by Caveat

Created on: June 10, 2008

Flash is a potentially dangerous medium on any camera. It can be used to disguise other more offensive weapons. In my early days of Journalism I was one of those invited to meet the Queen. Excitedly I corresponded with the Palace PR office to make the arrangements on behalf of my newspaper. This was a moment for my scrapbook.

Privately I practices with my personal camera and flash. British journalists normally allow or hire an accompanying photographer to tag along. This was NOT going to be an occasion when I brought along any of my photographers. The one I regularly hired was a total misogynist at the best of times.

Jack was a little peeved at not receiving the assignment. He past behaviour of allowing others to assume I was his secretary tagging along to interview famous stage and movie stars had prepared him however. His moment of practicing misogyny while photographing the Queen was not to happen in my company or on my newspaper.

He made no demur. His financial reliance on my goodwill and that of the chain of newspapers that employed me was too important. Other photographers were always trying to take over his territory and he could easily have been reduced to photographing local galas and supplying various shots of ice cream sticky children to parents and grandparents.

I had already sold him some of my excess dark room equipment and achieved a technical equality in addition to the financial upper hand. Still his treatment of my at a famous local night club still rankled. He had allowed a group party of factory workers to view me assisting him with his equipment and failed to correct them when they tried to call me his secretary. Even worse I had suffered a summer job at that factory where I had been assured that women were second class persons and only fit for the typing pool.

The only praise I could allow Jack and his flash was his refusal to print or publish photographs of a famous songstress. Her beautiful sequined evening gown had vanished into thin air under the power of his flash. As he explained her arms were thrown up in the air and legs apart as she triumphantly finished the pop song. Those photographs were consigned to garbage with a few of his dirtier sexual comments.

The Queen was not to be subjected to any of his endless gender ridicule. Neither was I going to submit to gender ridicule in her presence. Jack was made aware that his services would not be required that day. Carefully plans were set, but nature intervened. Influenza was spreading and neither I nor Jack met the Queen's party that day. Consequently neither I nor Jack broke the rule of NEVER using a flash in the face of Elizabeth Regina.

Our personal battle had prevented either of us from checking the rule that flashes must never by used in the face of Her Majesty

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