Return of the Genius Photographer

After taking the photos, the work wrapped up quickly.

“We’re home!”

“Honey, I’m back.”

I returned home feeling much more at ease, like someone who had finished a long-delayed assignment.

“Welcome back! Did everything go well, Woojin?”

As soon as we entered, my mother greeted us warmly, clearly curious about what had transpired between father and son.

“Yes, it went well. Right?” I turned to my father with a playful tone.

“Yeah, I didn’t expect everyone to enjoy having their photos taken so much,” he replied with a laugh.

My mother’s eyes widened in surprise. “Wow, you two seem to have gotten closer after just one outing?”

Neither my father nor I responded; we just shared a knowing smile.

“I’m going to my room now.”

With that brief exchange, I headed straight to my room.

My schedule with my father might be over, but my personal schedule was just beginning.

“Alright, let’s get started with organizing.”

As soon as I entered my room, I connected my camera to the computer and began uploading all the photos I’d taken today.

The upload took quite a while, considering I’d taken nearly a thousand photos.

“The ones from this morning will be used for reporting, so I’ll set them aside. The rest will go on the blog or be given to the workers.”

I started sifting through the photos as they slowly uploaded, categorizing them one by one.

“Hmm… this one’s a bit out of focus. That one has a poor composition…”

For a photographer, the work doesn’t end when the photos are taken.

In fact, many photographers spend more time reviewing and editing their photos than they do shooting them.

If only every photo taken could be perfect. Unfortunately, no matter how much effort and passion goes into each shot, there are always flaws that become evident upon close inspection.

As a result, only a few truly great photos remain after the review process.

Outdoor shots, in particular, are subject to many unpredictable factors, making them even more challenging.

If someone boasts about their photos always turning out great, be wary—that’s just arrogance.

Filtering out the good photos from the bad ones can be a painful process for a photographer who loves all their work. But the joy of finding a truly stunning photo among the rest makes the task worthwhile.

“As expected, the last photo turned out the best.”

The photo of my father and the workers, all smiling brightly, exuded a rough yet vibrant atmosphere that I really liked. Plus, capturing my father’s smile held significant meaning for me.

“I like this one, too.”

In addition to the group photo, I selected a shot of the construction site itself. The stark building under the blazing sun had a strangely compelling look. These two photos were chosen as the A-cuts to be posted on my blog.

“I should print out the good ones to give to the workers.”

Since I had promised to send the photos to the workers, I saved a few more shots in addition to the A-cuts. I planned to visit a photo studio to get them printed.

“A printer would be handy…”

Having a printer and photo paper would make printing easy, but of course, I didn’t have such things at home. Another item added to my shopping list.

Starting on serious projects always seems to reveal an endless list of necessary tools. It really drives home how far I still have to go.

“One step at a time. Now, for the photos set aside for reporting.”

Pushing aside unnecessary thoughts for the moment, I turned my attention back to the photos.

Apart from the A-cuts for the blog and the B-cuts that didn’t make the cut, the rest of the photos were taken during the morning. These were intended to document the poor safety equipment and substandard conditions of the construction site.

These photos required a different kind of attention compared to the earlier selection process.

* * * * *

“It’s been so long since I’ve been home.”

Social affairs reporter Lee Goeun kicked off her smelly shoes as she entered her quiet apartment, devoid of any welcoming presence. Despite the solitude, she had missed this place dearly.

“Ugh… how long has it been? Three days? No, five days?”

She collapsed onto the floor, too exhausted to even make it to her bed, mumbling to herself.

A social reporter is often considered the jewel of the journalism world. She remembered the joy she felt when she first became one, feeling like she’d achieved her dream. However, that joy was now a distant memory. If she could go back in time, she would slap her past self for being so naive.

Could there be a worse job in the world?

A social reporter deals with all sorts of incidents and accidents within society.

It sounds glamorous, but the reality is far from it. The job involves waiting around endlessly for something to happen, constantly visiting prosecutors’ offices, police stations, fire stations, and civic groups in search of stories.

Pulling all-nighters was so common that the job earned the nickname “24-hour team.”

She spent so much time at the police station recently that she began to wonder if she was practically a detainee there.

But even then, finding newsworthy stories was rare. The most she could find were scuffles between homeless people or drunken brawls, not even worth writing up for the internet.

Unable to bear it any longer, she came home for a brief respite after five days.

“Huh! I almost fell asleep.”

Barely awake, she wiped the drool from her face and struggled to get up from the floor. She needed to check for any messages or emails that might have come in before she could sleep.

Dragging her weary body, she managed to sit in front of her computer.

“Ugh… if only someone would write the articles for me,” she muttered absurdly as she began checking her emails. Then, something strange caught her eye.

“What is this? Corruption at Hyunwoo Construction?”

The title alone was enough to jolt her awake. She wondered if it might be spam, but who would use such a specific bait for spam?

