a Patriotic Spirit

Has Prompted One Photographer To Look For Flags

Everywhere He Goes

By Shannon Hicks

Chris Seman did not lose anyone on 9/11, or during the hurricane season of 2005, or even during the Oklahoma City bombing back in April 1995. But a few years ago something began nagging at the Newtown native and he realized he wanted to help people who went through those events. A former art photography major at The Art Institute in Fort Lauderdale, Fla., Mr Seman has decided to combine his interest in and eye for photography with a number of cross country trips to create a coffee table book featuring the American flag.

“I did not lose anybody in those tragedies, but I am a true American and I thought this would be the best way to give back to the people who lost their lives,” Mr Seman said recently.

He is still looking for a publisher but says it will get into the public arena even if he ends up having to self-publish it. All proceeds, he has promised, will be divided between victims of the 2005 hurricanes, the Oklahoma City bombing, and 9/11, including Flight 93.

He has done “two really good trips,” one each in 2004 and 2005, where it was just him, his Volkswagen GTI, flags, camera, and camping gear. Sometimes he finds a scene with a flag already in it, while other times there have been great backgrounds but no flags available so he decided quickly to make sure he always had a collection of flags of varying sizes.

The first year he started in Connecticut, went to Florida for a friend’s wedding, and continued driving. He went across the panhandle, worked his way out to California, cut across Colorado and Kansas, and worked his way home.

In 2005 he took a northern route; New England has been covered during day trips.

“This region you can do almost day any time,” he said. “Everything is within a few hours’ drive.”

Last year was devoted to catching up and organizing, he said. He has two friends who are helping him coordinate the photos from each state, culling the best from thousands of images and coupling them with brief write-ups.

Before embarking on any of his trips, he said, “I thought about the United States and what each state has within it. I’ve been to national parks, universities, and places of interest where you can actually see what the state is. You’ll know [where] a photo [was taken] by its landmarks.”

Travelwise, all that is left at this point is one of the furthest possible destinations from Connecticut: Mr Seman needs to get out to Alaska to complete his project.

The as-yet-unnamed book will tell the story of Mr Seman’s travels and the stories behind the photos. There are countless anecdotes that he will be sharing for years, too, but not all will make it into the book. The story about camping — and getting terribly lost — in the Everglades with his buddy Mike Butler will probably make it in, considering he took a great photo of Mike holding a flag shortly after the two found their way back to civilization. The there was time when he was tent camping in Iowa and he learned that an escaped prisoner was in the area.

“I was the only one in that campground that night. Things like that get a little eerie,” he said. That story probably won’t make it into the book, but it is part of the experience, like being chased by wild hogs while camping in Texas.

“Remember The Thorn Birds, when that kid was attacked by the wild boar? I kept thinking about that while these pigs were sniffing around outside my tent,” he said.

The book is not limited to a one flag per state ratio.

“A few states will have more than one flag. Some may have five, others only one due to their size and the difficulty I had finding anything,” he said. “There were times when I just couldn’t find anything.”

Between travel expenses, film (yes, he is shooting everything on 35 mm film and then transferring the images onto CDs), and the few places he has paid for lodging, Mr Seman estimates he has invested at least $20,000 into this project. Without a publisher, that’s all out of his own pocket.

During his travels he has stayed with lots of friends, some family members, at youth hostels, and lots of campgrounds.

“I’ve paid for lodging a few times, but the thing that saved me was my National Park Pass. That was the best $50 I’ve ever spent,” he said.

Obviously he cannot afford to pay people to appear in his book, but when Mr Seman explains what he is working on, most people agree to have their photo taken. In return, he e-mails a copy of their photo to each subject and there is the possibility of that photo eventually ending up in a successful book.

“Probably 80 percent of the people I approach have said Yes when I ask to take their picture,” he said. “I met a Merchant Marine during the photo shoot in Portsmouth [New Hampshire], and he thanked me for what I was doing.”

For Mr Seman, that was payment enough.