Topic3: Alterations in journalistic photography

Topic3: Alterations in journalistic photography

Press photography is a form of photography that has to be 100% real. These photographers should not be altered or manipulated in any way. Altering these photographs is considered unethical and is not right. Press photography or photojournalism needs to be real and depict a real story, altering these photographs contradicts this statement. Artists always try and make their photographs visually and artistically appealing; however in press photographer the most important is factor is the truth. Photo editing should not be used in any form with press photography. Press photography is used to record very important world events, these events need to be 100% factual. This factuality includes the photography.  The standards in ethical decision making while taking a photograph should be raised. The national press photographers association agrees with this statement (http://webct.georgebrown.ca/webct/urw/lc2044122001.tp0/cobaltMainFrame.dowebct) Photography’s ability to record specific moments in time is one of the most important things that it offers, and altering. It can display the real emotions that are trying to capture in a specific moment. Creating Documentary images with aesthetic goals in mind should not be the main goal for press photographers.  They should be more concerned with capturing the real image and the emotion that was felt at that time. These altered photographs are unethical because they are considered fake. They are not a true interpretation of what the image is intending to portray. They are altering these photographs to change the mood or feeling at that time. This is not acceptable.  An example of a photograph that was altered unethically was by a photographer, Eadweard Muybridge.  He was a landscape photographer who took a photograph of a landscape and the sky. He altered this photograph to create, “cloud negative.”  This was done to hence the clouds and creates a very deep contrast.  This was unethical because it not depicting reality (http://repository.tamu.edu/bitstream/handle/1969.1/85719/Photo%20Thesis%20Rasior.pdf?sequence=1). 

EXAMPLES OF ALTERATIONS IN PRESS PHOTOGRAPHY 

 

Eadweard Muybridge, Cloud's Rest, Valley of the Yosemite, 1872 

Source:  http://www.flickr.com/photos/31003441@N08/2969594875/

 

Oprah's head on Ann Margaret's body

source: http://www.paulburwell.com/blog/2009/08/the-ethics-of-digital-photo-manipulation/

Assignment 1 - Topic 2: Press photography versus art photography

PRESS PHOTOGRAPHY

Press Photography taken by famous photographer Henri Cartier-Bresson
Source:

http://www.tate.org.uk/liverpool/exhibitions/centreofthecreativeuniverse/guide/room1.shtm

Press photography by famous photographer Andre Kertesz
source:

http://www.photographyblog.com/articles_photography_events_exhibitions_july_2006.php

Fine Art Photography

 

 

Fine art Photograph taken by William T. Peters 

source:

http://members.shaw.ca/bill.peters/Images/dunes_storm_lrg.jpg

 

Fine Art Photograph taken by Philip Lee Harvey 

Source:

http://www.gallery1839.com/site/pages.php?fid=0,10

Main Differences and Similarities Between Press and Fine Art Photography

Photographs are taken everyday around the world by thousands of people. There are two different types of photography that I will be discussing; Press photography and Fine Art photography.  The first two pictures that I posted were examples of Press photography. The first photograph was taken by the renowned Henri Cartier-Bresson. This photograph was taken in Liverpool in 1962. It illustrates two young boys walking in the streets being ‘silly’ (http://www.tate.org.uk/liverpool/exhibitions/centreofthecreativeuniverse/guide/room1.shtm).  The second photograph was taken by another famous photographer Andre Kertesz. This photo shows three individuals sitting on a train reading. This describes Kertesz’s love for books (http://www.photographyblog.com/articles_photography_events_exhibitions_july_2006.php). The next two photographs are examples of fine art photography. The first photograph is a picture of dunes storm taken by William T. Peters. The second photograph is by Philip Lee Harvey and it is a portrait of a young African American boy.

 There are many differences and similarities between these two types of photography.  The photographs taken by press photographers are suppose to tell a story. They are meant to freeze time at any particular moment and capture the emotion and feelings in still time.  This moment has to be captured right away. We can see this in the two first photographers. Henri Cartier-Bresson was a photographer who “allowed his pictures to tell the stories as they happened. He was able to freeze the information on his photographs” (Icevska, pg. 6). This is very evident in the photograph of the two boys. This picture was not planned at all and was captured in the perfect moment. Henri Cartier-Bresson was also a photographer who took images of common men and women all around Europe. According to David Friend’s article, Cartier-Bresson’s Decisive Moment, Henri Cartier-Bresson always choose the “decisive moment” to capture. His photographs were described as lyrical, loose, and ingenious (Friend, 2004). This is a perfect way to describe press photography. The second picture also shows these characteristics.  Andre Kertesz photograph of the three people sitting on the train was not planned at all, and it was capture in the moment.  The two fine art photographs I have shown show some similarities to press photography. The photograph with the sand dunes was not planned at all, and was also captured in that split second of a moment. However, the difference is that this photograph looks like it has been altered. Press photographs are never altered or distorted, and fine art photographs are. This is one of the main differences between the two.  This picture is also of a landscape and scenery, press photographer is usually of people and events. The other fine art photograph is of a boy. This is a full face portrait that has a lot of emotion and feeling into it. That is a characteristic that press and fine art photography share. However, press photographers would never ask an individual to pose or look straight into the camera.  This photograph also looks like it has been edited because the background is all blurry and the boy face is very sharp and focused. These are the main differences and similarities between press photography and fine art photography.

sources:

Icevska, Gordana. (2009). Shooting the truth: How Photographs in the media betray us: Version 3, (p 3-17).

Friend, David. (2004). - Cartier-Bresson's Decisive Moment from Digital Journalist.