New York Times war photographer and College of Communication alumnus Tyler Hicks spoke to students Thursday about his experience covering the war in Iraq, while providing a crude visual narrative of the effects of the American presence there.

In a darkened School of Management auditorium, about 60 attendees, mostly photojournalism majors, watched a slide show of powerful and intimate images, including ones of violently killed civilians, dead children being prepared for their funerals, mothers seeing their sons’ corpses and formerly suppressed groups taking to the streets.

Hicks said he captured these images during his four recent trips to Baghdad, adding that he wanted to cover the conflict from the civilian side. During his months in Iraq, he did not travel with U.S. forces and chose to leave American soldiers out of his photographs.

‘This was not about the operation,’ Hicks said.

Although he said he strives for impartiality, Hicks’ photos admittedly did not favor the war.

‘It’s just human nature,’ Hicks said. ‘You are always going to form opinions.’

Although some may find his war photography disturbing, Hicks said the ‘gore doesn’t make a photo newsworthy,’ but showing harsh images is important because ‘reality has to be spoon-fed to the people.’

Capturing a private moment is not easy, especially when the subjects are not used to photographers, Hicks said.

‘I do think about that and put myself in their position as much as I can,’ he said.

He stressed the importance of cultivating relationships with people because that makes his job easier. And while working in a war zone, Hicks said he continues to pursue his work aggressively, but tries to stay away from foolishly dangerous situations.

‘You get ambitious. You might want to prove yourself, but sometimes you have to step back,’ he said, adding that he was ‘slapped around and kicked for taking pictures.’

However, he said he has enjoyed better luck than some other photographers.

Hicks, who will return to Iraq next week, said his work as a photojournalist has aided his understanding of human nature and made him view life ‘in a bit of a bigger picture.’

He said he loves his work and the freedoms that come with it, even though ‘sometimes you do get down.’

He encouraged students who enjoy traveling and meeting people to pursue the field, calling it ‘a great lifestyle.’

The young yet highly acclaimed photographer decided said he wanted to make a career out of news photography while studying at COM. The 1992 graduate worked for a few years at small newspapers in Ohio and North Carolina before doing freelance work and eventually becoming a Times staff photographer.

Elisa Lopez, a College of Arts and Sciences graduate student, said she enjoyed seeing things from his perspective.

‘The pictures were bloody,’ Lopez said. ‘I had never seen anything like that in the paper. I am glad there are people like Tyler Hicks to tell us what’s really going on.’