Photography Unites Us All: Documentary Photography And Social Change

Photography Unites Us All Documentary photography began to gain popularity in the early 20th century (Hernandez, 2016). This means people have been using this type of photography to bring awareness to social issues for over one hundred years. With this awareness, there is also inspiration to create change, and to eradicate these issues from our world. With the development and popularity of social media, it is quite easy for photographers to disperse their work throughout the world. This makes documentary photography a powerful tool in modern society. I believe that documentary photography truly does have the ability to create social change, and this has been proven many times throughout history. War and natural disasters are two examples of

Perhaps one of the most documented social issues is the presence and destruction of war. There are few who are willing to risk their lives and record what is going on in these countries plagued by war. Those who are willing to, travel to war-torn countries to capture the events and then widely disperse their photos throughout the world. Without these photos, many people would have little to no knowledge on the conditions of these places. I chose an image by a photographer from the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Refugees known as S. Malkawi. Don McCullin, Joe Rosenthal, and Robert Capa are three other examples of influential war photographers (Singh, 2011). The photo I have chosen depicts Syrian refugees that have been displaced to a refugee camp in Iraq. These people are waiting in line to receive the small amount of supplies available to them. The area appears dry, dirty, and is likely to be quite crowded. The photo is powerful because it shows families in a time of desperation. The inclusion of children in documentary photography often makes it more influential, as people are especially uncomfortable with the idea of

Through their documentations of the destruction, the world feels compelled to offer funds, medical assistance, and other forms of relief aid. I chose an image by Gary Lloyd McCullough, but other photographers such as Bruce Omori and Russell Watkins capture disasters as well (Carr, 2012). My chosen image depicts a very devastating reality that comes with a natural disaster; the loss of family homes. I think this photo is very upsetting, but that is what makes it powerful. An image that is devastating would be far more likely to inspire someone to donate money, time, or supplies. The family who lived in this home would have been absolutely devastated, as many of their belongings and the life they had built in that home would be ruined. I think this photo is interesting because the left side water appears very calm, but the right side of the image features absolute destruction. Organizations like the Red Cross use photos like this one to gain support and funding from the public (Red Cross, 2017). The rebuilding of damaged areas after a natural disaster depends on outside help, so by distributing these images, the community is given a chance to repair