The purpose of photography is to capture the “perfect” moment. However, some photographers fail to realize the meaning of the moment itself: is it worth publicizing? To capture a moment or experience, photographers aim to gather and preserve images that the naked eye would miss within an instant. By doing this, they gain a misconception between humanity and the concept of photography. Everyday people take images on their cell phones because they want to share them with friends and family. In 1993, Kevin Carter took a trip to Sudan and took a picture of a starving Sudanese girl being stalked by a vulture. What photographers, like Kevin Carter, fail to realize is that every time a picture is taken, a part of the individual photographed is taken …show more content…
Photographers and viewers do not recognize the borderline because to participate in viewing the spectacle, rather than intervening is unchallenging. Kevin Carter, within an instant, became a bystander, therefore, questioning his humanity. According to Compassion Fatigue, by Susan Moeller, she says, “It’s difficult for the media and their audience to sustain certain about individual crises over a period of months and maybe even years” (4). As time progresses, the audience neglects acceptance because these crises are becoming less emergent. The audience does this because images of starving children are constantly reflected on the media, which is seen too often, that eventually viewers begin to ignore it. Knowing how media portrays images (exploiting individuals) photographers capture disturbing images to gain fame or to publicize a view they found intriguing. Due to the demographics of the Sudanese girl, Kevin Carter degraded the importance of considering his “masterpiece” as human because he, as mentioned before, viewed the girl as a spectacle, an item. Journalism is used to share a story informing the public, not utilizing people to gain fortune, thus, demonstrating how photographers tend to forget about the feelings and misfortune of their photographed
Richards focus is that of the ignored; a people that otherwise have been forgotten. It’s his compassion to his subjects and his commitment to them that surpasses the act of making a pretty picture. Spending days with his subjects in the slums of Harlem or the hardly developed mountains of West Virginia he immerses himself into the frequently bitter life of his next award-winning photo. Often including word for word text of testimonials recorded by junkies and destitute farmers, Richards is able to provide an unbiased portrayal. All he has done is to select and make us look at the faces of the ignored, opinions and reactions are left to be made by the viewer.
The media has critical impact in Sontag 's article. She demonstrates her argument when she states, “Parked in front of the little screens-television, computer, palmtop- we can surf to images and brief reports of disasters throughout the world” (437). Individuals regularly decide to overlook pictures of others anguish. People decide to envision that others don 't suffer, and would rather keep on living in ignorance of other third-world nations.
Susan Sontag’s essay on how photography has limited people’s understanding of the world contains many interesting points that can be agreeable while at the same time having few that I tend to disagree with. Photography can be good and bad; it can open our minds up to new cultures and experiences through its imagery. However, at the same time it can limit our understanding of the world around us and of the world around the image it is portraying.
Another criteria for autoethnographies is captured in heightened reflexivity. In this regards it is crucial that “researchers ... systematically identify their subjectivity throughout the course of their research” (Peshkin, 2001, p. 455). This aspect will be produced by weekly and monthly reflections according to DOP. The final leg of trustworthiness in this study will be provided by produced by a 360 leader review at the conclusion of the study. This will resulting in a triangulation of three sources: the ethnographic data, the reflexive field notes and the 360 leader review . In this regard, the suggestions of Denzin and Lincoln (1994) and Fine (2000) will be incorporated, affirming that “triangulation, is not a tool or a strategy of validation, but an alternative to validation ....a strategy that adds rigor, breadth, and depth to any investigation” (p.
Photography, among many things, is a medium used to further the connection between a reader and the story. It does this by drawing the reader into the world of the photograph, and allowing them to experience the realism of the scenario. This connection has amplified the level of communication between humans, namely, in the field of journalism. In the article “To Tell the Truth: Codes of Objectivity in Photojournalism” written by Donna Schwartz, she discusses the methods employed by photojournalists to manipulate photos in order to give the desired effect, or connection. These methods, along with others from “Critical Media Studies” written by Brian Ott and Robert Mack, will be used to analyze the following photo to show how they create the
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.
