For In Training (2004-2007), I photographed young American soldiers preparing for deployment to Iraq and Afghanistan, along with their training environments. To make these photographs, I visited Army and National Guard training facilities, often spending entire weeks or weekends with the soldiers, aiming to make pictures that were true to the nature of training and true to the soldiers themselves.

My interest in themes of military training and warfare began in 2004, shortly after I returned from Bénin, West Africa, where I had worked as a Peace Corps Volunteer. Having lived in Bénin for 18 months, during which time I witnessed the American invasion of Iraq and the ongoing conflict in Afghanistan, I felt disconnected from my own culture and deeply troubled by the wars. I began photographing soldiers as a means by which I might interact with the wars more intimately.

Private Rebecca Hill, 2006 (Copy) (Copy)

Private Rebecca Hill, 2006 Archival pigment photograph 30 x 40 inches

Private First Class Natalie Bazinet and Private First Class Danielle Stapleton, 2006 (Copy) (Copy)

Private First Class Natalie Bazinet and Private First Class Danielle Stapleton, 2006 Archival pigment photograph 30 x 40 inches

Trench, 2006 (Copy) (Copy)

Trench, 2006 Archival pigment photograph 30 x 40 inches

Private Dan Floyd, 2007 (Copy) (Copy)

Private Dan Floyd, 2007 Archival pigment photograph 30 x 40 inches

Private Joseph Eltinor, 2006 (Copy) (Copy)

Private Joseph Eltinor, 2006 Archival pigment photograph 30 x 40 inches

Private Nicholas Greene, 2006 (Copy) (Copy)

Private Nicholas Greene, 2006 Archival pigment photograph 30 x 40 inches

Sunburn, 2005 (Copy) (Copy)

Sunburn, 2005 Archival pigment photograph 30 x 40 inches

Private Eric Jilderda, 2006 (Copy) (Copy)

Private Eric Jilderda, 2006 Archival pigment photograph 30 x 40 inches

Private First Class Amanda Withem, 2005 (Copy) (Copy)

Private First Class Amanda Withem, 2005 Archival pigment photograph 30 x 40 inches

Private Daniel Morton, 2005 (Copy) (Copy)

Private Daniel Morton, 2005 Archival pigment photograph 30 x 40 inches

Chemical weapons drill, 2005 (Copy) (Copy)

Chemical weapons drill, 2005 Archival pigment photograph 30 x 40 inches

Private Amanda Wright, 2006 (Copy) (Copy)

Private Amanda Wright, 2006 Archival pigment photograph 30 x 40 inches

Specialist Takia Rust, 2005 (Copy) (Copy)

Specialist Takia Rust, 2005 Archival pigment photograph 30 x 40 inches

Hasty fighting position, 2006 (Copy) (Copy)

Hasty fighting position, 2006 Archival pigment photograph 30 x 40 inches

Private Stephanie Gardner, 2006 (Copy) (Copy)

Private Stephanie Gardner, 2006 Archival pigment photograph 30 x 40 inches

Specialist Lenora Didi Benson, 2006 (Copy) (Copy)

Specialist Lenora Didi Benson, 2006 Archival pigment photograph 30 x 40 inches

Private First Class Alicia Parker, 2006 (Copy) (Copy)

Private First Class Alicia Parker, 2006 Archival pigment photograph 30 x 40 inches

Private Megan Cassidy, 2006 (Copy) (Copy)

Private Megan Cassidy, 2006 Archival pigment photograph 30 x 40 inches

Convoy live fire range, 2006 (Copy) (Copy)

Convoy live fire range, 2006 Archival pigment photograph 30 x 40 inches

In this project, I have chosen to focus on the youngest soldiers, typically between the ages of 17-21, most of whom are in Pre-Basic or Basic Training. At the beginning of training, the young privates tend to do things that a fully trained soldier would never do, such as dragging their feet or mumbling when addressing their superior. The photographs depict moments amidst the transformation from civilian teenager to fully trained soldier.

I am deeply struck by how young these soldiers are, by their physical vulnerability and by the gravity of what is asked of them. I am interested in the slippages that emerge in the photographs: a child holding a weapon, a soldier’s firm stance mixed with a girl’s uncertain gaze, and a sweaty, pimpled warrior. All of them poised between adolescence and war-weariness.

The photographs were made with a 4x5-inch camera on color negative film.