Kertesz and Cartier-Bresson versus Smith and Salgado
(WEEK 11)
Differences:
The work of Andre Kertesz and Hebru Cartier-Bresson are very different from the work of Eugene Smith and Sebastio Salgodo. Kertesz and Bresson work focused more on street photography, capturing the reality of people and events. These two photographers took random photographs where the audience wasn’t aware of them being there and captured the reality of the photo. Smith and Salgado on the other hand were very interested in getting involved with the audience.
Unlike Smith and Salgado, Kertesz and Bresson didn’t use photo editing tools or programs to change the picture, they kept it real depicting the truth of the story. They believed that the photo should be absolutely unnoticed in order to take a real picture.
Smith was one photographer who spents hours and days in the dark room trying to delete fine lines in the photos, adjusting the lighting, changing the contrast, while adding and deleting specific objects.
Similarities:
The similarities between these four photographers is that they all take journalistic photos. Two of the four (Kertesz and Bresson) take what I would define journalistic and the other two (Smith and Salgado) take photos that are somewhat journalistic and then edit them to enhance the story they are trying to protray.
Better Approach:
I believe that Andre Kertesz and Henri Cartier-Bresson’s approach in journalistic photography is better than Eugene Smith and Sebastio Salgado. Their photos are more realistic and examplify what photojournalism really is. Kertesz and Bresson didn’t attempt to edit their photos, nor try to get involved or too personal with the audience. However, Smith and Salgado let their emotions become involved with their work which directly influenced the product because they already knew what they wanted their photos to look like so they edited it to accomplish that vision.
Comparing the work of these four photographers. The first photo (Kertesz) was a random picture taken off the streets to show the reality, with random people walking on the street. The second photo (Bresson) was taken of two elder women simply looking beyond the streets. The third photo (Smith) was taken 3-4 times of Smith kids to capture the right photo and then the lighting was adjusted. The last photo (Salgado) was arranged for the photo to be taken that way, the lady was told which position she should sit in with her baby. The first two photos were not edited and demonstrates photojournalism, whereas the last two were edited or lack some aspect of photojournalism.
Andre Kertesz
Henri Cartier-Bresson
Eugene Smith
Sebastio Salgado
SHOOTING THE TRUTH: PHOTOJOURNALISM
(WEEK 9)
1. The role of photojournalism is to show the audience the facts of an event through visual images. It allows the reader to feel connected to the event taking place and understanding the emotions affecting people in different parts of the world. For example, someone who is living a wealthy lifestyle in North America might not understand the suffering people go through in Afghanistan or Iraq by simply reading a journalist column; however, they could feel more understanding and connected to people from the other side of the world by seeing images of events taking place overseas. Photojournalism should disclose timeliness, accuracy, accountability to the public, and show a fair representation of the context of events and facts reported.
2. There are rules that photojournalists should follow referred to as Journalistic Codes of Ethics. They must have these rules so that they are producing work that is photojournalist and nothing else. They are not allowed to alter their images because they are to report actual facts of the event; therefore, they cannot delete or add something to an image. However, they are allowed to make changes that will improve the quality of the photo but cannot change the contexts and facts.
3. No, the ethics of taking journalistic photos are not different than the ethics of writing a news story because regardless of the method of delivery, an event should be reported with facts and objectivity to an audience. A photojournalist is just as responsible for capturing the reality of the event as a journalist writing a report is to record the facts of the event.
4. The impact of altering photos can dramatically change the context of a photo. When altering photos, photojournalists are not allowed to delete people or certain objects of the event captured. The only exception of editing is to improve the quality of the photo. However, I don’t think the photos should be edited at all in postproduction because a photo should speak the truth about real times, real people, real events, and true facts.
This image shows the event that took place on September 11, 2001 in New York City when the World Trade Center was attacked.
What was the role of Migrant Mother photograph in the period or great depression and what is it nowadays?
The role of Migrant Mother photograph in the period of the great depression reflected victims of the Great Depression. The photo that was captured by photographer Dorothea Lange showed a strong woman who was the mother of seven children. As Dorothea was on her way back from a trip she stumbled upon a camp where she saw the woman with two children resting and leaning on her. She thought it would make excellent photography and immediately capture about 6 pictures. The migrant mother were straving as they suffered through the Great Depression with very little to survive with. The photo symbolized how hard it was during that time; today, the photo shows how intense the Great Depression was and how families were desperate struggled to make it through stravation.
Why is documentary photography important?
