For this assignment we were required to work in groups to give a formal presentation on early documentary. Specifically the biography and works of the following three 19th century photographers; Francis Frith, Rodger Fenton and Mathew Brady discussing three images of each photographer. These photographers were a few of the first to record history in the making. To explore and share the places captured and the people living there. This new form of communication played a vital role in the way society viewed painting and drawing. Not only as a means of conveying information but also as a medium of visual or artistic expression.
In the broadest sense, all photography not intended purely as a means of artistic expression might be considered ‘documentary’, the photograph, a visual document, of an event, place, object, or person, providing evidence of a moment in time. Yet the term ‘documentary photography’ has a more specific meaning. The Life Library's Documentary Photography (1972) defined it as ‘a depiction of the real world by a photographer whose intent is to communicate something of importance—to make a comment—that will be understood by the viewer’.
Francis Frith, an English photographer, was born in 1822. He becoming a founding member of the Liverpool Photographic Society in 1853. Frith sold his companies in 1855 in order to dedicate himself entirely to photography. He journeyed to the Middle East on three occasions, the first of which was a trip to Egypt in 1856 with very large cameras (16" x 20"). By the time Frith returned to England, he was somewhat of a celebrity.
In 1860 Frith embarked on a monumental mission. He wanted to document every city, town and village in Britain. His intention was to portray a 3D scene onto a ...
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MoMA.org, (2014). MoMA | The Collection | Francis Frith (British, 1822–1898). [online] Available at: http://www.moma.org/collection/artist.php?artist_id=2015 [Accessed 3 May 2014].
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Smarthistory.khanacademy.org, (2014). Early Photography - Smarthistory. [online] Available at: http://smarthistory.khanacademy.org/early-photography.html [Accessed 3 May 2014].
Users.dickinson.edu, (2014). Matthew Brady. [online] Available at: http://users.dickinson.edu/~osborne/404_98/whitep.htm [Accessed 3 May 2014].
Johnson, Brooks. Photography Speaks: 150 Photographers on their Art.” New York: Aperture Foundation Inc., 2004. Print.
Getlein, Mark. "Chapter 17-The 17th and 18th Centuries." Living with Art. 9th ed. Boston, MA: McGraw Hill, 2008. 384-406. Print.
“The documentary tradition as a continually developing “record” that is made in so many ways, with different voices and vision, intents and concerns, and with each contributor, finally, needing to meet a personal text” (Coles 218). Coles writes “The Tradition: Fact and Fiction” and describes the process of documenting, and what it is to be a documentarian. He clearly explains through many examples and across disciplines that there is no “fact or fiction” but it is intertwined, all in the eye of the maker. The documentarian shows human actuality; they each design their own work to their own standards based on personal opinion, values, interest and whom they want the art to appeal to. Coles uses famous, well-known photographers such as Dorthea Lange and Walker Evans, who show the political angle in their documentations and the method of cropping in the process of making the photo capture exactly what the photographer wants the audience to view. In this paper I will use outside sources that support and expand on Coles ideas with focus on human actuality, the interiority of a photograph, and the emotional impact of cropping.
Carden, Robert W. "The Franco-British Exhibition." Architectural Review 1908 July, v. 24, p. [32]-37 ; 1908 Sept., p. [108]-111
Tolmachev, I. (2010, March 15). A history of Photography Part 1: The Beginning. Retrieved Febraury 2014, from tuts+ Photography: http://photography.tutsplus.com/articles/a-history-of-photography-part-1-the-beginning--photo-1908
In the chapter, “The Mirror with a Memory”, the authors, James Davidson and Mark Lytle, describe numerous things that evolved after the civil war, including the life of Jacob Riis, the immigration of new peoples in America, and the evolution of photography. The authors’ purpose in this chapter is to connect the numerous impacts photography had on the past as well as its bringing in today’s age.
Gustavon, Todd. Camera: A History of Photography from daguerreotype to Digital. New York, NY: Sterling Publishing, 2009
Stokstad, Marilyn. Art History. New York: Prentice Hall Inc. and Harry N. Abrams Inc. 1995.
The camera is simply a portable extension of our eyes that captures images we may otherwise never see, and freezes them into eternity for our scrutiny. If photographs provide any true knowledge, it is that of a visual stimulus, a superficial comprehension that barely scratches the surfaces. What would photographs be without captions? Merely anonymous pictures of anonymous things, anonymous places, and anonymous people. Photography all...
Stokstad, Marilyn and David Cateforis. Art History. 2nd ed. Vol. 2. Trenton: Prentice Hall, 2002.
Raeburn, John. A Staggering Revolution: A Cultural History of Thirties Photography. Chicago: University of Illinois, 2006. Print.
Heilbrunn Timeline of Art History | The Metropolitan Museum of Art." The Metropolitan Museum of Art - Home. 2004. Accessed October 27, 2011. http://www.metmuseum.org/toah/hd/duch/hd_duch.htm.
Kleiner, Fred S. Gardner's Art Through the Ages. Boston: Clark Baxter, 2009. Print. The.
If we go back beyond Lumière Brothers’ projection of their cinematography in Paris over Christmas 1895, which is too straightforward birth narration of cinema; ancient visual forms like Egyptian hieroglyphics or pre-cinematic technologies of image capture and projection, known as magic lanterns, employing a series of lenses and light sources, were early proof of humanity mesmerised by the play and tricks of light and shades.
Photojournalism plays a critical role in the way we capture and understand the reality of a particular moment in time. As a way of documenting history, the ability to create meaning through images contributes to a transparent media through exacting the truth of a moment. By capturing the surreal world and presenting it in a narrative that is relatable to its audience, allows the image to create a fair and accurate representation of reality.