History of Photojournalism: June 2016

Friday, June 24, 2016

Concluding Chapter

Photos by: Patrick Agit

When I began this course my definition of photojournalism was simply a person whose job it is to go out and take pictures for newspaper and magazine agencies. Basically, my idea was that a photojournalist is a journalist who uses a camera mainly for their reporting. However, after arriving to the final course module, I have come to understand that being a photojournalist is more than just traveling to events and crises and visually recording what is going on. It's more about telling a story, but not with words, but with visual images. Furthermore, photojournalists, due to the nature of photography, often times have to get a lot closer to whatever their subject at a given time may be in order to get the best possible photos. This is not to say that non-photojournalists are not brave, but it is much easier for them to simply stand far away and jot down notes on what is transpiring before them. Finally, photojournalists have a unique quality about their line of work in that their pictures can display all of the details that words are not able to cover, photojournalism essentially leaves out all of the guess-work associated with reading words.

Photo by: Warrick Page

The history of photojournalism certainly is something important for everyone to be aware of and knowledgeable about. Photojournalism is a powerful tool that is quickly manifesting itself as the number one medium for reporting and journalism. It is no secret that newspapers and other paper-bound, wordy methods of supplying information are disappearing. The advent of Snapchat and Twitter are good examples of this change. Snapchat is all about using pictures and a caption in order to communicate. And Twitter uses words mostly, but tweets are short, usually a few sentences at most. The world is becoming a place where people do not necessarily have the time to stop and read long paragraphs, so photojournalism will undoubtedly be taking standard journalism's place. As stated before, photojournalism tells a story, and to know where, when, and how these stories first started depicted visually is of major importance. Mathew Brady is probably the most agreed-upon "father" of photojournalism.

Photo by: Mathew Brady

There were a few moments throughout this course where I truly learned something that opened up my mind and made me change my viewpoint. One such moment was when I learned about black and white photography, and how the idea of not having colors can enhance an image emotionally. When I was younger, I used to consider black and white photography an outdated form of taking pictures, and that it did not really have much of a place in today's photojournalism standards. But, after learning more about the background and use of black and white imagery, I decided to give it a try myself. For my creative experiential exercise, which are the photographs above that I came up with, I tried taking pictures in color, and then in black and white to be able to analyze the differences for myself. The exercise definitely helped me see, and be able to practice with black and white and gain a better understanding of it. Another big moment of learning for me in the course was when I had to go more in dept about the photojournalists themselves and learn about how they interact with their subjects. Before I started the course I had assumed that photojournalists simply photographed nouns and went home at the end of the day. However, this could not be any further from the truth. For photojournalists they like to develop an emotional connection with their subjects, and treat them like the people they are, and not just as the next big thing in the news industry. It really was an eye opener for me.

"Big vs Small"

Photo by: Leif Londal

The question whether photographs change the world is a big one, and a deep thought-provoking question at that. There are pictures that people will always instantly recognize, they just tap into the deepest fibers of our inner beings and stick with us forever. We may not always remember the photojournalist who took them unfortunately, but the visuals that some photojournalists have captured stay with us forever. The subject of a picture can be almost anything, but it is often times when people are the subject that a photo stays with us the longest, or even forever. One of the most popular pictures in recent memory is that of a starving child in the African country of Sudan. The child is face down, and just feet away behind him is a waiting vulture. The image sent emotional shock waves through out the world. The picture in question was taken by Kevin Carter in March of 1993 in the southern part of Sudan.

Photo by: Kevin Carter

When I went out and took the pictures at the top of this blog, I was carrying with me all of the knowledge that I had learned through the assignments, exercises, and projects that I had done throughout the course. When I stepped out of my house I made sure that I would look at lines created by objects, trees, people, etc. I also did my best to give a background to each photo, and to make it so that they told a story in some sort of way. One of the major things that I made sure that I did when I set out was that I made sure to keep a running theme, to have a bias, to have a certain style to the pictures I took. I learned midway through the course that each photojournalist can be recognized by the style of the images that were taken. It was an idea that I never would have thought of before. But then again, as I also learned, photojournalism, and more specifically photography, is an art, and art always bears the style of its creator. With that said, since I love nature so much, I decided to try my hand at a more nature-related style of taking pictures, as well as practicing with black and white photography.

Reading through the various Photojournalist Profile projects created by my classmates, I learned quite a few interesting facts. For example, from Alejandra's Photojournalist Profile, I learned that age is not a factor in how good someone's photographs can be.
"Zoriah: I would consider myself a 20^th /21^st century photojournalist. “I began photography when I was 15 yearsold and within the first year of shooting I won a national award and was prettyinto the idea of becoming a photojournalist.'"

Photo by: Schoodic Institute at Acadia National Park

After reading Kelsy Prats' Photojournalist Profile, I learned that soon after the war in Iraq started, there were very few full-time photojournalists simply due to the gruesomeness of war.

"But, by the middle of 2004 the American Press, 'had largely stopped photographing the war - only the New York Times and Time Magazine continued to keep full-time photographers in Iraq.'"

Photo by: Kenneth Jarecke

Another thing that I had learned about the history of photojournalism was from Aaliyah's Photojournalist Profile. In her profile, Aaliyah talked about James Augustus van Der Zee and how he liked to have his subjects be in certain poses, and also touch up the environment around them to make the picture perfect.

"His photos were more biased because he gave his subjects costumes and put them in a certain pose."

