I’m a big believer in the old photojournalist’s adage, ‘arrive early and stay late’.  As photographers we push ourselves and others to get to an assignment before it starts and stay after it ends because you just never know what you are going to see.  Often those unexpected nuggets make better photographs than the event itself.

Yesterday morning I was reading online and stumbled across the news that ‘The Moving Wall’, a half scale replica of the U.S. Vietnam Veterans Memorial, was being escorted by members of the Patriot Guard Riders through Freeburg, Ill.  It was just after 8 a.m. and as I was reading and drinking coffee the escort had already begun.  Visions of patriotic residents waving flags on Main Street fluttered through my head as I realized I may have already missed the best part.  Perhaps it wasn’t that great, I told myself.  I went anyway to shoot a video of the wall erected.

Arriving as the last few panels of the 250-foot-long wall were being put into place, I hopped right in, realizing there wasn’t much time to work before they were finished.  Once the last pieces were in place, I began the interviews and the cringing began.

There must have been 300 motorcycles riding down Main Street, said one organizer.

The tears were flowing when I saw all those flags, said another.

You should have been there, they all said.

Yes I should have.  I wish I would have been.  But I wasn’t.  Next time I will be.

Have a look at the video here.