Week 3 - Portraits
My daughter Ti'anna will be turning 10 at the end of January, so I decided to allow her to help choose the outfit and venue for our shoot. She chose the early 18th century costume I made her in September of last year for the Portland Pirate Festival, and we decided to take the ferry into the heart of Seattle on the waterfront for our location. However, when we got onto the ferry, the sun was setting, bathing the boat in warm golden light, and we ended up making the most of it and took the majority of our shots inside the ferry during sunset.
Most of these photos are directly as they came off the camera, and merely resized, but I've cropped and retouched a few of them. With such a lovely subject, the photos didn't need any retouching; a few taken in near dark with long exposures did require some level and color adjustments. See the caption on each shot for more details.
Most of these photos are directly as they came off the camera, and merely resized, but I've cropped and retouched a few of them. With such a lovely subject, the photos didn't need any retouching; a few taken in near dark with long exposures did require some level and color adjustments. See the caption on each shot for more details.
Week 3 - History of Photography
Photography & Social AwarenessWounded Civil War soldiers, 1864; by James Gardner.
Before the birth of modern photography in 1839, recording and presenting information about the hidden ailments of society was mainly the work of authors and artists. Through paintings, sculpture, novels, print journalism, and other mediums, the compassionate artist or author tried to recreate the poignancy of suffering experienced by disadvantaged members of society. They did this neither to glorify nor to mock, but in order to communicate the human condition compellingly to the upper classes who rarely encountered it otherwise; wealthy people who could not only be part of the cure, but were often part of the cause. But the work was painstaking, and art was expensive. Wealthy patrons did not often commission such works, but rather those that would validate and honor them and their extravagant lifestyles to posterity.
Although photography, in its infancy, was not suitable for quick action due to both the complicated procedures required to prepare a photographic plate and the very long exposures that were necessary, as soon as the technology had progressed sufficiently, photojournalism was born. This new technology was the ultimate medium for communicating those truths so long swept under the carpet or repainted in glorified prose that glossed over the harsher realities. Through the lens, no accusations of romanticism or exaggeration could stand; a photograph represented the facts exactly as they were. Plus, photographs could be distributed widely and at little cost, through inexpensive pamphlets and newspapers. 'Bandit's Roost' by Jacob Riis. New York, c. 1880.
As early as 1847, photographers began aiming their lenses at battlefields all over the world. In the 1860's, American Civil War photographers Alexander Gardner and Mathew Brady (later known as the father of photojournalism) made history with their documentary photographs of slain soldiers. In the 1880's, police journalist and photographer Jacob Riis decided to turn the lens onto the battlefields that were closer to home: those of the slums of New York. His photojournal, How the Other Half Lives: Studies Among the Tenements of New York, was filled with sketches, photos, interviews, vignettes, and statistics designed to stir the hearts of the upper classes to take notice of the squalor and injustice going on in their own backyards, and a plan detailing ways that readers could take action to help make a difference. Lewis Hine was another photographer and social activist who used his camera to help trigger changes in American child labor laws. Haunting photographs of children in horrible conditions spoke to the American public in a way that could not be ignored. Dorothea Lange was another famous photographer who documented the harrowing realities of everyday life during the Great Depression.
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WWII Poland. Julien Bryan, via Wikimedia Commons.
Social documentary photography is still one of the most compelling ways to communicate powerful truths to people who may not be able to imagine what life is like outside of their immediate cultural experiences. Photojournalists continue to put their lives in harm's way to preserve history. The increased ease of digital photography has not only made this easier, as technology has simplified both the method and speed of taking photos, but has even made developing and disseminating them as simple as a click of a button. No longer does the world have to wait for a photographer to make it back out of the front lines safely before they can share the images they have captured. Now, with nearly ubiquitous wireless internet and cellular coverage, a digital picture can be taken and released to the public in mere seconds.
Photographer Jésula, 13, from Haiti.'Man in One-Room Home'
As photographic technology becomes smaller, more inexpensive, and more accessible, photojournalists are now taking the next step. Instead of merely pointing the lens at poverty and suffering, visionary photographer Zana Briski decided to put the camera itself into the hands of the poor. After working on a documentary in Calcutta, India that peered into the lives of children born into brothels there, she decided to stay and teach photography to the children, and let them tell the world their own story in their own 'words.' Her organization, called Kids With Cameras, now has several operations in marginalized communities around the world. Through the sales of the children's photos as well as donations generated by people made aware of the need through her projects, funds are available to provide education and a better life for these precious children.
Resources: http://www.kids-with-cameras.org/home/ http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lewis_Hine http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/How_the_Other_Half_Lives http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Social_documentary_photography |