Within my portraiture photography I have in mind to try indulge into the realism side of photography and explore and portray images which enhance a sense of shock on how many people chose or more importantly have to live their lives.
Due to these intentions I have chosen to explore the work of photographers which I believe best represent their subject matter truthfully in order to be inspired to also convey these similar ideas in my work. I believe this communication of real life situations link very much to documentary photography in the way that they create a sense of awareness on how some people are living their lives.
Sally Mann
Sally Mann is an American photographer, best known for her large-format, black and white photographs – at first of young children, then later of landscapes suggesting decay and death. Her environmental portraiture photos focus on the shocking and some what controversial behaviors of younger children which influence the idea that not all young children are innocent and sweet.
The photo above is a clear representation of the intentions that the photographer set out to convey. The innocent and harmless look upon the girls face suggests that she is the stereotypical sweet young girl. However this is clearly juxtaposed with the cigarette in which she holds which has many connotations, one being that she may no longer have the ability to conform to the standards that society inflicts upon young girls. Girls are expected to always look neat and tidy and display the correct behaviors at all times. It is a huge shock to many to see younger children performing in such behaviors as seen through this photograph which the photographer has clearly set up to challenge the dominant ideologies about young girls. The fact that the photo is in black and white helps to portray the idea that it is a disgraceful act to be smoking at that age. It would appear that this photo likely used a small aperture as the background is very much out of focus where as the foreground is is very detailed.
Arnold Newman is an American photographer born in 1918. studied art under a scholarship at the University of Miami 36-8. he is known as a pioneer of environmental portraiture but also took still life and abstract photos. He started his career working at chain portrait studios in Philadelphia, which helped him gain experience and an eye for portraiture. In his free time he experimented with abstraction and documentary photography which combined with his job helped to create his eye for environmental portraits. His “Artists Look Like This” exhibition in his Philadelphia museum attracted nationwide attention. In 1946 he moved to New York and opened and opened his own studio and joined the American Society of Magazine Photographers. He often took photographs of well know people such as politicians, industrialists and musicians, these photos sometimes had a controversial perspective and told a story about each subject.
photo by Arnold Newman of american layer Thurgood MarshallAlfred Krupp by Arnold Newman
Technical: The light used in this photo is natural and artificial, in the background their is windows letting in light for above and we can also see that his face is being lit up by florescent lights. The shadows are in the middle of his face leading me to think that there is light coming from both sides. this photograph has a high contrast due to the light split on the top and bottom. The whole photo is in focus which leads me to think it was taken on a wide angle lens, we can also tell this because his face is slightly distorted from how close the camera was to the subject. A fast shutter speed was probably used to create a sharp under exposed image. The image has an interesting white balance, in the dark areas it looks blue and in the light areas it looks more yellow.
Visual: There is an unnatural green tint to this image which creates an eerie effect, the dark shadowed tone also adds to this. there is a lot of texture and pattern in the background of this image which adds details to the scene. There is clear repetition of pattern on the ceiling which leads back to a vanishing point, this also helps to create depth. the pillar either side of the subject act as a frame and add symmetry.
Contextual: Aarnold Newman deliberately tried to make Aldried Krupp look bad due to his connections with Hitler in the war. Krupp was friends with Hitler and was allowed to use prisoners as slave labor in awful conditions. As a Jewish photographer Arnold Newman wanted to reflect his views and hatred for Krupp, this was hard because he had to do it without him knowing.
Conceptual: By shining a light from both sides it creates harsh shadows which Arnold said made him look like the devil. the lines on the ceiling down the center of the image remind us of the train tracks at Auschwitz. When we know the story behind this image it becomes a lot more intimidating and evil. The green lighting also reflects this idea and makes the image look cold and heartless.
August Sander was a German portrait and documentary photographer. Sander has been described as “the most important German portrait photographer of the early twentieth century. Sander was born in Herdof, the son of a carpenter working in the mining industry. While working at a local mine, Sander first learned about photography by assisting a photographer who was working for a mining company. With financial support from his uncle, he bought photographic equipment and set up his own darkroom.