Photo by: James Augustus van Der Zee

Tuesday, June 21, 2016

Photojournalist Profile

Patrick Agit

History of Photojournalism

Final Project 1 – Photojournalist Profile

Career Path: Born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania on April 23^rd, 1950, Steve McCurry's interest in photojournalism, and what would later become his career, started when he was a student at Pennsylvania State University and took pictures for the Penn State newspaper, The Daily Collegian. McCurry graduated from Penn State with a degree in theater arts in 1974. His job as a photojournalist started at the Today's Post, a newspaper agency based in King of Prussia, Pennsylvania. After two years at Today's Post however, Steve McCurry decided to leave the job and travel to India in order to try his hand at freelance photojournalism. From there his career in photojournalism took off when, disguised as a local, Steve crossed the Pakistan-Afghanistan border into Afghanistan just before the then Soviet Union invaded Afghanistan. With the rolls of film that he captured sewn into his clothing, Steve McCurry's work would eventually be published by The New York Times, TIME, and Paris Match. Furthermore, he would eventually be awarded the Robert Capa Gold Medal for Best Photographic Reporting from Abroad.

Motivation: As previously stated, one of Steve McCurry's biggest motivations for becoming a photojournalist was his work with the The Daily Collegian at Pennsylvania State University. As a whole however, McCurry's motivation comes from relating to his subjects as more than just subjects in his viewfinder. Steve loves nothing more than to get to know his subjects, to interact with them on an emotional level: “People I find generally respond in a very positive way, if you take the time to really look them in the eye, respect them and perhaps joke around with them and treat them like a real person.” Steve McCurry believes very much in building a sense of trust with the people he photographs, because they are trusting that he will tell their story as it is, and will not manipulate or use them in any manner when telling their story. McCurry has always been associated with talking about how in order to get the best picture possible, a photojournalist must wait, they must let the natural order of things flow before they capture an image so that it removes any bias on the part of the photojournalist or on the part of the subjects. Another important motivational factor for McCurry when it comes to photojournalism is war, and how it impacts the environment, but more importantly people. Steve McCurry has always believed and said that the impact of war is etched on the face's of the people who are most effected by the tragedy of war.

Technology: When Steve McCurry first started taking pictures, which was during his time spent at Pennsylvania State University in the 1970's, he was using what is known as color slide film, which is basically the opposite of color negative film, which only produces black and white rolls of film. “Instead of creating a negative to be printed to a positive, the slide film is a positive of the image. As such, the slide film produces extremely rich and vibrant colors that come closer to the actual colors and tones present during exposure.” It is because of the rich and vibrant colors possessed by color slide film Steve McCurry used it as his medium as a photojournalist, McCurry has always been known for the use of bright and extravagant colors in his photographs. The required use of rolls of film is the very reason Steve McCurry had to sew the rolls of film to his clothing when he left Afghanistan. However, it was around 2005 when Steve McCurry made the switch to digital photography due to the ease of use, and how it made capturing and processing pictures right in the field rather than having to return to his hotel or wherever he was calling home at the time of an assignment. However, as recently as 2010, Steve McCurry worked on a portrait project which used one of the last remaining rolls of Kodachrome transparency film.

Ethics: In 2016, it became known that a photograph that Steve McCurry took in Cuba was altered and edited using Photoshop and other various mediums for changing a picture. The discovery the prompted the investigation by many into all of his photographs taken over the years in order to find a potential repeat of such an incident. The results were not to be in McCurry's favor. It was found that several other images had also been changed after the shot was taken and before they were published. When contacted, Steve McCurry claimed innocence and ignorance of the whole situation. He claimed that it was not his doing: “...a change that I would have never authorized,' '...the lab technician who made the mistake does not work with me anymore.” The incident certainly did not help Steve McCurry's reputation as a world-class photojournalist, but it also did not damage his reputation as heavily as some might have expected. This is probably due to the altering and editing of the images, at least according to Steve McCurry, not being by McCurry's hand. As unfortunate as it is for events like this to be revealed, it does help to set a standard for other photojournalists and editors alike that it is unethical and unacceptable to alter a picture in any way, shape, or form. And as such, it will hopefully encourage current and future photojournalists to stay true to their work and not attempt to change the images that they have captured.

Bias: Steve McCurry certainly has had a bias when it came to his photojournalism work. The majority of McCurry's work came from India and the Middle East in general. Specifically, Steve captured images of people, the looks on their faces, their culture, as well as whether or not war played a role in their lives and the stories that their faces told as a result. “You know a Steve McCurry picture when you see one. His portrait of an Afghan girl with vivid green eyes, printed on the cover of National Geographic in June 1985, is one of the iconic images of the 20th century. McCurry’s work is stark and direct, with strong colors, a clear emotional appeal and crisp composition.” McCurry certainly has an almost natural eye for taking excellent photographs that tell tell the story of the subject or subjects in the image. And those two traits are the most important aspects that a photojournalist needs to have, they are reliant on each other and work in tandem as they are the way a photojournalist plies his or her trade.

Photographic Style:

Photo by: Steve McCurry

Subject's Expression: The subject's expression tells a story of almost hopelessness, which reflects the poverty and war that was striking the area at the time of the photograph. The subject is certainly posing for the camera, this would not be considered a natural position for a person. The subject's expression helps to gain attention to the region which has been afflicted by war, which the bright green eyes are an attention gatherer

Contrast: The green background really helps to compliment the bright green eyes of the subject. Also, the tattered red garb helps to expose the green undershirt that the subject is wearing, which also compliments her eyes. Despite the background being blurry, it contrasts perfectly with the subject's eyes.

