Photographic Journalism.
Lauren Sutherland.
Lauren Ami. 18 years old. Photographicjournalism student.
Life is like Photography,
A Magazine written on 8 topics for the subject ‘History of Photojournalism.’ It contains various images and reseach that I have gathered myself. It explores different genres & forms of Art which I find explanatory of the particular subject.
Contents page; 1 to 3 4 to 6 7 to 9 10 to 12 13 to 15 16 to 18 19 to 21 22 to 24
we develop from the negatives...
Image Timeline Aquisition. Surrealism. Mythology. Social comment. Propaganda. Story telling. Decisive moment. Journey.
Image Aquisition:
Timeline.
Timeline: The History
Frederick Archer developed a process called the ‘ Wet collodion process’ which meant that he used a camera obscura and various chemicals to create a wet plate for the images to be ‘Joseph Niepce exposed on to. fixed the first ever photoSir John Herschel created This method has nearly entirely replaced graph of a nature scene, in the first negatives using a the first photographic process ‘The Circa. process called ‘Hyposulphite Daugerreotype.’ This was called ‘Helio1826
graphic’
1830
of Soda’
1851
1838
1839
William Henry Fox Talbot used a ‘camera obscura’ to produce Sir John Herschel also was the first to use the word his own photography process. Louis Daugerre was in rivalry with ‘Photography’ which derived from the greek. Talbot, as they both competed to find the best way of processing photographs.
James Maxwell the first to master a permanent coloured image. He photographed his of a ribbon.
1861
Talbot uses paper that had already been made light sensitive to process positive and negative images which he called ‘Phonetic drawing.’
1871
Richard Maddox creator of the gelatin emulsion ‘dry plate’ which has been found to be an improved method of photographic processing.
Image Acquisiton. Camera level. - Development in motion photography and motion videos.
Celluoid fluid was introduced. Louis le Prince started working on his motion picture experiments. “Kinetoscope” 1881
1878
Arthur Korn “Telegraphy technology.” 1902
1885
1888
1895
Eastman patents Kodak roll -film camera. Auguste & Louis LumiEadweard Muybridge ere invented “Cinemawas a motion photographer, but tographe. was most famous for his project ‘The horse in motion.’
Yasujiro Niwa created ‘Phototelegraphic transmission.’
Becky Sharp produced the first feature film (technicolour.)
1920
1935
3D Film crave begins. 1952
1923
Harold Edgerton creates the “Xenon Flash Lamp.”
Development in digital photography.
Surrealism. “If I had a world of my own, everything would be nonsense. Nothing would be what it is, because everything would be what it isn't. And contrary wise, what is, it wouldn't be. And what it wouldn't be, it would. You see?�
Salvador Dali.
“Take me, I am the drug; take me, I am hallucinogenic.” - Salvador Dali
Salvador Dali was a Spanish surrealist painter, commonly known for his bizarre images and his eccentric nature. His work had been heavily influenced by Surrealism, but in 1929 he collaborated with Luis Buñuel – Surrealist film director. Dali’s artwork of ‘Alice in Wonderland’ for Lewis Carrol inspired me as it showed a explored a child-like fantasy land with a psychotic, dreamy edginess. The story itself has many distortions and surrealist elements which creates a good foundation for Dali’s surrealist vision.
Dada; Dada, a movement which first appeared in the early twentieth century, was an anti-art movement born from the nega- tive impact of the horrors of World War I. Dada rejected reason and logic, creat- ing nonsense and irrationality, resulting in the attack and change of modern subconsciousness. The origin of the name Dada is unclear, but it is believed that it is a nonsensical word. Surrealism, which derived from Dada, is a cultural movement that occurred in the early 1920’s, primarily emphasising it’s positive expression through visual artworks and literature. Surrealism is widely popular for it’s unusual juxtaposi- tions, it’s complexity and it’s element of surprise. The irrational tenets of Surre- alism find their ancestry in the clever disregard for tradition fostered by Dada’s activities a decade earlier.
Salvador’s work; The use of sizing in surrealism is key as it shows distorThe use of a recurring image/shape is effective in surrealism as it creates a sort of signiture. The repetition shows the story being carried on through the various photographs of manipulation. tion of which our mind doesn’t see when we look at the image(such as the white rabbit) we would see this as a small creature, but the manipulation has been to percieve this as a scary, big contributor to the story.
