What Is Photojournalism?
Photojournalism is a form of journalism that uses images rather than words in order to tell a story or report some significant news. It is now usually used to refer to still images but in some cases it also refers to the use of videos in broadcast journalism. Photojournalism is distinguished from other close genres of photography such as street photography by using a strict ethical framework which demands that the work is honest and impartial whilst telling the story in strict journalistic terms. Photojournalists must be well informed and knowledgeable about events happening in the world. They deliver news in a creative and entertaining format.
Photojournalism started off by being inspired by war photography in order to create an accurate representation of war. They would aim to show the suffering and complete devastation of the wars to potentially prevent these wars from occurring. Due to this there was a large expansion of photography which soon inspired the Golden age – This is often considered to be roughly the 1930s through the 1950s. It was made possible by the development of the compact commercial camera in 1925 and so journalist true flexibility in taking pictures.
Photojournalism goes hand in hand with street photography in the sense that they both aim to present a truthful representation of a situation in which people are unaware of and therefore help to make an impact. They are both hard hitting genres for some people to view and really embrace the viewer to feel as if they are in the scene themselves.
This photograph is an example of photojournalism. It displays an unexpected real life situation which is a devastating event. It is hard for the viewer to intake this kind of image as it is extremely saddening and makes you think how unfortunate some are. The positive thing which comes out of this kind of photography is that it makes us want to help people in these areas and positively impact the world.
This allowed me to focus on certain aspects of the shoot easier, as I now had a rough idea what I needed to capture. These were the results from my shoot:
From the shoot I went on to highlight and crop the images I thought were the best out of all the photographs. This allowed me to limit the shoot down to just ten pictures so that I could choose my final image to display. These were my choices:
I chose this image because I loved the contrast between the darkness of the wall, and the subject. This is due to the rule of thirds which line up with the character inside, which instantly draws your eye to the face. I found that the pure blackness of the wall covering the picture added for a dramatic effect overall, making it almost seem hidden.
I chose this image once again because of the contrast between the subject and the surrounding area. I found that the silhouette created by the lamp really made the image pop, whilst at the same time balanced it so that the darkness itself was not too overpowering in the picture.
What I liked about this image was how the subjects face lit up against the darkness of the rest of the picture against the white strip of wall. I found that capturing someone off guard in their comfort zone allowed for a greater insight to the subjects life, and really captured them as an individual.
I found that this picture captured a clear contrast between the darkness of the three old figures and the white pub behind. I found that this silhouette that is almost created, makes the overall piece more dramatic than it is, with the blurred black building behind allowing for the whole picture to work.
Finally I chose this image because it captured the nightlife of a man drunk stumbling home. What I liked about this was how the picture was blurred itself as well, allowing greater emphasis on the man in the jacket being drunk, and the perspective that he may be seeing.
FINAL IMAGE
From this mood board I chose the two images I thought were most effective.
These images highlight everyday life in certain parts of cities and countries. What I think makes them both so effective, is that in the top one taken in a construction site, has a clear pattern which leads to the central figure, where the eye is drawn. This use of using everyday sites to create pattern through contrast etc, allow for a more visually pleasing style of street photography.
However the image beneath that image, focuses on a completely different aspect, as instead it chooses to focus on a poorer place in which sites like that are common. What makes it so effective is that there is a clear contrast between the blue wood, and the white dog, where the photographer uses the bike as a golden ratio to draw the eye to the head of the dog.
The main role of the photojournalist is to be a visual storyteller. By photographing, editing, and presenting images, they tell a story in a way that no other media can. Some photojournalists work for a local publication, while others will travel nationally or abroad, putting themselves in constantly changing or even dangerous situations to capture a photo. The photographs serve the purpose of enhancing the story for the reader or viewer
street photography is unmediated, documenting every day life. The subjects in the photos are often not expecting to be photographed or do not notice it at all. They are often taken in the street but are not limited to this, as long as they are un-staged pictures that tell us more about a persons life, personality and story. It originated from people documenting time when cameras were first invented and is now used as an educational and creative way to give people a different perspective on the society. Street photographs aim to capture a persons emotions and often portray a certain class or group of people.
The image would have been taken on a normal shutter speed as the man is in focus, which suggest that the had stopped walking or was concentrating on something, whereas the truck that is in the back if the image is slightly blurry/out of focus. The image has a very neutral colour palette, which could be due to the snow which has blocked out the colour of the street colour palette the only real color in the image is the yellow from the truck on the street.
Technically the image is very different from Saul’s the first reason this being is that Henri’s images is very sharp and clean, the image must have been taken on a very quick shutter speed to capture the boy jumping in mid air and not to get any blur from him jumping. Henri image is also in total black and white and nearly features the full scale of Ansel Adam’s zone system.
1923 he acquired his hand-held Leica camera 
