Anthropology and Photography
Photography was first introduced in England during the late 1830’s, during the early years of photography, photographs were not judged on whether something was right or wrong, people believed every photograph they saw, they believed that a camera does not lie and that a photograph is a representation of the truth but photography is now associated with digital manipulation, nearly everyone questions the truth of a photograph.
Scientist adopted photography as a new technical method to demonstrate their studies, photography was not considered to be an art but it was believed to be a medium used as evidence. A photograph was proof, a recording truth-revealing mechanism. Although images could not be manipulated during the early years of photography, we should understand that images were constructed, to construct an image, the photographer has to be subjective towards to subject matter, thus meaning the image will be perceived as the photographer intends. What we see in a photograph is an interpretation of the photographer’s version of the ‘truth’.
This essay will explore the representation of anthropological photography and the assumptions and classifications created by it, questioning how images were represented and interpreted and what impact this had on society’s view of race.
To examine the conception of racism in photographs of colonized people, we have to understand that photographs played an undoubting role in the development of racial theories. Photography was used to create ‘type’ photographs, ‘type’ photographs consisted of a colonial person to pose either with very little clothing or totally unclothed, the person would usually be standing against a plain or calibrated backdrop, several photog...
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...reality and the attached meaning and interpretation is a secondary activity (Edwards, 1992, p.8) Edward goes on to argue that the perception of photographs being a representation of reality only enhance the expectation of ‘reality’, the viewer understands that a photograph is perceived as ‘true’ or ‘real’ because that is what the viewer expects to see: ‘this is how it should be’ transits to ‘this is how it is/was’. The same photographs as Darwin used to prove his theory, that all races came from the same species, also was used as evidence to prove that all races come from different species. Louis Agassiz disagreed with Darwin and saw the differences concentrated on the differences of the races and came to a conclusion that they can only be from different species. The interpretation of the photograph is hugely influenced by retrospective construction of intention.
The role of photography is questioned; he asks, what about photography makes it a valid medium? We read about the operator (the photographer), spectrum (the subject) and spectator (the viewer), also about the stimulus (what we see in the photograph) and the punctum (the unclassifiable, the thing that makes the photograph important to the viewer). According to Barthes, the photograph is an adventure for the viewer, but it is ultimately death, the recording of something that will be dead after the picture is taken. This idea is the main focus of Barthes’ writing, the photograph “that-has-been”, in Latin “interfuit: what I see has been here, in this place which extends between infinity and the subject; it has been here, and yet immediately separated; it has been absolutely, irrefutably present, and yet already deferred” (Barthes, 76).... ...
People tend to views an image based on how society say it should be they tend to interpret the image on those assumption, but never their own assumptions. Susan Bordo and John Berger writes’ an argumentative essay in relation to how viewing images have an effect on the way we interpret images. Moreover, these arguments come into union to show what society plants into our minds acts itself out when viewing pictures. Both Susan Bordo and John Berger shows that based on assumptions this is what causes us to perceive an image in a certain way. Learning assumption plays into our everyday lives and both authors bring them into reality.
Practiced by thousands who shared no common tradition or training from the earliest days of taking photos, the first photographers were disciplined and united by no academy or guild, who considered their medium variously as a trade, a science, an art, or an entertainment, and who often were unaware of each other’s work. Exactly as it sounds photography means photo-graphing. The word photography comes from two Greek words, photo, or “light”, and graphos, or drawing and from the start of photography; the history of the aforementioned has been debated. The idea of taking pictures started some thirty-one thousand years ago when strikingly sophisticated images of bears, rhinoceroses, bison, horses and many other types of creators were painted on the walls of caves found in southern France. Former director of photography at New Yorks museum of modern art says that “The progress of photography has been more like the history of farming, with a continual stream of small discoveries leading to bigger ones, and in turn triggering more experiments, inventions, and applications while the daily work goes along uninterrupted.” ˡ
Photography has been around for nearly 200 years and has advanced dramatically with the new technology. In 1826, when the first photograph was taken photography was a very basic art form, but soon after photographers figured out how to manipulate their photos. In today’s society, it is almost unheard of to look at photographs that are raw and unedited, but has it always been this way? Dating back to the first photograph in 1826 by Joseph Nicephore Niepce, photography seemed to be raw, but only a few decades after those photographers discovered they could alter their photos to make them more appealing (“Harry Ransom Center”). Over the past 200 years photos of all different subjects have been manipulated through history and technology seems to be the culprit.