Keep it Simple: The photograph is very simple, there is nothing to detract from the subject. The intention of the photographer was for the subject to be the one and only attention grabber in this picture. What makes the image free of clutter is the fact that the subject takes up almost the entirety of the image and that the background is blurry as well as being nothing but a green background

Photo by: Steve McCurry

Use of Lines: The photographer made use of lots of lines in this picture. The pedestal that the subject is sitting on helps bring the attention to him since it is not leading out of the frame. The stairs next to the subject do not detract too much from the image since they are leading out of the frame. This makes it so that the child on the stairs doesn't steal from the photograph but adds another layer to it.

In or Out of Focus: The subject is perfectly in focus. The photographer made it obvious who the subject in this image was by way of making the subject in-focus. The child going up the stairs is out of focus and is therefore not a distraction but a second piece to the image.

Quality of Light: The lighting in the image helps bring out the vibrant blue coloring found on the steps and walls. It helps to reveal all of the details discernible in the image. Furthermore, the lighting is better on the subject, helping to bring attention to him.

Photo by: Steve McCurry

Depth of Field: The area closest to the subject is perfectly in-focus, which brings all attention to her. The right side of the image is out of focus and therefore does not detract from the subject at all. The depth of field helps to direct attention starting with the subject and moving it eventually to the right of the picture.

Texture: The subject's hair and skin is soft. However, there is an obvious contrast between the subject and rough rock wall that she is leaning up against. The differences in texture help to give the subject what is essentially a sense of innocence or fragility when compared to the rock wall behind her.

Obvious Main Subject: The main subject does not take the entire photograph up, but does take a lot of it up. Despite the presence of the subject, she does not crowd the edges or feel like she is taking up too much space. Also, as it is just a rock wall behind her, the woman is easily distinguishable as the main subject of the image.

Photo by: Steve McCurry

Rule of Thirds: The main subject for this image would be considered to be more on the right side, or third, of the frame. The other people who occupy the frame are on the left third of the photograph. Despite the photographer placing the subject off-center, he is obviously the main subject due to his bright orange shirt versus the dull whites and grays of the other people in the image.

Use of Lines: The photographer makes use of several lines in this photograph. The first, and most obvious, being the train tracks that the group of people on the left are walking on. The other lines being the rock line, and the line where the grass meets the water. The rock line and water line help point towards the man in orange as the main subject.

Feelings that the Image Creates: The image creates a sense that the man in orange is different somehow. But the difference that he represents is more than just the fact his shirt is a different color from the other people in the frame. It also the fact that unlike the others, he is not walking on the train tracks but on the grass. Also, he is not looking in the same direction that the other people are looking in, he is looking off to the right whereas the others are looking down.

Impact: Steve McCurry's images have had a profound impact on society. His work has helped shed light on the culture and society that can be found in India and the Middle East. Which, often times that part of the world is largely ignored by most in the western hemisphere. But not only that, he puts a deeper meaning into his work with the use of people as the focal point. “His work spans conflicts, vanishing cultures, ancient traditions and contemporary culture alike – yet always retains the human element that made his celebrated image of the Afghan Girl such a powerful image.” McCurry's work always manages to tell a story that is hidden behind the deeper meaning of his work for those who look for it. Many photojournalists can trace the motivation for their desire to get into photojournalism back to the work done by Steve McCurry. “McCurry has been recognized with some of the most prestigious awards in the industry, including the Robert Capa Gold Medal, National Press Photographers Award, and an unprecedented four first prize awards from the World Press Photo contest, to name a few.” Certainly, Steve McCurry's various accomplishments help his work to speak for itself, and how his impact has helped society in a positive manner.

My Major at AIC: As previously stated, Steve McCurry's work has had a profound positive impact on society. My major being Sociology, it is in direct correlation with what Steve McCurry does specifically as a photojournalist. In Sociology, we look at the way people from different backgrounds, beliefs, and cultures interact with society and people of other various upbringings. Looking at McCurry's work from the Middle East as an American helps to give me a better understanding of how the people from that region of the world live and how their beliefs are fueled.

Viewpoints: Up until the revealing of the edited photographs published by Steve McCurry's camp, the general opinion on his work was that of a positive note. People have always looked forward to the word produced by McCurry as a photojournalist. However, with the recent revelation of his altered work, the viewpoints on his work have soured a decent amount. In any case, he is still revered for his talented eye and story-telling ability. “Steve McCurry — a name that rings a bell in mind of photographers across the globe. His images have captured the imagination of millions of people including mine. His beautifully composed images of exotic nations across the globe easily excited my teenage mind many years ago. I used to imagine his life as an adventurous photojournalist, an Indiana Jones in his own right, travelling to an unknown place every day and coming back with fantastic photographs.”

Wednesday, June 15, 2016

What Motivates Photojournalists

Motivation is essentially the seed that drives people to accomplish what they need to do, and want to do at the same time. It is what is behind every success story, the desire to get ahead in life whether that be to make money or accomplish personal goals. For a photojournalist motivation is what is behind the desire to get that near-perfect photograph that tells a story and can possibly be a front page image on articles, magazines, and newspapers across the world. Motivation certainly comes easier to some more than others, but it is a wonderful tool when its potential is realized and when the sense of satisfaction is felt. When a photojournalist is motivated, they get that extra push to go the extra mile in order to get a better shot of their subject. That extra mile could either be climbing up a tree, standing on top of a car, being in the middle of a protest where citizens are facing off against the police, or being in the vicinity of a tornado, hurricane, an active volcano, or some other form of natural disaster.