Dali’s artwork of ‘Alice in Wonderland’ for Lewis Carrol inspired me as it showed a explored a child-like fantasy land with a psychotic, dreamy edginess. The story itself has many distortions and surrealist elements which creates a good foundation for Dali’s surrealist vision. ‘Alice in Wonderland’ contains various surrealist elements, that can be transformed and manipulated further to create an image so deluded and strange. The fantasy world creates a platform/foundation for Dali’s manipulation to expand. He adjusts and complicates this fantasy world very successfully.
Myths:
www.thefreedictionary.com/myth a. A traditional, typically ancient story dealing with supernatural beings, ancestors, or heroes that serves as a fundamental type in the worldview of a people, as by explaining aspects of the natural world or delineating the psychology, customs, or ideals of society: b. A popular belief or story that has become associated with a person, institution, or occurrence, especially one considered to illustrate a cultural ideal:
In Greek mythology: Medusa was a monster, a Gorgon, generally described as having the face of a hideous human female with living venomous snakes in place of hair. Gazing directly upon her would turn onlookers to stone. In most versions of the story, she was beheaded by the hero Perseus, who was sent to fetch her head by King Polydectes of Seriphus. In his conquest, he received a mirrored shield from Athena, gold, winged sandals from Hermes, a sword from Hephaestus and Hades' helm of invisibility. Medusa was the only one of the three Gorgons who was mortal, so Perseus was able to slay her while looking at the reflection from the mirrored shield he received from Athena. During that time, Medusa was pregnant by Poseidon. When Perseus beheaded her, Pegasus, a winged horse, and Chrysaor, a golden sword-wielding giant, sprang from her body. [This was the early version of this myth.]
Medusa:
In the late version of this myth, Medusa was originally a ravishingly beautiful maiden, "the jealous aspiration of many suitors." When she was caught being raped by the "Lord of the Sea" Poseidon in Athena's temple, the enraged Athena transformed Medusa's beautiful hair to serpents and made her face so terrible to behold that the mere sight of it would turn onlookers to stone. There are many versions and interpretations of this myth, which is why I chose to do it because it’s so versatile. I also chose to wrtie about it because even though there are many versions, the myth is remembered by her appearance - which is what the myth is mainly about. Robinson H. and Wilson K. (1962) “Stheno and Euryale, who were immortal and Medusa, who was mortal. Horrible even in hell, to see them was to be turned to stone.� Allthough there are alternate endings/meanings/versions, the primary foundations of the myth are still the same which makes it able to live on as a story or tale. Thus, making it a good myth as it has a repetitive nature caused by the never changing foundations. A myth is something that has a long life span, so this is a perfect example.
“Social Comment”
Social commentary, commentary on social issues or society can be found in any form of communication; Art, literature, newspapers, film and photography. “Photography in regard to social commentary focuses on the integration of documentary photography, research, new technologies, and concepts of social change. People and events provide great insight into human behavior that, in turn, provide us with the opportunity to observe the impact of, for example, policies and social change on citizens.” Social commentary is a great way of displaying influential messages through your own ‘voice.’
I have chosen to research Banksy – a street artist from Bristol. “His satirical street art and subversive epigrams combine dark humour with graffiti done in a distinctive stencilling technique. Such artistic works of political and social commentary have been featured on streets, walls, and bridges of cities throughout the world.” Banksy displays his art work on public surfaces such as walls and buildings.
“Graffiti is one of the few tools you have if you have almost nothing. And even if you don’t come up with a picture to cure world poverty you can make someone smile while they’re having a piss.”
“Banksy's art work is not only creative but also demonstrates a clear political message.”
“I think Banksy's art has made us stop and think.”
“Banksy is one of, if not THE, most influential artist in the world.” The concept of Banksy’s work is to stimulate the mind. He tries to convey social events through his work in order to reach out to the audience in a way that makes them think twice. The reason I feel that Banksy’s work is so effective is that it creates room for ‘social comment’ - as people talk about these issues daily and after seeing his work they have a different perspective on them. He is not afraid to push boundaries and exceed limits in order to get his work noticed as he displays them publicly. Banksy is an artist that defines Social comment.
“We all fight our battles on different levels.”
Propaganda;
“Information, ideas, or rumors deliberately spread widely to help or harm a person, group, movement, institution, nation, etc.” “1 [mass noun] information, especially of a biased or misleading nature, used to promote a political cause or point of view.”
Norman Rockwell. - a Twentieth century American painter and illustrator, most famous for his reflection of the American culture. During WW I Rockwell tried to enlist in to the US Navy, but was refused and instead was offered the role of ‘military artist.’ In 1943, during WW II, Rockwell painted his Four Freedoms series which was inspired by Franklin Roosevelt’s speech describing the four principles for universal rights. His work was published for the Saturday Evening Post.
