the incidental happenings. Alto
: gether such pictures make serie
g Iof great interest. The Photographic
+ gives copies to his friends, and some
/ times he has them mounted as Ian
q tern slides. Thus enlarged ant
: thrown upon screen, they max
: pictures of most striking and in
e teresting character. New Yorl
!. Sun.