Each photojournalist's story of what motivates them is different, and often times the reason is quite personal. Felix Masi, an awarded photojournalist from Kenya who lost his mother at the age of eight and was made an orphan along with his four other siblings. Growing up in a very poor neighborhood, Masi liked to take pictures in order to tell stories of people's suffering in hopes of them eventually getting aid and ridding them of their impoverished situation. Felix started off his photojournalism career working for a newspaper, but he eventually went freelance in order to specifically document situations in Kenya. Felix states that he found his motivation for photojournalism when he visited one of the largest slums in Kenya and in Africa as a whole: "I could just see suffering, and look myself, look back and say: 'Hey, this me today holding a camera. How well can I tell the story of these folks who are really just working hard so that they can get out of this object poverty, because people shouldn't be living like that.'" As I have already learned in these past few weeks, photojournalism is almost entirely about telling stories through the use of imagery and words to help back those photographs up. And as it turns out for Masi, the motivation can come from right at home, and not want to be abroad documenting the situations and lives of people from far away places.

Photo by: Felix Masi

Another well-known photographer is Steve McCurry. The name may not ring any bells for some who are more interested in the photographs rather than the photojournalists, but his work is instantly recognizable. McCurry has mostly based his work around Afghanistan, India, Pakistan, and the middle east region in general. Steve is not exactly in the prime of his life now at the age of 66, but he is still motivated to travel and try obtain more great shots that could potentially make history as his most famous photograph did in 1986. Like all photojournalists, his biggest thrill is the sense of life that pictures can potentially take on all on their own. On his website Steve McCurry is quoted as saying: "What is important to my work is the individual picture. I photograph stories on assignment, and of course they have to be put together coherently. But what matters most is that each picture stands on its own, with its own place and feeling." Furthermore, the travel is also what excites Steve, he enjoys the thrill of visiting a foreign country with a different social structure in order to gain and understanding and document the lives of people around the world and bring back the stories of his travels to the United States: "I have a passion and love for my work. I love to travel. I never get tired of going to new places and even places I’ve been. I’ve been to India more than 80 times, and I still get excited about going back. I think it’s the enthusiasm, the passion, the obsession with trying to do better and discover new things that keeps me motivated." Steve McCurry's motivation to make each photograph a story is very similar to what artists do, which is what most photojournalists consider themselves as a quote by Jocelyne Benzakin explains: "To me, photography is art," said Jocelyne Benzakin, who shows some of the most important photographers of the past century at the Sag Harbor Picture Gallery. "Art is anything you do with passion. It could be a chef that invents an incredible cake."

Photo by: Bruno Barbey

Photo by: Steve McCurry

One of the most famously known photojournalists of the twentieth century, who is not just known by his work but by his name as well, is Robert Capa. Robert Capa was born André Friedmann in Budapest, Hungary in 1913. However, due to the overpowering antisemitism gripping almost all of Europe at the time, he later changed his widely renowned name of Robert Capa. From a young age Capa was interested in politics, and because of this interest, he became a journalist which would be a short-lived career in Capa's case. One of the main reasons Robert would eventually switch from standard journalism to photojournalism is due to the fact that being from Hungary, Robert did not speak a commonly-known language which he found hindered his journalism career and prompted the change. A quote from Robert Capa describes his reasons for switching: "...was the nearest thing to journalism for anyone who found himself without a [widely spoken] language." Capa was also more interested in being a "free" photojournalist that could find stories that were of more personal interest to him rather than being given assignments: "In 1948 he had put into effect his long held dream of a cooperative photographic agency that would free photographers to concentrate on stories that interested them rather than spending their time scrounging assignments." In a lot of ways photojournalists that go to war and capture the images of war are often times then associated with the history that is being made at the time. As Stacy Pearsall, a retired Staff Sergeant explains: "As a combat photographer, I was a photographer to document them, but you know, inherently I became part of the story too. So I tried to kind of show, or convey my emotions through my pictures too in some way by use of light or shadows, or any sort of emotion I could."

Photo by: Gerda Taro

Photo by: Robert Capa

My motivations are certainly different from those of the various photojournalists I have learned about in the making of this blog post due to the nature of their work and the still very early point I am at in my life. However, the core motivations for any person to go the distance in order to achieve a goal that an average person who puts in a normal amount of work is still there. The idea of making your own personal creation build a life of its own is still a universal motivational factor amongst people. The connections that I found are that language can be an issue for anyone as Robert Capa found out. I have always had goals of living in another country, but only knowing English and Spanish has always been a hindrance for me. Also, I do not find much interest in doing simple tasks, the things that I like to do are unique and have more of a story to them such as what Steve McCurry has been described as liking to do. The differences I have found have more to do with photojournalism in general. Not being a photojournalist I do not have much motivation to travel the world and film crises, wars, and natural disasters that are going on around the world. My motivation has always been more streamline and domestic rather than specifically looking at jobs that have to do with traveling.

Photo by: Patrick Agit

Saturday, June 11, 2016

Photojournalism and Bias

Photo by: Ed Clark

Subject's Expression: The subject, Graham Jackson, is obviously displaying sadness, but at the same time a sense of pride. He is so enthralled by what he is doing that he is certainly not acting for the camera. His expression helps set the emotional level of the photograph as very deep, and is the reason for why it is a powerful image.

