After five police officers were killed in Dallas on Thursday, this devastating photo of an officer in tears at the hospital has emerged as one of the most iconic images from the deadly shootings.
The photo, which was taken by Dallas Morning News photo intern Ting Shen, was on the cover of Friday's newspaper as the city was still coming to terms with the tragedy.
The front page of Friday's Dallas Morning News following Thursday's shootings downtown.
Shen told BuzzFeed News he was at Baylor University Hospital as information was still trickling in about the scale of the attack. The mood was tense, and "everybody was shocked and numb," he said.
Standing about 40 feet away on the sidewalk, Shen came upon the emotional scene just inside the emergency room entrance.
“I heard sobbing. I turned around to see what was going on, and that’s when I saw it," he said.
“I happened upon the photo and I’m glad I was able to capture the horrifying situation we have here,” Shen said. “It’s just too much sadness in one week.”
Many people have praised Shen's camerawork, but he said he takes little joy from the attention: “I would trade everything for this not to have happened.”
Tonight's most iconic photo was taken by a Dallas Morning News photo intern (@tingshenphoto) Well done.
“We don’t get into the news to see people die, to see people crying, suffering," he said. "No. We do it because the story has to be told.”
@ZroHour @Chandler_Rome NO. This should not be the reason to become a news photographer. I hate that photo cause I feel the pain they endure