Taken during my time Baghdad while getting ready for and conducting combat operations.
These images follow a platoon from the 82nd Airborne Division serving in Baghdad, Iraq. The first image is from the beginning of a mission where the order had just been given to go, their uniforms still hanging up. The second photo was taken during preparation for a combat mission; a seasoned non-commissioned officer addressed his soldiers on the mission and what they could expect. The third image is heart wrenching to me still. This soldier was killed by a road side bomb five days after the photo was taken. He is the center of the five photos because during the rest of the deployment he was always at front of our minds, and he still is. The next photo was taken during a mission to capture the man that emplaced that bomb that killed their soldier. The intensity of his eyes was unforgettable. The last photograph was taken during a very long combat mission; it was a moment of peace. The last photograph sums up the deployment. The platoon was tired, some of the soldiers felt isolated, but there was a light at the end of the tunnel, it would just a while to reach it.