Background compliments or detracts from composition: In the background there are a lot of people who are obviously grieving. The important factor is that they are not looking at the camera, but at Graham Jackson. It helps point towards Jackson as being the subject, and brings all attention to him.

Abstraction: The photograph depicts a very sad moment for all who are involved. But the contrast in emotions between Graham Jackson and the people in the background help show that although sad, the event was not a tragedy or natural disaster. The military uniform Jackson is wearing helps show that it was a person of power that passed.

When I look at this picture by Ed Clark, I see a true moment of despair, it is etched on the faces of everyone present in the photograph. However, the grieving is different when you compare the looks on the faces of the people in the background to the look on the face of the man in front. The man in front, Graham Jackson, is certainly grieving, but the look on his face is more of a proud look rather than a hopeless one. He appears proud to have served under Franklin D. Roosevelt, and that he is not afraid to show his tears during the overwhelming occasion. Despite the presence of the photojournalist, none of the people in the picture are exhibiting camera-specific behavior, which is highly important in a strong, emotional photograph like this. "Apart from the ghost of objectivity, there is also that ghost of distance, to not be involved, to actually be the invisible camera that only takes the picture and you're pretending you're not even there." Although they are talking about a completely different topic, the idea here still applies to photojournalism and photojournalists as a whole. As previously stated, the importance of the fact that none of the people in the photograph are paying attention to the camera helps to not take away from the image, but more importantly they are directing the viewer's attention to the man playing the instrument. There is always a moment in time for a photojournalist that is the best time to capture the action, it is when the subjects are enthralled by the emotion of the events around them that they are not exhibiting camera-specific behavior. It may only last for a few seconds, or even a few minutes. To come up with a term to help describe this moment, I would call it the "golden moment". The golden moment is essentially what was captured by Ed Clark above, which is what helps make this photograph such a powerful one.

Photo by: Manuel Balce Ceneta

In our out of focus: The subject is the only part of the image which is in focus. The background is completely out of focus. It helps by highlighting the subject, which brings all attention to the subject so that there is nothing else to detract from the subject.

Keep it simple: In the photograph there is nothing else but the subject. It helps to maintain a clutter-less feel when looking at the photograph. Without any clutter to detract from the image, the subject becomes the main and only attention-grabber, which is the intention.

Obvious main subject: With nothing else in the image, and the background being blurred, the main subject is obvious. The main subject is large, and takes up most of the photograph. The main subject is dead-center in the image, which helps make it the main attention grabber.

Why did I choose this image? I chose this image because it is a truthful representation of President Barack Obama, it does not have any odd angles, lighting, or editing to make him seem greater or worse than he really is. His expression is not one of too much joy or what would be considered a stupid look. It is very much a photograph that President Barack Obama would want to use his as a front-cover for his representation.

I chose this image because it genuinely represents the truth, and in politics it can be easy to find plenty of photographs that although they are not edited, they are still manipulated in the way they are taken in order to present a different aspect that is not entirely truthful. I know this image to be truthful due to applying sense perception, by simply looking at the photograph I know that Obama is not trying to over exaggerate his facial expression or his body language, in short he is being entirely genuine. Also, emotion/intuition can be applied to this image since by the same way of reading Obama's facial expression and body language. One of the easiest ways to measure the truthfulness of a photo is by how it would compare to most other photos. These days you often see pictures of politicians where they look stupid, this is because those images sell more. "The photographer is rarely employed, nowadays, to tell the story as he or she sees it — the photographer is merely called upon to illustrate another’s account. Such images fail to engage the viewer and fail the larger purpose of the photographer." There is unfortunately, a large wave of photographs these days that attempt to portray a scenario or aspect that does not actually exist. This advent of fake pictures and stories stems from the digital age, and how easy it is to form articles in a way that will make them seem real, and make the readers/viewers believe that what is being written is actually reality. It is an unfortunate truth, but there are websites out there that are trying to fight this new wave of falsified information. Stopfake.org is an example of one such website, one of whose articles talks about a German town trying to advocate for the Crimea being recognized as Russian. "Quakenbrück is a town of less than 13,000 residents. Its legislative body is not a parliament but a council of 31 people whose purpose is to look after the social, business and infrastructure needs of the town. The council has no foreign policy powers to recognize Crimea as part of Russia nor, to lift EU sanctions." Battling this wave of false information and biased photography will take educating the public on how to hold an unbiased view of things, and knowing how to spot images that are obviously made in a way to look the subject look greater or worse than they really are.

Photo by: Michael M. Levin

Rule of thirds: The subject is dead-center in the photograph. This helps the subject be the main attraction so the viewer only focuses on the subject. The photographer's intention was to have Donald Trump squarely in the middle of the picture.

What feelings does the image create? The image gives me the feeling that the subject is not very intelligent. The picture makes me not want to rely on the subject as a potential future president. There are certainly no good feelings created by the image's subject.

Quality of light: The light in the photo is perfectly set on the face of the subject. The light illuminates the subjects face making it easy to see every detail. The lighting is certainly bold in order to highlight the subject's face.

Why did I choose this image? I chose this image because it clearly highlights the media's intention to pick out photographs that do not portray the candidate as a suitable future president. Politics is all about defamation of character in an attempt to make voters stray away from them. This image of Donald Trump is definitely not a flattering one, and if this was my first sighting of Donald Trump, it would not make me want to vote for him.

