The shot that shook a nation: Doug Mills' lens on Trump
At a rally in Pennsylvania, he stood right under the stage. He captured on camera the bullet that almost killed Donald Trump. He didn't stop photographing even when Secret Service agents shielded the injured politician with their bodies. Who is Doug Mills, the photographer who took a series of unique photos? His photographs have circulated globally before.
Seconds decided the outcome at the election rally in Butler, Pennsylvania, when photographer Doug Mills took an iconic photo. He managed to capture the moment when a bullet flew right past Donald Trump's head (the photo shows a horizontal streak against the sky). He also captured the politician, grabbing his right ear and looking at his hand.
When 20-year-old assassin - Thomas Matthew Crooks - started shooting, Mills, like other photojournalists, was standing under the stage, a few feet away from Donald Trump.
Suddenly, I heard what I thought were three or four loud cracks. My first thought was that it was a car. The last - that they were gunshots, the photographer recounted in an interview with "The New York Times".
Mills didn't think about saving himself. He just kept taking more pictures.
The next shots were taken when Secret Service agents appeared on stage. The photos show not only blood but also emotions written on the politician's face.
According to many commentators, the unique shots, including those by Mills, will not only go down in U.S. history but could also impact election results.
Read also: He shot at Trump, starred in an ad. The recording is spreading on the internet
Who is photographer Doug Mills?
Doug Mills, the author of iconic photos, is not an anonymous figure. He is a distinguished, experienced photojournalist who collaborates with "The New York Times" and has photographed U.S. presidents for over four decades.
According to ndtv.com, Mills is from Greensboro, North Carolina, and is 64 years old. He studied at Northern Virginia Community College in Virginia. He has a wife and two daughters.
Mills started photographing presidents in 1983. He began by taking pictures of Ronald Reagan. He started working at the Washington office of "The New York Times" in 2002. Before then, he served as the chief photographer for the Associated Press in Washington for 15 years. In 1993, Mills was awarded the Pulitzer Prize.
(...) For 35-40 years, I dealt with presidents, but I didn't want to witness something like that, Mills admitted in an interview with American media, referring to the attack on Trump's life.
Interestingly, it was Mills who in the past captured the moment when President George W. Bush learned about the attack on the World Trade Center.
