Chapter 3: The Art of Photojournalism

Before 1900's

 

 

Photo by: Matthew Brady

Image Source: http://www.latinamericanstudies.org/union-officers.htm

Year Taken: 1864

 

Texture: The texture of the tree that he is leaning against gives a picture a 3D feeling

Rule of Thirds: The main subject is in the right third of the photo so the main attention is to him.

Background: The background of the photo does not compete for attention with the main subject but it is a little out of focus bringing out the main subject.

 

The reason why I chose this picture was because I have been always interested in the work of Matthew Brady and wanted to see more of his photos and this one stood out because it was portrait of a major general, but the photo was not done in a studio but rather in simple outside environment which made the picture very interesting and appealing to me.

 

1900-1950

 

 

 

Photo by: Malcolm Browne

Source: http://anchalproject.wordpress.com/tag/airport-security/

Year Taken: 1950

 

 

Obvious Main Subject: The main subject takes about 2/3 of the picture therefore the first and the main attention is set to him.

Exposure Time: This is a very fast shutter photo because it freeze-frame the moment when the gasoline ignites and creates a fire plume

Subjects Expression: The expression on the monk's face is full of pain but also showing that he is doing this for a cause to stop the war effort in his country.

 

I chose that picture because I have seen this photo in a history book before and it always have fascinated me on the talent of the photographer to capture the image just at the right second to create such a powerful image that is still alive today. Also this tells me that some people are willing to go a long way just to get their point across to the public.

 

1950-2013

 

Photo By: Richard Drew

Source: http://adventq.com/wplo/the-falling-man.html

Date Taken: September 11, 2001

 

 

Keep it simple: The background is very simple giving the main focus to the falling person

Use of Lines: The vertical lines help to indicate that the person is falling down from a higher place

Contrast: The dark and light areas of the tower give the photo it's 3D feel and look. The rectangular beams are more realistic and visible with the contrast of dark and light area.

 

The reason why I choose this picture because of the way it was captured. Richard Drew took the photo just at the right time to photograph a helpless guy falling to his death. This picture makes me question myself and wonder what would I have done in his place? Stay in the building knowing that you will burn alive, or jump out the window knowing that you wont make it down to the ground alive. That is an impossible choice that those people had to make and it is fascinating that Richard Drew captures that moment.  



Interchangeable lens for 35mm SLR cameras

Interchangeable lens for 35mm SLR cameras

With the invention of Single-Lens-Reflex Camera (SLR) there were a lot of advantages that were possible to photographers with SLR then with any of the cameras that were invented and in use before. One of the greatest advantages was the fact that the new SLR cameras came with interchangeable lenses. A photographer had a choice of choosing a specific lens for a specific type of photo. For long range shot they would use a telephoto lens that would allow them to magnify and zoom in closely onto a specific object without walking far to take a picture of is. Wide landscape shots were taken with wide angle lenses, and studios and portraits salons used prime lenses with low aperture. These interchangeable lenses have gone a lord way since they were first invented.

 

Photo Taken by: Unknown

Image Source: http://www.heritagecameras.co.uk/t2-lens-mount-t-mount-for-alpa-bayonet-swiss-35mm-slr-cameras-9d-11el-11si-etc-2893-p.asp

 

 

There are a lot of key differences that can be greatly noticed in lenses today and lenses in 1980’s. One of the key differences is that lenses today are very computerizes and automized. There is a sensor for everything inside the lens. Almost all the lenses today have a feature called “Auto-Focus” which allows the user to preset the focus point and the lens is adjusted back and forth until that point is in focus. That feature was not present at the first interchangeable lenses that came out for SLR cameras. The focus ring on those lenses had to be manually adjusted by hand, while looking inside the viewfinder to make sure that the subject of the photo is still in focus. Another amazing feature that was added to the news lenses is the Image Stabilization, or Vibration Resistance which creates good pictures even if the camera is moving or vibrating a lot.

 

 



 Image By: Unknown
Image Source: http://www.bobatkins.com/photography/eflenses/

Another main thing that change between the first interchangeable lenses is the physical assembly of the lens, and the material that it is made of. Fist interchangeable lenses were made out of plastic and were easy to break id not handles properly. A lot of the expensive lenses today like the “L-series” Canon lenses are often times made out of metal to withstand the constant and heavy use by a photographer. Another thing that changed since interchangeable lenses came out is the quality of the resulting picture. As time went on, engineers were able to develop more and more complex technology which allows for a low aperture, high Depth of Field which results in not blurry pictures even with low light conditions. Finally with all of the improvements made to the lenses there is a major growth in the number of different lenses. Back in 1980’s when SLR’s just came out there was a few different lenses that could be used on camera. Today there is over 100 different lenses for every type of occasions and event.