As previously stated, politics has always been about making the other candidates look bad, to look for any sort of information that would make them seem like a poor choice for the office they are campaigning for. It is easy to tell that this image has tons of bias behind the scenes, the photographer specifically chose the photo due to the way that it turned out, which is more than likely what they were employed to do. Based on the four ways of knowing, sense perception and emotion/intuition are again the two that I used to help figure out the photograph. Donald Trump's facial expression is not a pretty one, and that was the goal here. Quite frankly he looks like an idiot, which, due to the selective nature of the media covering him and harboring a dislike of him, they have made it so most of the American people share the same feelings for him. As Professor John Nordell describes one of his assignments early in his career, working at the Boston Phoenix he was sent to take pictures of the state Republican convention, in his video, Photojournalism and Bias - Part 1: "I took some images of some of the Republican candidates that were very unflattering. When I submitted them to my editors at the liberal newspaper they were delighted by them." With the technology available these days in photojournalism, it is quite easy to take pictures of candidates and politicians who are in the middle of a speech or some gesture, to take a photo of them that looks unappealing, it is almost like a subsection of photojournalism with how often it can be found these days. Professor John Nordell showed just how easy it was to do so in his video, Photojournalism and Bias - Part 2: "One of my early mentors, Jerry Barent, he was a photojournalist and a teacher, he would give his students an assignment to take a picture of a politician that made them look heroic, and a picture that made them look like a bum. So I took these two pictures a few minutes apart, and you know, maybe an image like this, maybe some candidate who opposes Deval Patrick in another election might use this in one of their adds saying how terrible Patrick's policies are." As said before, it really is an unfortunate truth that photojournalists are hired sometimes simply to help further the claims of an author, and not to tell the story of how it actually is. Especially with digital age photography now, it is much easier to do so.

Thursday, June 9, 2016

The Ethics of Photojournalism

The ethical issue of photojournalists photographing people who are in crises, such as natural disasters, famine, drought, tyranny, war, and other kinds of violence. Is it considered ethical or unethical for a photojournalist to put down their camera and save a starving African child who is being stalked by a vulture in Africa? Is it ethical for a psychologist to tell their teenage patient that they do not have to go home in order to avoid potentially being abused by their parents or friends? The question of ethics is raised across many professions, and it is not an issue that solves itself, the photojournalist or psychologist cannot just go home and forget about that child in Africa or that teenage patient in some other town. The answer to these kinds of questions is never an easy one, as it means breaking one set of rules in order to satisfy another set of rules. It is very much a case of "damn if you do, damned if you don't".

On July 22nd, 1975, Stanley Forman, a winner of three Pulitzer prizes, was in Boston, Massachusetts working for the Boston Herald when he responded to the scene of an intense fire at an apartment building. The pictures he was about to take would be circulated all around the world and would spark arguments over two main topics: the ethics of capturing images of people who are in peril, and the safety regulations regarding external fire escapes. The pictures in question that Stanley took are of 19-year old Diana Bryant, her 2-year old goddaughter Tiare Jones, Boston Firefighter Bob O'Neil, and traffic helicopter pilot Joe Greene who was on the roof above the other three after he had managed to land his helicopter on the roof of the burning building in order to try to assist in the rescue. Diana, Tiare, and Firefighter O'Neil were all at the top of the fire escape waiting for the ladder to reach them when suddenly the fire escape that was holding them up gave out and sent them plummeting down the fifty feet to the ground below. However, the fire ladder was close enough to the fire escape at the point it gave out that Firefighter Bob O'Neil was able to grab onto it and save himself from the long drop, Diana and Tiare were not so fortunate. Diana tried to hold on to Bob but quickly lost her grip and fell making it to the ground before Tiare due to her larger mass. It was the fact that Diana hit the ground first that more than likely saved Tiare's life, as Tiare landed on top of her godmother's body which cushioned some of the impact. Although this was not witnessed by anybody since they fell into an alleyway behind some bins, all the first responders agreed that this was the case. As the pair were falling, Stanley began taking photos, but stopped as they were about to reach the ground: "As they fell, Forman instinctively began shooting photographs, then, just as instinctively, turned away as they approached the ground. 'It dawned on me what was happening and I didn't want to see them hit the ground,' he later recounted to the press. 'I can still remember turning around and shaking.' When he turned back, Forman learned that the woman had broken the child's fall. She died later that night, but the child survived." The photographs taken by Stanley Forman on that summer day are certainly hard to look at, but they ended up being the catalyst that sparked the movement to help improve fire escape safety in the city of Boston and around the globe. It would one year later in 1976 when Stanley Forman would be awarded one of his three Pulitzer prizes for the pictures that he took that day.

The following photographs are the exact photographs that Stanley Forman took on that day in July, 1975, they show the sequence of events leading up to the collapse of the fire escape which killed Diana Bryant and seriously injuring her 2-year old goddaughter Tiare Jones.

All Above Photos by: Stanley Forman

Despite looking away when the two girls were close to impacting the ground, Stanley was not really bothered by the controversies that people around the world were outraged by. In fact, his reactions is very much the opposite, Forman is more worried about not being able to make headlines around the world like he did in that day in 1975. "Now that I‘ve taken a shot that has gotten world-wide recognition, the most frightening thing is the guys in the office who say I’ve reached my peak at age 30, that I’ll never do it again. I hope they’re wrong." Stanley Forman uses the positive feedback that he received from numerous fire departments from across the United States as a buffer to the negative feedback that he received from people who could not believe that he was willing to photograph a woman and a young girl falling more than fifty feet. This kind of scenario is never easy to process, it is neither illegal what Forman did, nor is it considered morally acceptable by society. Certainly, the Boston Herald was not too bothered by the images that he captured that day as he was immediately given a bonus the next day, and a raise within a month.