Documentary photography is important because it captures the reality of events. It does not manipulate the photo in any way; it portrays what is actually going on. It mostly refers to significant and historical events. When shooting documentary images, photographers tries to produce the truth within a photo, mostly capturing the activities being performed by people.
What was Jacob Riis’s role impact on documentary photography?
Jacob Rii’s impact on documentary photography was to change the condition of areas in which the poor lived. He was a police reporter that was able to take pictures from investigating in the slums area. His work was successful in incorporating photography in urban reform movements. His first published book on How the Other Half Lives became a popular phenomenon as it serves as a replica for all photographers on social change within the city.
(https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiR2ZcjAesDOub0bSvwl4rM4Odf77YuKsmLLUyfuhB_fiac2ihYD7ScaTcQK4Lf8pZCKLFMslVKxFw7n8LJrO5dx1XKmxS-bVTIrKfbED4tyHTEIf8gISgFH8mlikuSQ835bQOROyofW4Me/s320/2.jpg)
What was Levis Hine's contribution?
Lewis Hine was a photographer who shot photos to improve the living condition of children. His photographs displayed images of children working excessively hard in various workforces. His photos were intended to show how hard children were being worked in a country (America) where cities were being rapidly developed, and how young boys were forced to grow up at an early age. He wanted the people to see what was happening with these children, and for everyone to contribute to a more fair relationship in society among each other.
(Source: https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiR2ZcjAesDOub0bSvwl4rM4Odf77YuKsmLLUyfuhB_fiac2ihYD7ScaTcQK4Lf8pZCKLFMslVKxFw7n8LJrO5dx1XKmxS-bVTIrKfbED4tyHTEIf8gISgFH8mlikuSQ835bQOROyofW4Me/s320/2.jpg)
Was Lange honest?
I personally don’t think that Lange was quite honest because in order for the pictures to appear in several papers, Lange must have shown it to various sources. However, she did claim to ask some questions, but I suppose the questions were not very detail or in depth. Though, keep in mind that at the time photography was very expensive and exciting, and for a photo to capture so many peoples’ attention must have received tremendous credits. Lange probably collected a lot of money from the pictures she took; it’s just too bad that the actual people in the photo didn’t get a penny out of it. To explain where I would oppose to her honesty came from this passage I read;
Lange later wrote of the meeting:
"I did not ask her name or her history. She told me her age, that she was 32. She said that they had been living on frozen vegetables from the surrounding fields and birds that the children killed. She had just sold the tires from her car to buy food."
However, Thompson claimed that Lange never asked her any questions and got many of the details incorrect. Troy Owens recounted:
"There's no way we sold our tires, because we didn't have any to sell. The only ones we had were on the Hudson and we drove off in them. I don’t believe Dorothea Lange was lying, I just think she had one story mixed up with another. Or she was borrowing to fill in what she didn't have."[3]
Thompson also claimed that Lange promised the photos would never be published, but Lange sent them to the San Francisco News as well as to the Resettlement Administration in Washington, D.C.
(Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Florence_Owens_Thompson)
Was the migrant mother real representative of the migrant workers who lived in camps?
Yes it was because the picture shows a woman embracing her children as she looks off into the distance during the Great Depression. The picture shows how hard times were, because even though the woman was roughly in her 30’s she looked older than she really was. It also portrays how dearly she loved her children, her face showed that emotion of her and how sincere she was. The picture pretty much exemplified how families were during the Great Depression.
Did Lange's photo made an impact on the life of migrant workers?
Lange’s photo did made an impact on the life of migrant workers because it was a ideal picture of how families with children suffered through the Great Depression. The emotions and facial expressions in the photo was very endearing. The migrant workers got fame out if it and they also got tremendous respect out of it as well. So many people used that photo as strength in getting through the hard times.
References:
Migrant Mother, 1936," EyeWitness to History, www.eyewitnesstohistory.com (2005).
http://memory.loc.gov/ammem/fsahtml/fahome.html and elaborate
1st photo: http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_bjqmGmHDb1w/SO21kMRywWI/AAAAAAAABN8/3RYEfsvmFrU/s400/Okies+headed+west+California+migrant+labor+dust+bowl+great+depression.jpg
2nd photo: https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgnCJvjI_sUd70UuxDNwgaps8mSBfzMiaS-64inbKtvw5Jeg0w8uidKFMX_o0zjo5B3eefcuUk8VMFHMKI24krSfA1yB7OqNLEZrsZGrqflPTYh0l9NvYcE-FXyw2OxnVCsm3FyBUlRPImK/s320/jobs.jpg
When something is reproduced for so many times is that art? What's the importance of the mechanical reproducibility of the art? What was the impact on mechanical reproducibility on the society?