Mood Board
Analysis Of August Sander’s Work
This picture is clearly an environmental portraiture showing a young man carrying some bricks. This is an environmental portraiture because the image gives us an indication about the person being photographed, in this case we know he is a brick layer. We can clearly see that this image is in black and white and split into sections. These sections are as followed, the mans body, his head and then the bricks in which he is carrying. The lighting appears to be up high, illuminating the mans facial features and bricks. This image is also highly contrasted, the man himself is well lit up which contrasts with the very dark background.
There is a large tonal range within this image which is evident where his face is a lot lighter than the rest of his body. There is a significant amount of light directed more towards the bricks and the background is completely black. This use of light it used to signify the profession in which this man involved himself in. The ISO of the image appears to be quite high, we know this because we can see most of the detail within the mans clothing as well as the bricks. If the ISO was lower this detail would not be so evident. There are various textures within this image for example the rough and creased clothing as well as the textures involved in the bricks.
The concept behind this image can be interpreted in a variety of ways. In my opinion the photographer is trying to portray the idea of child labor by using a male that looks rather young doing a highly difficult and tiring job. However the male is not quite young enough to maybe fit into the category of ‘child’ therefore the photographer could also be referring to the times when people would have to get jobs at a very young age to survive and look after their family.
This image was taken by August Sanders in 1928 and is called ‘The Brick Layer’. The original name for this image is ‘Handlanger’ which is German for Henchman
Who is Arnold Newman?
Arnold Newman was born March 3, 1918 in New York City. He studied art under a scholarship at the University of Miami, Coral Gables, from 1936 to 1938. However he died in New York City on June 6, 2006. Generally acknowledged as the pioneer of the environmental portrait, he is also known for his still life and abstract photography, and he is considered as one of the most influential photographers of the 20th Century.
Newman began his career in photography in 1938 through working at chain portrait studios in Philadelphia, Baltimore, and West Palm Beach, and immediately began working in abstract and documentary photography on his own. In June of 1941, Beaumont Newhall of the Museum of Modern Art and Alfred Stieglitz “discovered” him, and he was given an exhibit with Ben Rose at the A.D. Gallery in September. There he began working on experimental portraiture, developing an approach that is widely influential in portrait photography today. In 1945 his Philadelphia Museum of Art one-man exhibit, “Artists Look Like This,” attracted nationwide attention. Well established, he moved to New York in 1946 and opened his studio and became a member of the American Society of Magazine Photographers, Newman’s new approach to portraiture began its influence through key publications in America and abroad. In 1949, he married Augusta Rubenstein, and they had two sons, Eric, born 1950, and David, 1952. His wife died in 2009.
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I decided to analyse one of the images taken by Arnold, to see what made them so effective.
From this image of Audrey Hepburn, what I believe makes it so effective, is the use of the rule of thirds within, which when taken into account, find that the models eyes line up with the top right corner, which is where you can find your eyes instantly drawn to. There is also that there is an even light throughout the whole picture, creating a balanced scene within throughout, which helps contribute to the visually pleasing aspect.
Visually, what I find makes it so effective is the use of the subjects position and composition of the shot within. For example the person is evenly positioned in the center of the photo looking away, this visually makes it aesthetically pleasing to the eye, due to how the head which is the key part of the image is facing away, with a calm facial expression making it a very relaxed shoot. I also think the use of clothing from the neck to the bottom of her shoulders brings the image together, this is because of how the clear contrast between the blackness and the white brings out the features of the rest of the subject.
The context of this image about Audrey Hepburn, was that Arnold Newman wanted to show that even if someone was famous to you or not, the image none the less could get you excited and interest the viewer. He wanted to capture the essence of Audrey's life and work, and so tried to do so with a controlled environment for the picture. He wanted to present what defined Audrey Hepburn as a whole, and so thought that through this composition would be able to reflect her life and work, in order to impact the viewer the most.
What is an environmental portrait?