With these types of situations, everyone's always going to have their own opinion on how a person in Stanley Forman's shoes at the time of this event should have handled themselves. In my opinion, I would have put the camera down and tried to help in some way, whether that's giving water to the firefighters, assisting people who were trying to get away from the burning building, or trying to help the EMTs in some way shape or form. The way I look at is if I were a person that was being rescued from the burning building, I would not want people to just be standing around watching as I am suffering, I would want as many people to try to help rescue me and the other people trapped in the building as possible.

Photo by: Patrick Agit

Another way I would look at this scenario is if I were there, how would I feel afterwards based on my actions that day compared to my ethics that I try my best to live my life by. For this specific event I certainly would have tried my best to help out the first responders in any little way that I could. As shown in my ethical pyramid above, security, reliability, determination, and compassion are all highly important to me, and they all revolve around helping other people in anyway that I can, no matter what the situation is. Now, just because I say that I would have acted differently than Stanley Forman did that day, does not mean that I would put him down for his decisions, each person has their own ethics and beliefs and are the reasons they do what they do. With maturity and trust being two other big ethical standards of mine, I would never put another person down for their decisions and/or actions, it is just not the way that I like to operate. What I do disagree with heavily is how Stanley Forman reacted after all the criticism he received, the fact that he was more worried about whether or not he had reached his peak as a photojournalist, and whether or not he would take another headlining image again. With photojournalism there is a sense of responsibility that comes with the job, as a photojournalist the person is tasked with telling the story as it happened and not altering it in anyway, which is what Foreman did. But the issue is that along with telling the story as it happened, a photojournalist must also show respect to the people whose lives they have reported on and not be worrying about such trivialities like whether or not they have reached their peak as a photojournalist. The way Stanley Forman was worried about whether or not he would ever gain such recognition again for his work does leave quite the sour taste in my mouth due to the ethical guidelines that I try to maintain myself by and how they do not correlate with what transpired afterwards.

Monday, June 6, 2016

Women Photojournalists - Trials and Triumphs

Gender stereotypes have existed for centuries, although the dividing line between men and women has been decreasing slowly but surely. Women have always been prescribed a certain "list" of occupations that are deemed to be the only ones suitable due to their perceived lower level of capabilities when compared to men, and being a photojournalist is not one of the occupations found on that not real, yet widely accepted list. Adding to the already over-bearing "road-blocks" that come with being a women and trying to break away from the oppressive norms laid by society, are the difficulties faced by people of Jewish background, and the people whose sexual orientation does not match the standard set by society, and you have the life of Charlotte Brooks, born Charlotte Finkelstein. Charlotte was born in Brooklyn, New York in 1918 as a first generation American and found her passion for photography quite young. and by the tender age of twelve she had built a darkroom in her childhood home. Brooks' interest in expressive activities rather than scripted ones is a perfect analogy for the way she lived her life. There were many times where Brooks faced discrimination due to her Jewish inheritance, two specific moments being during her college career when she was told by a professor after a test: "you people [Jews] are supposed to be intelligent.", and again when she tried to apply to the School of Social Work at Brooklyn College: "We have a quota for people of your kind.". Following the second incident she gave up on social work, and Charlotte went on to work under Barbara Morgan, the internationally known photographer of the widely-recognized dance innovator Martha Graham, during her second stint at Bay House camp in 1942. There Charlotte worked two days a week with Morgan in Scarsdale, New York, which is where she would take a camera outdoors during her free time and would capture images and would truly discover her passion for photography. Brooks developed her notoriety while working for almost the entire lifespan of Look Magazine, from 1951 until 1971 when the magazine shut down forcing her out of her job. Charlotte was the only female photographer at the establishment that played a serious role in the information that passed through, the other female photojournalists covered other simpler and more "female-friendly" stories.

"Two days a week, Brooks worked at Barbara's home studio in Scarsdale, New York. When she picked up a camera there to make some outdoor shots on her own, Brooks experienced what she referred to as "buck fever," comparing herself to a jittery, inexperienced hunter anticipating her first kill. Photography, she realized, was her calling. From that point on she devoted her life to it." Brooks' almost natural fascination led her to be one of the most iconic female photojournalists of the 1900's.

Photo by: Patricia Carbine

Year Created: 1957

Texture: The space surrounding the man-hole is very dirty and rough. The space inside the man-hole around Charlotte is also very gritty and unsanitary. However, Charlotte herself is clean and looks smooth in comparison to her surroundings.

Use of Shadows: Outside the man-hole it is very bright and everything can be clearly seen. Charlotte herself, despite being in the man-hole, is brightly lit and easily seen. Inside the man-hole itself is very dark, and not really possible to see anything besides Charlotte.

Subject's expression: Charlotte is happy and smiling despite being inside of a man-hole. Charlotte is definitely posing for the camera, making the situation seem better than it really is. Despite the disgusting conditions found inside a sewer, Charlotte is not letting her surroundings dampen her mood.

Why I chose this image?: I chose this image because it shows Charlotte as a fearless photojournalist despite what stigmas she faced as a women at the time. Through out her life she faced constant discrimination and gender boundaries but she didn't let that stop her, and here she is going into an environment that is usually only associated with men. The picture like an analogy of her life, she didn't let stereotypes hold her back from what she loved to do.

