This photo is one in a series I made on an assignment for Toronto Star. The complete story is here. And you can see the front page of the paper with an inset photo at the bottom here. By the way, Newseum is a great page.

It was a difficult assignment to shoot and I am not as happy as I would like to be with the photos. Technically, the light was horrendous. Flash was obviously not appropriate. If you are given a privilege to document something as intimate as genetic counseling session, the least you can do as a photographer is be courteous and kind enough to know when to put the damn flash away. But dinky Fredericton hospital with lousy lighting was the least difficult thing to deal with. It was emotionally difficult to sit in that room with people whom until that morning I never met and listen to a pronouncement, however professionally and compassionately delivered, on whether or not a person has significant chance (up to 85 percent) of developing breast or ovarian cancer at an early age. When you hear that a 23 year old, unfortunately, carries the mutation, all you can do is do your best at controlling your own emotions. The only thing harder than that was listening to an older family member who found out that she is not a carrier. After the initial relief, she broke in tears and wonder out loud how is she going to face the rest of the family, who, even though much younger than her, tested positive.

I will post more photos over the next couple of days.

I'd also like to ask for a small favour. I cannot get Toronto Star in New Brunswick. So if it happens that somebody from Ontario reads this and you have today's paper, it would be much appreciated if you could snap a photo of the inside pages and e-mail it to me. Thanks!