Susan Sontag discusses the reality of the modern person’s addiction with “needing to have reality confirmed” by photos. Sontag says “we accept it as the camera records it” then goes to say “this is the opposite of understanding.” I agree with her wholeheartedly, as accepting photos as they are limits ones understanding of the world. The trust in photography led to the rise of pictures hoaxes, in which people take pictures out of context and assign it a new background; as well as Photoshop, which becomes increasingly popular as the years go by. Photoshop allows one to manipulate a photo to portray what they desire it to.
Sontag, Susan. "Essay | Photography Enhances Our Understanding of the World." BookRags. BookRags. Web. 15 Apr. 2014.
Sekula explores how individuals, such as Galton and Bertillon, have employed photography to combine people into categorical classes, which then enable pseudoscientist to “discover” demarcations of deviancy and the subsequent “intentions and capabilities of the other” (12). The use of photography to construct an archive of people that is then used to divide, define, and regulate them makes me think of the motivation behind Bryan Stevenson’s second point from his incredible Wallenburg Lecture last night. Stevenson argues that we must change the narratives that permit the notion of racial differences to persist. Photos, and the generalizations ascribed to them by a defining (white) class, have allowed them to construct a deconstruction of our
A picture is more than just a piece of time captured within a light-sensitive emulsion, it is an experience one has whose story is told through an enchanting image. I photograph the world in the ways I see it. Every curious angle, vibrant color, and abnormal subject makes me think, and want to spark someone else’s thought process. The photographs in this work were not chosen by me, but by the reactions each image received when looked at. If a photo was merely glanced at or given a casual compliment, then I didn’t feel it was strong enough a work, but if one was to stop somebody, and be studied in curiosity, or question, then the picture was right to be chosen.
As seen in paintings of battle scenes and portraits of wealthy Renaissance aristocracy, people have always strived to preserve and document their existence. The creation of photography was merely the logical continuum of human nature’s innate desire to preserve the past, as well as a necessary reaction to a world in a stage of dramatic and irreversible change. It is not a coincidence that photography arose in major industrial cities towards the end of the nineteenth century.
Jordan describes a moment where she was at the hotel The Sheraton British Colonial, where she is staying and she noticed a photograph that she labels under the category “race”. She
“When photography was invented it was thought to be an equivalent to truth, it was truth with a capital ‘T’.” Vicki Goldberg
Have you ever seen a painting or picture that captivates you and directly stirs up emotion within you? More than likely, you have. Usually, viewers merely observe the picture and enjoy the way it looks and how it makes them feel. But, have you ever asked yourself, “why?” What about the picture makes it pleasing to the viewer? With each strategy the photographer uses creates their own touch and passion that floods all over the picture. The emotional connection nearly goes unnoticed for when the picture is well photographed, the viewers experience the sensation in their subconscious. This is one of the most powerful tools that a photographer holds in their hands. If one can become a master of manipulating how the photo affects its viewers, the said photographer can potentially maneuver people’s minds and thoughts with one click of a button. The time spent with my mentor has opened up the door for me to tap into that power though the use of background, focus, shutter speed, angles, and most importantly, lighting. Even with all these techniques, the person behind the camera must remember that creativity must be at the forefront of all operations. Caleno (2014), when writing about the basics of capturing a beautiful moment in a picture commented, “If we want to be creative we must drop these pre-conceptions and start looking at things from a small child’s innocence.”
What do you consider art? Paintings, sculptures, drawings, or maybe something else. I know, when I think of art, I think of photography. Photography Is used for business, science, manufacturing, art, recreational purposes, mass communication, and more. Photography is using light to do amazing things, and some people think of photography as a story that just needs to be told. Ansel Adams probably believed this. He said, “You don’t take a photograph, you make it.” Photography has a long interesting history, like the fact that the word photography is made up of two greek words, photos meaning ‘light’ and graphein which is ‘to draw’ ! Photography also has some complicated techniques to get a hang of taking good photos. Have you heard of the rule of thirds? Or do you know how a camera works? Well, that will all be explained. Maybe, by the end you will take up photography too. This essay will explore the history and types of cameras and the basic rules for taking photographs.
In Sontag’s On Photography, she claims photography limits our understanding of the world. Though Sontag acknowledges “photographs fill in blanks in our mental pictures”, she believes “the camera’s rendering of reality must always hide more than it discloses.” She argues photographs offer merely “a semblance of knowledge” on the real world.
There was a time when the only way to capture a moment or surrounding was by a painting. Joseph Nicephore Niepce created the first photograph ever in 1827. Photography went thru many beneficial changes since then only improving and