Associated Press Photographer Evan Vucci truly found himself in a historic moment at exactly the right time last Saturday.
He was one of the select few press photographers standing right near where Donald Trump was kicking off his speech before an election rally audience in the town of Butler, Pennsylvania.
Moments later he found himself in the line of fire and faced with a historic event as it unfolded.
Vucci saw Trump get shot at, rapidly recognized what was happening, and had the presence of mind to keep his camera ready.
This professional cool let him capture a now famously dramatic shot, which has already been called “a legendary American photograph” and reproduced thousands of times worldwide.
In a recent talk with CNN News, Vucci explained just how it all went down and how he managed to keep working even after the bullets had started flying.
According to the veteran press photographer, “I knew immediately what it was,” He then went right into work mode despite this awareness.
Vucci has previously covered conflict zones in Afghanistan and Iraq, and this helped him with his quick thinking and composure.
“That experience does help in trying to stay calm and understand that you have a job to do,” as Vucci explains.
As the shots were being fired and Trump started bending down in front of his podium, Vucci got busy photographing the Secret Service agents who rapidly ran up to the former president to cover him with their bodies.
While this unfolded he wondered how they’d get Trump off the stage and decided to move over to the other side of the stage, where an evacuation route looked more likely. This also happened to be the route for getting Trump to his armored SUV.
Vucci then describes that as the agents helped Trump up, the former president demanded some space and started to pump his fist in the air despite the blood Vucci could see running down his face.
He immediately recognized this entire scene as one incredibly historic moment and tried to capture it as completely as possible.
As millions of people have seen by now from the video of the assassination attempt, Trump made a point of standing up, pumping his fist in the air and repeatedly yelling “fight” as he was being escorted to his SUV.
Vucci’s particular shot of that later captured the public eye and garnered widespread media coverage.
Crucially, Vucci emphasizes, “As a still photographer, I don’t get a second chance. I knew that you have to keep your head and do everything you can to document everything that’s happening.”
In this case, he had just seconds to react, position himself in the right spot, and keep shooting photos with minimal pause.
Republican presidential candidate former President Donald Trump raises his fist as he is rushed off stage after an assassination attempt during a campaign rally in Butler, Pa. @apnews pic.twitter.com/VoAYqRC4QV
— Evan Vucci (@evanvucci) July 14, 2024
In further words to the UK newspaper The Guardian, Vucci elaborates that despite the Secret Service agent’s attempts to do their job of covering Trump as much as possible and essentially hiding him with their bodies against further threats, the former president partly resisted these efforts.
He explains that Trump “was kind of fighting his way to the front” and even commanded his agents to wait so he could pump his fist in the air.
This made the photojournalist feel “somewhat taken aback” but he told himself to maintain composure and focus on his own job.
Because of advances in modern photojournalism and communications technology, the photos Vucci shot were being wired live to his editors.
It was only later, after 45 minutes or so in a tent with other journalists and no mobile signal that Vucci noticed his first photo spreading virally on social media.
Vucci’s most famous shot truly is an impressive piece of photojournalistic timing and composition in a harrowing moment. It viscerally juxtaposes Trump’s bloody face, defiant gesture and the American flag in the background.
Vucci himself summarizes it neatly, “A lot of strong, strong emotions are happening in that image, and I think that’s what people are reacting to.”
Image credit: Evan Vucci, Wikipedia under fair use.
