One of the first things you noticed from Antonio Bolfo’s images of New York’s finest is the proximity the Reportage by Getty Images photographer seems to enjoy with his subjects – you almost feel like he’s part of the IMPACT unit of rookie officers sent in some of the city’s poorest and most dangerous neighbourhoods. And, a few years ago, Bolfo was, in fact, a police officer. He served two years, including six months in the IMPACT programme, before retiring to become a full-time photographer.

“It was during the idealistic part of my life,” Bolfo tells BJP’s news editor Olivier Laurent. “I wanted to help people. I grew up in New York, I really thought I could make a difference. Obviously I was very naïve. Of course, I learned two weeks into it that it’s not really like that; But I liked it. I liked the job and the people I was working with. I grew as a person and an individual and saw the world in a different way after. And that was a reason why I wanted to do this story.”

This story is about a rookie unit called IMPACT where almost every cop that gets hired in the NYPD goes through, Bolfo explains. “I went through the programme like all of my colleagues, and I just thought it was a very interesting story because you take the most un-experienced cops and you put them in a place where you really should have the most experience. It’s a programme that offers growth; it’s their first taste of being police officers. It’s kind of the baseline of what these cops learn from.”

The images on show at the festival are of a unit consisting of thirty novice officers assigned to the Mott Haven housing projects in the South Bronx, one of the poorest, most notorious neighborhoods in America, says the photographer.

Despite his past as a police officer, Bolfo says it was still tricky for him to cover the unit. “In the beginning there was some hesitation, but you share war stories. I experienced what they were experiencing, so I think they definitely felt that. You build relationship over time. The more I spent with them, the more trust they had for me.”

Dan and Pez (left to right) attend the funeral of Officer Omar Edwards, who was shot and killed by plain clothes officers who mistook him for an armed criminal © Antonio Bolfo / Reportage by Getty Images.

But, his closeness to the cops didn’t necessarily mean that Bolfo was able to report without limitations. “On the one hand, I want to do the story, on the other hand I want to do it legally. It’s New York City and these guys’ careers are on the line. So, they give me access to places for which they can give me access to. But, for the buildings, I would get the permission from the people that lived there.  I like getting close for the photo, as close as I can. Obviously there are times when I cannot get as close as I’d like because fits are flying… but it really depends on the situation.” Bolfo, he adds, also makes sure to seek permission from the people whom the unit is targeting. “If they don’t want to be photographed, then I won’t do it. If I’m allowed in the house, then I would talk to the people, explain to them what I’m doing. Most times, they are quite generous. They welcome me.”

Bolfo adds: “I think it’s an important story because through this programme we’re seeing how officers are being trained for the rest of their lives. This programme really is the basis for the education of this department. I think it’s important to see where it’s coming from.”

And, says Bolfo, his own experience within the unit, which is though at times, has also shaped his own character and his own work. In fact, his project started when he was still a police officer, he tells BJP. “I wasn’t really supposed to take photographs when I was a cop, but I did anyway – when off-duty – because it was kind of my therapy.  People deal with stress that comes with the job in their own ways. For me, it was through photography. “

Bolfo is still working on the project, which Getty Images distributes. He’s also working in Haiti, where he will go back to after Visa Pour l’Image.

Visit www.antoniobolfo.com.