Producing something time after time doesn’t necessarily make it art anymore. It is no longer the original copy of an image and that changes the intended purpose of the image. However mechanically reproducing art allows ideas to come from the art structure of that photograph. The importance of mechanical reproducibility of art is to look back at past and create that history into meaningful, and more modern art. It enables people to compare how technology has driven us to take history and display it through the way we see it by reproducing an image to our persona. The impact on mechanical reproducibility on society was positive as it influenced others to grow and learn from others work of art. Mechanical reproducibility helps us learn about history which helps us learn about society. It allows us to look at various different aspects and interpretations of others work, allowing us to enhance and expand our own ideas which deepen the growth of mechanical reproducibility.
Is photography art, or contribution to the art? Is it just a tool used by artists?
I believe that photography is art; perhaps, art is a form of photography (both art and a contribution to art). Art is created through ones mind or simply through the talent and skills of a person’s thoughts/ideas. This can also be compare to a photographer capturing art rather than drawing it on a piece of paper. When taking a photo, there is more to it than just simply snapping a photo. A photo has meaning or serves a purpose to the photographer which defines human creativity. The photographer usually tends to focus on a lot of things rather than just the particular object it is aiming to capture. They take things like lighting, balance, background, and colours into consideration.
How and why Henry Pitch Robinson created Feading Away? What was the reason?
Fading away was an image of a family suffering and hurting from their dying daughter due to tuberculosis. Many said it was a very painful image to be created as photography, but it was a very common situation to be experienced among many humans. It was expectable for painters to create such images but not photographers. However the purpose of Feading Away was to create five negatives into one image. This picture was created to capture the despair of family members.
Photography has impacted the world of art and influenced some changes in the area of accessibility to art. If mechanical reproduction created revolution, what is happening now with the digitalization?
Because technology has evolved and advanced to the extent that it did over the years, images are becoming easier to capture and duplicate. With digitalization, an image could be reproduced over and over again, making it harder to distinguish the original.
**Questions/Comments
Sources:
http://www.photography-schools.com/photojournalismhistory.htm
(Image)
DOCUMENTING THE GREAT DEPRESSION
(WEEK 6)
The role of Migrant Mother photograph in the period of the great depression reflected victims of the Great Depression. The photo that was captured by photographer Dorothea Lange showed a strong woman who was the mother of seven children. As Dorothea was on her way back from a trip she stumbled upon a camp where she saw the woman with two children resting and leaning on her. She thought it would make excellent photography and immediately capture about 6 pictures. The migrant mother were straving as they suffered through the Great Depression with very little to survive with. The photo symbolized how hard it was during that time; today, the photo shows how intense the Great Depression was and how families were desperate struggled to make it through stravation.
Why is documentary photography important?
Documentary photography is important because it captures the reality of events. It does not manipulate the photo in any way; it portrays what is actually going on. It mostly refers to significant and historical events. When shooting documentary images, photographers tries to produce the truth within a photo, mostly capturing the activities being performed by people.
What was Jacob Riis’s role impact on documentary photography?
Jacob Rii’s impact on documentary photography was to change the condition of areas in which the poor lived. He was a police reporter that was able to take pictures from investigating in the slums area. His work was successful in incorporating photography in urban reform movements. His first published book on How the Other Half Lives became a popular phenomenon as it serves as a replica for all photographers on social change within the city.
What was Levis Hine's contribution?
Lewis Hine was a photographer who shot photos to improve the living condition of children. His photographs displayed images of children working excessively hard in various workforces. His photos were intended to show how hard children were being worked in a country (America) where cities were being rapidly developed, and how young boys were forced to grow up at an early age. He wanted the people to see what was happening with these children, and for everyone to contribute to a more fair relationship in society among each other.
Was Lange honest?
I personally don’t think that Lange was quite honest because in order for the pictures to appear in several papers, Lange must have shown it to various sources. However, she did claim to ask some questions, but I suppose the questions were not very detail or in depth. Though, keep in mind that at the time photography was very expensive and exciting, and for a photo to capture so many peoples’ attention must have received tremendous credits. Lange probably collected a lot of money from the pictures she took; it’s just too bad that the actual people in the photo didn’t get a penny out of it. To explain where I would oppose to her honesty came from this passage I read;
Lange later wrote of the meeting:
"I did not ask her name or her history. She told me her age, that she was 32. She said that they had been living on frozen vegetables from the surrounding fields and birds that the children killed. She had just sold the tires from her car to buy food."