An environmental portrait is a portrait of someone who has been taken in their place of work, which is the subject's usual environment. This can be their home or workplace, but usually within the image, it reflects and illuminates the person's personal life, seen through the surrounding objects within the picture itself.
One photographer who does this is Sally Mann, as seen in her photos like the one below called 'Candy Cigarette'.
Within environmental portraits the subject tends to have a relaxed and calm face, in order to create an effect inside the image itself, whilst allowing the image to be emphasized due to its dramatic characteristics.
Sally Mann tended to focus on a individual face within her images, to really make out the backgrounds of the character within, allowing us to see the conditions many of the subjects were brought up in.
Environmental portraiture refers to images that often show people in specific locations that indicate something to the viewer about their personality, routines, likes and dislikes. Photographers often photograph people in places that they live or work to give us clues about their lives and how they have lived or are currently living.
Examples Of Environmental Portraits Found of Google
In both of these examples, the image is set up and the subject, thus being the person, is aware that the photo is being taken. This is called a formal portrait. The top image shows the subject in a place which clearly gives the viewer an understanding of the persons hobbies. The second image show the subjects in their natural workplace. The surroundings and backgrounds in environmental portraits is a key factor as it is used to convey further information about the person being photographed.
Street photography is photography conducted for art or enquiry that features unmediated chance encounters and random incidents within public places.
Street Photography is a sub-genre of photojournalism…
Street photography does not necessitate the presence of a street or even the urban environment. The concept of the “flaneur” or people watcher is often referred to…as is the candid portrait.
Henri Cartier-Bresson
Blog Post 1 : Define, describe and explain street photography.
And what is a candid photograph?
Include images, moodboards, hyperlinks to relevant articles and URLs and add a video or two on street photography…
Blog Post 2 :
Henri Cartier – Bresson and The Decisive Moment
Create a blog post / case study about Cartier-Bresson that includes…
Brief biography
Mood-board of key images
Select one image and apply Technical | Visual | Contextual | Conceptual analysis
His contribution to MAGNUM Photo Agency
Add any other relevant research / insights
Homework Due in Monday 13th Nov
Take 150-250 photos as a response to the STREET PHOtoGRAPHERS you have researched and analysed
Choose a small group of images to edit / enhance
Present as final outcomes, include evaluation and analysis
Then Compare and Contrast Cartier- Bresson to one (or more) of the following street photographers…
William Klein
Diane Arbus
Vivian Maier
Robert Frank
Bruce Gilden
Martin Parr
Saul Leiter
William Eggleston
Gordon Parks
John Bulmer
Trent Parke
Garry Winogrand
Raghubir Singh
Lee Friedlander
Joel Meyerowitz
Tony Ray-Jones
Bill Owens
Discuss in detail the differences / similarities / intentions / outcomes and of course the photographer’s technical and visual approach.
Bill Owens
Technique : Taking street photographs
Be more aggressive
Get more involved (talk to people)
Stay with the subject matter (be patient)
Take simpler pictures
See if everything in background relates to subject matter
Vary compositions and angles more
Be more aware of composition
Don’t take boring pictures!
Get in closer (use 50mm lens or less)
Watch camera shake (shoot 250 sec or above)
Don’t shoot too much!!!
Not all eye level
No middle distance
William Klein
Watch this clip about Bruce Gilden…
TOP TIP : ANNOTATE YOUR CONTACT SHEETS!
This technique helps you to identify key features in your contact sheets AND helps you make your selections for final outcomes. This is vital…producing the “killer image” or the decisive moment during an event / happening. William Klein was well know for his use of contact sheets as an essential, and visual, part of his process…
Photojournalism really started to take shape when photographers could easily transport cameras into war zones. The “Golden Age of Photojournalism” is often considered to be roughly the 1930s through the 1950s. It was made possible by the development of the compact commercial 35mmLeica camera in 1925, and the first flash bulbs between 1927 and 1930, which allowed the journalist true flexibility in taking pictures.