The email undoubtedly contained the scoop she had been yearning for.

Forgetting her fatigue, she opened the email and started reading.

“What kind of nonsense is this…?”

Her jaw dropped in shock as she read on. The content was even more shocking than the title.

In simple terms, the email alleged that Hyunwoo Construction, a major construction company, had engaged in bribery to solicit unlawful favors.

If true, this would be a nationwide scandal of epic proportions.

“Ha, this is like something out of a novel,” she exhaled in disbelief.

The claims were so outrageous she didn’t know how to react. It was infuriating to have her sleep interrupted by such preposterous content.

But why…?

Why couldn’t she just close the email?

“How is this so detailed? What are these photos?”

Something didn’t feel right.

The details were too precise to be dismissed as mere fiction.

The email contained information that only an insider could know, laid out clearly and chronologically.

Even the attached photos, purportedly showing the effects of budget cuts, appeared to be taken by someone with inside access to the construction sites.

The sheer volume of photos alone could produce an article.

Would someone really go to such lengths to send a false email?

“It’s worth looking into.”

In situations like these, it’s better to follow intuition rather than logic.

After a brief consideration, she made up her mind.

It wasn’t a hard decision for her.

If the information was accurate, she would have a massive scoop.

If verifying the facts proved difficult, she could frame the story as an allegation, or write the article without directly naming Hyunwoo Construction.

“If that doesn’t work, I can always tweak the content and run an article based on the photos alone.”

A title like “The Reality of Hyunwoo Construction” might work. Coupled with the photos of shoddy safety equipment and some worker interviews, it would still draw public interest.

“But… who sent this?”

As she grew more intrigued by the email, she also became curious about the sender. Was it really an insider? If not, who else could have compiled such detailed information and organized it so neatly?

“Shrwmq123? Nothing comes up on a search.”

Unsurprisingly, searching the email address yielded no results. The sender clearly wanted to remain anonymous. It’s not unusual for informants to conceal their identities, but it meant she had no way to trace them for now.

— Thank you for the information you sent. I have some questions regarding the material. Please contact me by phone if possible. Regards, Reporter Lee Goeun, Social Affairs Department, TEL: 010―XXXX―XXXX.

After sending a reply, she pinched her cheek to check if she was dreaming, then collapsed back onto the floor.

She was too exhausted to even make it to her bed. She quickly fell into a deep sleep.

* * * * *

“Hey! Wake up!”

I heard a voice calling my name.

It was Young-ho’s voice, shaking me awake as I lay sprawled on the desk.

But I ignored him and stayed put.

“Just a little longer…”

I was too sleepy to get up.

“What are you talking about? Get up.”

Young-ho continued to shake me, sounding incredulous.

Young-ho’s persistent attempts to wake me were starting to irritate me.

“Nam Woojin, wake up!”

—Tick!

A piece of chalk thrown by the teacher hit me on the head.

“Hey, Nam Woojin. Are you not paying attention?”

“Ouch….”

Rubbing the back of my head, I looked up to see the teacher’s angry face.

“Idiot. I told you to get up,” Young-ho muttered disdainfully, “What’s wrong with you? All you do is sleep.”

“I couldn’t sleep.”

Still half-asleep, I rubbed my eyes and tried to wake myself up, answering Young-ho.

I hadn’t realized class had started because I’d been sleeping so deeply. The fatigue must have built up since I barely slept over the weekend.

No matter how young I was, pushing myself for three days straight was too much.

“What did you do over the weekend?”

“A lot happened.”

From buying the camera on Friday to following my father for the shoot, sorting the photos, and submitting them to various news outlets—it had been non-stop.

Especially organizing the material for submission to multiple outlets took longer than I expected.

‘How many places did I send it to…?’

Newspapers, social affairs reporters who could amplify my voice, labor unions, the Ministry of Employment and Labor, the Human Rights Commission, and more. I spread the information everywhere I could think of until I lost count.

To the newspapers and journalists, I sent information about Hyunwoo Construction’s bribery.

To labor unions like the Construction Day Labor Union, I sent photos and reports about inadequate safety equipment and construction conditions.

Using my future knowledge and the materials I had, I sent information to any place that might listen.

‘I should get some feedback from this.’

My goal was to minimize the chances of future accidents as much as possible.

I didn’t have any grand ambitions to bring down Hyunwoo Construction or stop the construction entirely. So, there would surely be good results from this.

Many places responded, expressing interest in my email.

‘Many of them even asked for my contact details to follow up.’

Of course, I haven’t contacted anyone back. The email account I used was a fake, containing no personal information.

While I wanted to be recognized for my photography, I didn’t want to be associated with this. It might even bring trouble to my father. It seemed best to remain anonymous.

There would be plenty of opportunities in the future to make a name for myself. For now, I just had to wait and see what impact my photos would have.

And the results came faster than I expected.