Photography is capturing an image from a brief point in time, through light.

Photography’s Functions:

Because photography is quick, cameras are portable and images are easily distributed, photography has had many functions. There are instances where photography is used to document, this could be for things such as science, news and evidence to name a few. Another function could be capturing memories or events that a person experiences throughout their life, this is becoming even easier to do with the use of smartphones and social media. The use of cameras and social media has allowed for even greater communication methods, with people being able to send images of what they are experiencing to others.

Photography as an Art-Form

Whether or not photography is a true ‘art’ has been debated on for centuries. Personally, I think that photography is its own unique type of art that can be experienced by anyone at anytime. Photography captures a scene in a similar way painting or drawing a picture does, the only difference being the process which some argue is the reason for photography not being an art form. As photography has multiple layers of complexity, style and personality within them, I think that photography is a great way to create art. Another thing to mention could be that photography is almost always ‘honest’ – an unedited image cannot change the way reality looks, giving photography a more natural look than some other forms of art.

Photography as a Science

As photography is Greek for ‘Light Writing’, it would make sense that in order to be able to do photography, you would require some forms of physics and chemistry to make a camera work. One of the first scientific uses of the camera was by Eadweard Muybridge where he used around 20 cameras that were lined up and recorded a horse running past them, as the horse went past a camera, the camera would take a picture, giving Eadweard multiple images. Eadweard used these to prove the idea that horses lift all of their feet up when galloping. After this he would go on to document several animals on how they moved. Since then, photography has been used for other scientific uses such as documentation to learn even more about how the world works.

The Difference between the ‘Study’ and ‘Practice’ of Photography

Study:

The ‘Study’ of photography is the scientific and developmental aspects of photography. As mentioned before, the use of physics and chemistry is vital in photography, without them, it simply wouldn’t be possible. New developments of photography occur often and after each development, something new may be possible.

Practice:

The ‘Practice’ of photography is the artistic side. Photographers practice their artistic techniques, learn new ones and hone their ideas or create new ones as a way of creating something unique as a sort of journey or career. As photography is a rapidly growing interest, many new ideas and techniques are being shown to the public so that they can be developed more by other people.

History

Hamptonne was previously used by 15th century farmers and royals as a farm and housing complex with several buildings from different time periods. It’s name comes one of it’s previous owners “Laurens Hamptonne” who was given permission to rebuild the ‘Colombier’ – a Dovecote – by King Charles II. King Charles also gifted Hamptonne multiple grants for its aid to him during the English Civil War.

Information

Hamptonne today is a museum which provides an insight into the lives of 15th Century farmers and the culture of Jersey at the time, live performers/actors portray the lives and activities of those people, providing an immersive and informative experience. The ‘Hampton Cider Festival’ is an annual event which takes place at the old farm, where people can watch its cider press at work, enjoy traditional food and music, as well as Cider Testing from local and foreign sources. Hamptonne is a Jersey Heritage site, meaning is also used as a wedding venue, as well as tours and trails, giving the old farm life and meaning on the small island. There is also a Cider apple orchard to visit, a local bakery, a children’s playground and an animal farm so all ages can experience the site.

Below is a Link to the Jersey Heritage Website, on the page detailing Hamptonne:

https://www.jerseyheritage.org/explore/find-a-place-to-visit/hamptonne-country-life-museum/

The Characters

At Hamptonne, multiple performers often act as people who lived in the times of Hamptonne’s use as a farm/house. These include characters such as Spinning ladies, Goodwife, Blacksmith and other ancient depictions.

Methods of Recording History – Tom Kennedy

Tom Kennedy is a local Jersey photographer who has documented Jersey’s Heritage sites with his wife Annigna Kennedy. Their works capture what life would have been like in Jersey’s older times through their respective skills. When documenting Jersey’s Heritage sites, Kennedy prefers to use natural light from windows, candles, etc… to make the image as believable and immersive as possible.

This image is a portrait of Alfred Krupp, taken by Arnold Newman

Visual

In this image the colour palette is primarily made up of greens and browns, this, paired with the models facial expression, helps give the image an industrial and almost sinister look. I think the image uses light very effectively in the sense that, while you can see the main light source used, a lot of the image remains fairly dark. The texture of the surfaces look metallic, giving the image a rougher look. The shapes in this image are mainly angular, such as squares/rectangles, and are 3D, which gives the image a sense of depth. In addition, the use of line has given the image a similar effect, as well as a more industrial look. Leading lines have been used effectively in this image, the multiple windows, gradually getting smaller the greater the distance, point towards the focal point in the center. This image does not follow the rule of thirds as the focal point, the model’s face, is in the center of the image.

Technical

There is little to no blur in this image, this is likely a result of a fast shutter speed. This could have been done to give the factory a vastness that seems intimidating to the viewers. The lighting in this image seems fully natural, with its source being the windows on the ceiling. The lighting used is just enough to make the model, as well as the majority of the factory, fully visible. This image possibly uses a darker aperture of around f/11, I think this because the image has a fairly large depth of field and because the image is darker in some areas. I think the shutter speed would have been quick, maybe around 1/500 as the image is fairly sharp all around with little to no blurs.

Contextual

The model of this image is Alfred Krupp, a German steel manufacturer who was born in 1812. He was the largest arms manufacturer at the time. Krupp considered employment as being something like a patriarchy, expecting obedience from all his workers, this could also be a reason for the composition of the image. As Krupp was a post-industrial-revolution steel manufacturer, he was likely making a lot of money from the steel he distributed, likely giving him more power control over his workers.

Conceptual

I think the concept behind this image is to say something about how business owners at the time got the majority of the money earned, thus making it appropriate to give the well-dressed and seated boss a sinister gaze, whereas the workers would get a far smaller portion, even with the intense physical labor they would have endured. As Krupp was a arms manufacturer, it could also be saying that wars and the people who start them are malicious instead of just.