Express-News photographer explains how the image came to be, what it means to him

runs, the 2009 mass shooting at Fort Hood and the 2017 church massacre in Sutherland Springs, among many other stories.

The food giveaway was held April 9 at Traders Village, a flea market on the city’s Southwest Side. In normal times, Food

Bank distributions draw 200 to 400 families. That day, some 10,000 showed up.

I asked Luther to explain what went into his now-iconic picture.

How did you come to be at Traders Village that day?

I was assigned to cover the event with a drone camera while my colleague, Kin Man Hui, was given the difficult task of working in close proximity to the food recipients and the volunteers as the food was distributed.

While drones won’t replace traditional photography, they are a wonderful addition to our toolbox. A helicopter would have put me much higher; a ladder wouldn’t have been high enough. But the drone, flying about 150 to 200 feet off the ground, allowed me to show the scale of the need while still allowing viewers to feel connected to the people in the cars. And the social distancing guidelines that kept everyone inside their cars meant I could fly safely over the vehicles for brief periods.

The distribution was scheduled to start at 10 a.m. You got there two hours early. What was it like?

Traffic already was clogging the Loop 410 access road when I got there. People were arriving faster than the flea market’s driveways could funnel them in. The front parking lot was full as well. While I didn’t know what was to come, lines that large that early told me the need was going to be huge.

When did you get your first glimpse of the scene from above?

The drone feeds live video images to the controller in my hands, and as I launched, I could start to see how full the parking lot really was. In order to fit as many cars as possible, the SAPD Traffic Patrol officers put the cars bumper to bumper rather than parking them in the marked spaces. The view once I got in the air was really unbelievable.

I was at Traders Village until about noon and cars were filing into the parking lots the entire time. Even as cars pulled out of one parking lot, SAPD was filling another one, much like a Slinky wave.

Even after covering my share of natural disasters, I had never seen so many people lined up for food. I try not to get too emotionally involved while on assignment, but seeing all those cars made me realize how important it was for me to do my absolute best documenting the scene so people would understand how dire the situation was.

Your photo went viral. Did that surprise you?

Images of mine have been featured in national publications on occasion. But the speed at which this image spread and the breadth of media outlets that used it were completely unexpected. It has been a bit embarrassing. Photojournalists here and around the country have produced so many compelling images of the pandemic. I wish all of them could receive the attention my image received.

How has the picture affected people, from what you can tell?

What really surprised me was the response from the larger San Antonio community. It was truly heartwarming. The Food Bank received thousands of donations. San Antonio native son Shea Serrano (a humorist and best-selling author) cited the photo when he raised $100,000 for the Food Bank from his Twitter followers in eight hours. And numerous individuals encouraged their friends to donate to their local food bank no matter where they lived. The outpouring of support for the Food Bank just reinforces for me what a special community we have here.

When you look at the picture now, what does it signify for you?

A lot of things go through my mind when I look at that image. I’m proud to have done my job well. I’m sad to know so many people in San Antonio are in need. I’m humbled by how the image moved people to action. But lastly, I’m hopeful. The way so many unnamed San Antonians stepped up without any thought of recognition for themselves to assist other people leaves me hopeful we will come though this pandemic an even closer community, more appreciative of each other and the things we often take for granted.