Chapter One - Can Photographs Change the World?

 Can Photographs Change the World?        

I believe that there are many ways in which a world could be changed. Photographs are one of the ways that media can influence people to do something, or to bring on change. Before cameras were invented, paintings were the most abundant form of art, and were the ones that were used to inspire revolutions, industrial movement, and empire expansion. After photography was invented it became a lot quicker and easier to capture certain moments that were important for photojournalists and for the public to see. There was a lot of meaning put into each picture that was published that after circulating in major journals and newspapers across the world these pictures caused a change in politics, or a change in the way people act and think.

 

Photo by: Elliott Erwitt

Image Source: http://allday2.com/index.php?newsid=158125

 



One of these pictures that I want to talk about is a photo taken by a photojournalist named Elliott Erwitt. This picture was taken in 1950 in North Carolina at one of the parks. The picture was showing an African-American man drinking out of a water fountain that had a sign “colored” above it. The “colored” water fountain was very old, rusty and not cleaned. Right next to it, was another water fountain that was a lot cleaner and newer. Above the new water fountain that was a sign that said “white” on it. This picture was a basic example of harsh segregation that African-Americans faced in the southern part of United States in 1950’s. Many historians come to a conclusion that this was one of the photos that sparked the whole movement for equality between all races. Some of the famous event that followed were the “I Have a Dream” speech by Martin Luther King Jr. many walks and parades and protests to demand equal right for whites and blacks. After some time passed African Americans finally got the right to vote, right to same schools and colleges and just basically be equal to all white American citizens.

 

Image by: Alex Shilling

Image Source: http://injesus.ru/blogs/view/128

 

A photo that changed me a lot was a picture taken by Alexander Shilling. This man’s name is Nick Vujicic who was born without legs or arms. He has given many speeches and has had many big audiences. He shared his life story, happy moments and disappointments of living without extremities. When I saw this picture, it changed me in the sense that no matter how hard your life may seem, happiness is possible and troubles are just shadows on a beautiful picture. In this picture Nick looks like he is the happiest man on earth because he is standing next to someone who means the world to him. This made me think and realize that no matter what happens to me and no matter where life may take me I should always be thankful and happy for what I have because some people are not as fortunate to have even that.

 

Photo By: David Steinberg
Image Source: http://monroegallery.blogspot.com/2012/12/photographer-craig-varjabedian.html

What is Photojournalism?

 



            Photojournalism is a study that combines two different work fields into one creating a very interesting and exciting job. Photojournalism can be broken down into two words, “photo” or photography and “journalism”. The basic idea of Photojournalism is to find and create pictures that can be published in journals, newspapers, internet articles and any other form of information sources. A job of a photojournalist is to capture the correct picture that will grab the reader’s attention and will make them read the article. People say that a picture tells thousand words, so it is up to a Photojournalist to make sure that a photograph that he or she takes tells the world the right words and portrays the correct information that was generated by the photographer.

Why study History of Photojournalism?

 

             Photojournalism is a fairly new discipline as it evolved and became popular after the camera was invented. Historians say that the first pictures that were taken were in 1860’s during the worst times of United States history, during the civil war. Photographs in the newspapers allowed people to see exactly how the battlefields looked like and what were the living conditions there. So why study the history of Photojournalism? It is an important question that requires an answer. There is a saying that “the person who does not know the past has no future.” I think that becoming a successful Photojournalist requires the person to know a lot about the history and how the process of photography and journalism evolved and how they merged together to create a discipline that can provide information to the whole world.

 

             Another reason to study the history of Photojournalism is to be able to know what kind of pictures and information does the pubic likes to see. Learning the history of Photojournalism one finds out why did some photojournalists became very successful, popular and famous, while others could not go far. When learning history of Photojournalism and analyzing the work done by many photojournalists, one can take on their skills and tricks and improve on them to create unique and breathtaking photographs. Also while learning the history, it can be understood that people who are courageous and fearless are the ones who seem to get the best photos of all the action that is happening at a place of their interest. Summing everything up, a person who plans on becoming a successful photojournalist needs to know how the discipline evolved and what he or she can do to improve photojournalism and make is attractive to readers of their publications.

 

 

 

Image by: Nicephore Niepce
Source: http://sugarquotes.weebly.com/iconic-photos-from-history.html

First Photograph taken!

 

 

 

 

Photo by: Alisha Todd
Image Source: http://cariblogger.com/2010/08/30-beautiful-photojournalism-wedding-photography-examples/