Unfortunately, photojournalism isn't the only profession where women are not treated as equals in terms of payment, number of hours, benefits, and promotional opportunities. The medical field is one of the most segregated fields, not by law, but by society's unseen and unwritten guidelines as to how things should be run and done. Whenever a nurse is depicted, it's pretty much a guarantee that the depiction will show a women, and not a man. With the reverse situation being the case for doctors. Although the gender ratio between male and females as doctors and nurses in the health science field has been decreasing, it is still a reality. Men get hired more often, they are paid more, and are promoted to a higher salary and/or position more often then women are that are in the exact same position. Although the two fields of medicine and photojournalism are completely fundamentally different, the situation faced by women in both fields is entirely the same. Even when a women is able to land a job, she has to work a lot harder than her male counterparts in order to maintain it, and often times she will not be the first to know about breaking news stories or even be selected to cover them.

The discrimination was so severe, that Marion Post Walcott, a photographer who worked at the Philadelphia Evening Bulletin during the 1900's faced unbelievable harassment from her colleagues. As Professor John Nordell describes in his video, Women Photojournalists: "She finally got a job at the Philadelphia Evening Bullet. However, the male photographers were not welcoming. Apparently they urinated in her photography chemicals, threw spitballs at her, and extinguished their cigarettes in her developing trays."

Photo by: Pat Greenhouse

Year Created: 2014

Rule of Thirds: The subject of the photograpgh is almost dead-center. The other subject, being the main hospital is also in the middle but is much bigger and paints an imposing "shadow" over the nurse. The hospital's other two buildings occupy the two other thirds of the image.

Use of Lines: The two buildings on the side are in a way pointing towards the main hospital building. The main building itself is pointing up, making it seem bigger. The side lines of the street lead up to the main hospital building.

Abstraction: The meaning of the photo is obvious due to the imposing figure of the hospital over the women walking in front. The photographer was trying to capture an image where the women was made to look puny in comparison to the hospital. The hospital in a sense is proclaiming dominance over the female nurse.

Why did I choose this image?: I chose this image because it physically represents the hurdle that women in general, but more specifically in this situation in the medical field face when it comes to getting equal pay, benefits and bonuses, and promotion opportunities. The article this image belongs to is about a female doctor losing a case of gender discrimination against the hospital. The picture almost is a way of showing the hospital as the winner in the outcome.

The idea of female photojournalists being discriminated against, along with the whole matter of discrimination of any kind, is a pitiful situation. When a photograph is taken the first question that comes to the mind of any viewer is not whether a man or a woman took it, but more about where and how it was taken. In fact, most photojournalists are aware of this, including Paul Melcher. "I’ve never been able to identify a photojournalist’s gender from the photos she takes. Have you? When Margaret Bourke-White photographed the Nazi death camps for Life magazine, no one cared if she was a woman or not. Her images told the story and that was that." Paul's point of it not mattering what the gender of a photojournalist is who happened to take history-making pictures is a strong one, and it certainly makes the sexists who don't help make photojournalist an easy field for both sides of the gender line to enter look like people who are lacking in intelligence.

Speaking of war and female photojournalists, or lack there of, women are not very common in and around warzones. Both the military and the industry of photojournalism are rife with sexism due to the supposedly too difficult tasks and jobs which are deemed not appropriate for women to be doing. With that said, it's always a huge shock to everyone, including women, when a female photojournalist is not only in a warzone documenting it with her cameras, but going in with the soldiers as they parachute out of a plane 10,000 feet in the sky. That's exactly what, at the time, 21-year old Catherine Leroy did during the Vietnam War. Catherine would suit up in the exact same clothing, armor, helmet, and parachute as the male soldiers around here. However, instead of a rifle or even a pistol, Leroy carried with her a Leica camera. "And Leroy didn’t just photograph the war from the sidelines. She jumped in feet first, literally. Thanks to a former boyfriend who taught her how to sky dive, in 1967 she was a licensed parachutist when she joined up with the 173rd Airborne Division and jumped along with them into a combat operation, becoming the only known accredited journalist – male or female – to jump into combat with American troops at war." Catherine Leroy especially captivated everyone when after she was taken hostage and given her cameras back by the North Vietnamese, she began taking pictures of them and interviewing them. Her pictures would go on to be the cover of a LIFE Magazine, and Leroy herself would go on to be the first women to win the Robert Capa Gold Medal Award for conflict photography from the Overseas Press Club in New York in 1976.

Photo by: Catherine Leroy

Year Created: 1968

In or out of focus: The focus is set perfectly on the soldier. The background is out of focus meaning all attention is drawn to the soldier. The foxhole is also in focus in order to show the conditions.

Keep it simple: The foxhole where the soldier is sitting is not cluttered. However, the background is full of trees. It depicts the immense task that the soldier faces in order to keep his position safe since any approaching enemy would have a lot of cover.

Background compliments or detracts from composition: The background does not take away from the subject. The numerous trees help set the setting. The wall shows the desire of the soldier to keep something in between himself and the tree line.

Why did I choose this image? I chose this image because it is one of the many photographs that Catherine Leroy took while in Vietnam. A surprising fact for viewers is that the soldier in this picture is actually from the North Vietnamese army, who would have been the enemy that the side Leroy was there with was fighting against. The soldier is also obviously young, and it helps depict the sad truth of war that age is often not considered a factor when it comes to fighting.