However, Thompson claimed that Lange never asked her any questions and got many of the details incorrect. Troy Owens recounted:
"There's no way we sold our tires, because we didn't have any to sell. The only ones we had were on the Hudson and we drove off in them. I don’t believe Dorothea Lange was lying, I just think she had one story mixed up with another. Or she was borrowing to fill in what she didn't have."[3]
Thompson also claimed that Lange promised the photos would never be published, but Lange sent them to the San Francisco News as well as to the Resettlement Administration in Washington, D.C.
(Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Florence_Owens_Thompson)
Was the migrant mother real representative of the migrant workers who lived in camps?
Yes it was because the picture shows a woman embracing her children as she looks off into the distance during the Great Depression. The picture shows how hard times were, because even though the woman was roughly in her 30’s she looked older than she really was. It also portrays how dearly she loved her children, her face showed that emotion of her and how sincere she was. The picture pretty much exemplified how families were during the Great Depression.
Lange’s photo did made an impact on the life of migrant workers because it was a ideal picture of how families with children suffered through the Great Depression. The emotions and facial expressions in the photo was very endearing. The migrant workers got fame out if it and they also got tremendous respect out of it as well. So many people used that photo as strength in getting through the hard times.
Migrant Mother, 1936," EyeWitness to History, www.eyewitnesstohistory.com (2005).
http://memory.loc.gov/ammem/fsahtml/fahome.html and elaborate
1st photo: http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_bjqmGmHDb1w/SO21kMRywWI/AAAAAAAABN8/3RYEfsvmFrU/s400/Okies+headed+west+California+migrant+labor+dust+bowl+great+depression.jpg
2nd photo: https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgnCJvjI_sUd70UuxDNwgaps8mSBfzMiaS-64inbKtvw5Jeg0w8uidKFMX_o0zjo5B3eefcuUk8VMFHMKI24krSfA1yB7OqNLEZrsZGrqflPTYh0l9NvYcE-FXyw2OxnVCsm3FyBUlRPImK/s320/jobs.jpg
Discussion/Presentation: Can art be mechanically reproduced?
(WEEK 3)
When something is reproduced for so many times is that art? What's the importance of the mechanical reproducibility of the art? What was the impact on mechanical reproducibility on the society?
Producing something time after time doesn’t necessarily make it art anymore. It is no longer the original copy of an image and that changes the intended purpose of the image. However mechanically reproducing art allows ideas to come from the art structure of that photograph. The importance of mechanical reproducibility of art is to look back at past and create that history into meaningful, and more modern art. It enables people to compare how technology has driven us to take history and display it through the way we see it by reproducing an image to our persona. The impact on mechanical reproducibility on society was positive as it influenced others to grow and learn from others work of art. Mechanical reproducibility helps us learn about history which helps us learn about society. It allows us to look at various different aspects and interpretations of others work, allowing us to enhance and expand our own ideas which deepen the growth of mechanical reproducibility.
Is photography art, or contribution to the art? Is it just a tool used by artists?
I believe that photography is art; perhaps, art is a form of photography (both art and a contribution to art). Art is created through ones mind or simply through the talent and skills of a person’s thoughts/ideas. This can also be compare to a photographer capturing art rather than drawing it on a piece of paper. When taking a photo, there is more to it than just simply snapping a photo. A photo has meaning or serves a purpose to the photographer which defines human creativity. The photographer usually tends to focus on a lot of things rather than just the particular object it is aiming to capture. They take things like lighting, balance, background, and colours into consideration.
How and why Henry Pitch Robinson created Feading Away? What was the reason?
Fading away was an image of a family suffering and hurting from their dying daughter due to tuberculosis. Many said it was a very painful image to be created as photography, but it was a very common situation to be experienced among many humans. It was expectable for painters to create such images but not photographers. However the purpose of Feading Away was to create five negatives into one image. This picture was created to capture the despair of family members.
Photography has impacted the world of art and influenced some changes in the area of accessibility to art. If mechanical reproduction created revolution, what is happening now with the digitalization?
Because technology has evolved and advanced to the extent that it did over the years, images are becoming easier to capture and duplicate. With digitalization, an image could be reproduced over and over again, making it harder to distinguish the original.
**Questions/Comments