German aggressors;
The German posters are emotive, usually graphic and surreal. Persuasive and religious (God made us do this.) Explicit
Storytelling;
The conveying of events in words, images and sounds, often by improvisation or embellish-
ment. - Written, oral or pictorial.
You have to decipher the meanings for yourself as there is no explanation. Everybody may see someone different.
“The Lion King is a 1994 American animated musical adventure film produced by Walt Disney Feature Animation and released by Walt Disney Pictures. It is the 32nd animated feature in the Walt Disney Animated Classics series. The story takes place in a kingdom of anthropomorphic lions in Africa, and was influenced by the biblical tales of Joseph and Moses, and the William Shakespeare plays Hamlet and Macbeth. The film was produced during a period known as the Disney Renaissance.� - Wikipedia.
- Screen shots off Youtube video.
I have chosen to discuss Walt Disney for my Storytelling topic as Walt Disney is everywhere. It’s socially accepted within every culture. Lion King is one of my favourite Disney films, so I chose to discuss that. With Storytelling, you can incoporate elements from ‘Jouney’ and ‘Frozen moment’ as it has the same concept. Story telling is basically telling a story through a series of images. By printscreening selected images from Lion King (the video on Youtube becaue I didn’t have the original handy), I have created a series of images that tell a story.
Decisive moment: Frozen photography. “The decisive moment is the time to expose when unconscious feelings and deep emotions hidden in one’s own inner side already encounter subjects by accident. Optic nerve of a sensitive reflex, visual consciousness, make us press the shutter as a function of sympathy to encounter between the inner world and outer world” -Henri Cartier Bresson
Henri Cartier-Bresson; A Frozen moment tells a story. You have to be in the right place at the right time Timing is essential when capturing a frozen image.
Henri-Cartier Bresson shows the ‘Frozen’ moments through his work, as he uses his images as part of a narrative -telling his own story.
This image taken by Cartier-Bresson has to be my favourite example of a frozen image; My interpretation of this image is that this guy is trying to get across the puddles without getting wet. The way this image is composed says a lot about being in the right place at the right time. There is a railway station and buildings behind the man & also the silhouette of another man in the background. In the foregrouns there is what looks like old bicycle parts and a broken ladder. Being in the right place at the right time shows the silhouette in the foreground jumping off the ladder in to the puddle. He hasn’t touched the ground yet so it lets the imagination wonder what happens when he did.
The Journey.
“I will never leave you, even though you’re always leaving me.”
The Time Traveler’s Wife.
Novel and Film by the American author Audrey Niffenegger. This science fiction, romance novel examines the issues of love, loss and free will. It’s a love story about a man with a genetic disorder, which causes him to spontaneously and unpredictably time travel. Thus, frequently leaving his wife to cope with his long absences. It metaphorically uses time travel to explore miscommunications and distance in relationships. At the time, the author was experiencing some difficulties in her love life, so the story was metaphorically based around her failed relationships. The story is sombre and sorrowful, but the romance and the endless love between the two characters uplifts the whole story, making it a successful romance.
The journey aspect of the story can be interpreted in many ways. On one hand, the journey is him time travelling to important events in his life. Travelling and learning and repeating, is a form of a journey – and how he has overcome these events (such as seeing his mother’s death over and over) creating a stronger mental state. Also, his physical state as when he time travels he loses all his clothes, has to walk for miles until he travels back and has to break & enter to find clothes. On the other hand, the journey is portrayed through his wife. She was forced to have this life with this time travelling man since she was six years old, so she has had a journey through her life trying to find him, keep up with his time travelling and cope with the distance between them when he disappears. Another spin on things would be to look at the journey through the Author’s eyes, as she has based the story on her complicated and failed relationships. It xould be that she portrays her journey through the character’s journey. This, creating a metaphorical struggle to find peace and happiness - displayed through the Time Traveler’s wife.
Summarisation; Although all of the topics were individually challenging, I found that once I decided what I was going to explore for the topic I found it so interesting and was really able to let my creative side show through. What I tried to achieve with my magazine is that each title page signifies a different subject, and all three A3 sheets emphasis the topic being discussed to the best of it’s ability. I also tried to show my personality through the illustrations chosen, and through the topics I chose to discuss. I tried to make everything individual and unique, and try and make it my own which I think I’ve achieved.