For the first time, ordinary citizens could see the impact of the fighting right there in their newspaper. It was a pivotal moment in photography and it became more and more real between the Civil War and World War II.
Yet photojournalism is not just about war or photographers working the beat for a local newspaper. It’s much more than that. Photojournalism tells a story and it often does so in a single photograph. They evoke a feeling, whether its astonishment, empathy, sadness, or joy.
That is the mark of photojournalism; to capture that single moment in time and give viewers the sense that they’re part of it.
Put simply, photojournalism is about capturing verbs. This doesn’t mean simply taking an action photo. Communicating the verb is much more than that.
Stories are captured in slices while photojournalism strives to convey what is happening in one shot.
Although it is great when it happens, photojournalism isn’t about the best composition, or the best technical details, or a pretty subject.
Photojournalism is about showing the world a story of something that really happened.
“Bearing witness” is a phrase that comes to mind in regards to photojournalism.
Photojournalism allows the world to see through the eyes of the photographer for just a moment. When photojournalism is done right, that one moment conveys volumes of time.
Conveying the full story is part of environmental portraiture where the setting tells us as much about the subject as the subject themselves.
The emotion is often raw in photojournalism. The photographer is not directing the scene as a portrait or commercial photographer would. Instead, the best of them blend into the background and become a shadow figure (unlike the paparazzi). They are there to observe and capture, not become the story or interrupt it.
The photojournalist has a different attitude than other photographers and it’s necessary to capturing those memorable photos. And quite often, that single photo can become a call to action for the millions of people who see it.
3.The Picture Story / Essay
Picture Story | Magnum
3. Representation, Standards and Ethics in Photojournalism
Kevin Carter Starving Child 1993
Another vitally important part of photojournalism is accuracy. This means that what is in the frame is what happened.
The photojournalist is ethically bound not to change the story (though many fall short of this ideal).
Power lines should not be cloned out. More smoke must not be added to a fire scene. What was captured is how it should be. Sadly, the era of digital photography has made it easier than ever to manipulate reality.
The image should be a window into the event. At most, lighten the shadows a touch to see faces or sharpen the image a bit for clarity but do not change the essence of what you capture in the photo. If you do, you change the story.
An environmental portrait is a portrait executed in the subject’s usual environment, such as in their home or workplace, and typically illuminates the subject’s life and surroundings.
Blog Post 1 :
define, describe and explain what an environmental portrait is
add a moodboard of suitable images
include hyperlinks to suitable URLs to help you
add at least one video to create inter-activity on your blog
Blog Post 2 :
Choose either Arnold Newman or August Sander to write a CASE STUDY and create a blog post that includes….
a brief biography of the artist
Mood-board of key images
Select one image and apply Technical | Visual | Contextual | Conceptual analysis
Add any other relevant research / insights
Arnold Newman (photographer) // Igor Stravinsky (Russian composer) 1946 // New York
August Sander // Pastry Cook 1928 // Germany
But… you may be influenced by an alternative, contemporary photographer that you have discovered or researched so please show clearly where your ideas and inspiration has developed from…
Key things to consider with formal / environmental portraits…
Technical= Composition / exposure / lens / light
Visual= eye contact / engagement with the camera / neutral pose and facial expression / angle / viewpoint
Conceptual= what are you intending to present? eg : social documentary? / class ? / authority ? / gender role ? / lifetsyle ?
Contextual=back ground / story / detail / information about the character(s) / connection to the photographer eg family / insider / outsider
Extension Task
Environmental Portraits are a type of formal portrait, which can be similar to documentary / narrative approaches to portraiture. You may want to look at the work of the following artists and respond visually, or create a blog post that explores some of their work and shows awareness of this important genre too.
Within environmental portraits the subject tends to have a relaxed and calm face, in order to create an effect inside the image itself, whilst allowing the image to be emphasized due to its dramatic characteristics.
Sally Mann tended to focus on a individual face within her images, to really make out the backgrounds of the character within, allowing us to see the conditions many of the subjects were brought up in.