Moeller, Susan D. Compassion Fatigue : How the Media Sell Disease, Famine, War and Death. 1 ed. New York: Routledge, 1999.
Photography allows us to maintain memories and relish them whenever we desire. Although some advocates might argue that people are no longer enjoying experiences instead taking more pictures, in the essay, “Why We Take Pictures”, by Susan Sontag, she conflates that photography can be used as a defense against anxiety and a tool of empowerment. I agree with Sontag on the significance of photographs and how it allows us to store a part of our extended relatives so we are able to hold on the memories of family. Therefore, we must appreciate how photography allows us to manage anxiety, express feelings and remember our loved ones.
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.
Newton, Julianne H. The Burden of Visual Truth: The Role of Photojournalism in Mediating Reality. Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates, 2001. Print.
Photojournalism is a specific form of journalism that employs the use of images to form a news story that meaningfully contributes to the media. This allows a photographer to capture stills that tell the story of a moment in time. Photojournalism creates a transparency between the media and the people as it depicts an accurate representation where meaning can be misinterpreted through text. Photojournalism largely contributes to the way we understand the reality of a moment. Becker (1982) supports this concept as he compares photography to paintings. He says that paintings get their meaning from the painters, collectors, critics, and curators; therefore photographs get their meaning from the way people understand them and use them. Photojournalist’s
One of the integral things that must be addressed when making a film is the ethics involved. Ethics are a constant issue that have to be carefully considered when filmmaking. This difficult decision-making is highly prevalent in that of documentaries, because of the difficulties associated in filming ‘real people’ or “social actors, (Nichols, 2001).” More importantly, the issues faced by a filmmaker differ between each of the documentary modes. Each particular documentary mode poses different formal choices that must be made in order to operate in an ethical fashion. Two films that have been made both display examples of how ethics must be considered when embarking on a documentary are Etre at Avoir [To Be and to Have], (2001) and Capturing the Friedmans (2003). These films have been made in different documentary modes, highlighting that there is not one mode which is easier or has fewer ethical issues associated with it. Additionally, what must be considered is how these style choices in these different modes affect the power relationships between the filmmaker, the subject and its audience, (Nichols, 2001).
Photography has created an outlet for the masses to story tell. It has a way of speaking without words like most art forms and is a manner of expression in itself. To eradicate photography from humans would be equivalent to taking away a limb from humankind. Our society has grown an immense amount of dependency on it. Photography has become almost a daily menial task such as brushing your teeth; where we must take pictures of the things we deem important or equally unimportant, even more so with the invention of social media outlets such as Instagram and Snapchat, where photography is the main source of communication between people who use them. Susan Sontag offers the basis of what taking pictures can undertake in both our daily lives and moments that are not part of our daily lives, such as travel. Traveling to places where one is not accustomed can flare pent up anxiety. A way to subdue that anxiety could be through taking pictures, since it’s the only factor that we have total control over in a space where we don’t have much, or, any control of our surrounding environment. On the other hand, taking photos can also be a tool of power in the same sense as it allows for it to be a defense against anxiety. With the camera in our hands, we have the power to decide who, what, where, when, and why we take a picture. This in turn also gives the person who took the picture power over those who later analyze the photos, letting them decide the meaning of the photo individually, despite the intended or true meaning.
In today’s world, photography has become a part of our daily lives. People take photographs of food, c...
The Vulture and the Little Girl, a Pulitzer Prize for Feature Photography winner by Kevin Carter, is a photograph of a starving girl that fainted on her way to a feeding center in Sudan with a vulture in the background. The image depicted the brutality of poverty in underdeveloped countries through showing the weakness of the little girl, which contrasted with the strength of the nearby vulture. This image became extremely popular, partly due to its controversy, but mostly due to the strong message it carries. Some argued that Carter should’ve helped the little girl instead of taking the picture, but nevertheless, his expressed art through photojournalism managed to move a remarkably large group of audience. The public’s intense reaction through