Chapter 2.5 PART 2 MEDIA AND PROCESSES PHOTOGRAPHY - Recording the Image

. “Photography” derives from two Greek words, “drawing with light”

 photos means “light” and graphein means “to draw” . Collecting the image

 Film: and positive

 Digital: , computer . vs. human eye

 Today, the camera is a mechanical recorder and an artistic tool

Gateways to Art: Understanding the , Debra J. DeWitte, Ralph M. Larmann, M. Kathryn Shields Chapter 2.5 Photography PART 2 MEDIA AND PROCESSES

The .

 Projection of outside scene

 First drawn, then captured on light-sensitive material

 Room-sized then portable (eighteenth-century) camera obscura . Negative/positive processes

-blue line on white background

-a negative image is turned into a positive one using sunlight circa 1841

. Digital Processes

 Pixels, digital files, display, manipulation Gateways to Art: Understanding the Visual Arts, Debra J. DeWitte, Ralph M. Larmann, M. Kathryn Shields Rainer Gemma-Frisius, first published illustration of a camera obscura, 1544. William Henry Fox Talbot, The Oriel Window, South Gallery, Lacock Abbey, 1835 or 1839. Photogenic drawing negative, 3¼ x 4¼”. Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York Chapter 2.5 Photography PART 2 MEDIA AND PROCESSES . One of photography’s popular uses

 Substitute for more costly painted portraits

 People could eventually take their own pictures

Gateways to Art: Understanding the Visual Arts, Debra J. DeWitte, Ralph M. Larmann, M. Kathryn Shields Nadar, Sarah Bernhardt, 1865. , Bibliothèque Nationale, Paris, France Chapter 2.5 Photography PART 2 MEDIA AND PROCESSES Nadar, Sarah Bernhardt . Sarah Bernhardt was a famous actress this would have been “in vogue and cutting edge” in her time . Nadar’s distinctive style:

 When posed scenes and elaborate props were common at the time, he avoids a busy setting

 Focuses on the sitter: • Wrapped in fabric, leaning on a column, with a plain backdrop • Highlights Bernhardt’s elegance and her introspective side

Gateways to Art: Understanding the Visual Arts, Debra J. DeWitte, Ralph M. Larmann, M. Kathryn Shields Chapter 2.5 Photography PART 2 MEDIA AND PROCESSES Landscape

. Pictures of the land and its natural features

 Scenic records

 Can highlight ecological concerns . How might such images be used?

 By organizations like the Sierra Club (dedicated to preserving America’s wilderness)?

 Other possibilities?

Gateways to Art: Understanding the Visual Arts, Debra J. DeWitte, Ralph M. Larmann, M. Kathryn Shields Ansel Adams, Sand Dunes, Sunrise—Death Valley National Monument, California, c. 1948 Chapter 2.5 Photography PART 2 MEDIA AND PROCESSES Ansel Adams, Sand Dunes, Sunrise Death Valley National Monument, California

. Black-and-white photography . Adams’ style (“”)

 Arranges black, white, and gray tones

 Creates a balanced effect

 Entire picture in clear focus - a hallmark of his style

Gateways to Art: Understanding the Visual Arts, Debra J. DeWitte, Ralph M. Larmann, M. Kathryn Shields Still Life Photography

Louis-Jacques-Mandé Daguerre, The Artist’s Studio, 1837. Whole-plate daguerreotype. Chapter 2.5 Photography PART 2 MEDIA AND PROCESSES Louis-Jacques-Mandé Daguerre, The Artist’s Studio

Exposure times in mid-nineteenth-century photography were long

 Over 8 minutes for indoor scenes (low light=long ) so it was nearly impossible to a living person

Gateways to Art: Understanding the Visual Arts, Debra J. DeWitte, Ralph M. Larmann, M. Kathryn Shields

Chapter 2.5 Photography PART 2 MEDIAPhotojournalism AND PROCESSES . The use of photography to tell a news story

 Dates back to the Civil War

 Now we accept that only give a partial view • They can be manipulated, altered, cropped and can distort, exaggerate, even lie

 Photography was once believed to be inherently truthful • Credibility is crucial for news reportage • http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XONXeUndHl8 Has partially led to the media blitz today and is being led by it, too

Gateways to Art: Understanding the Visual Arts, Debra J. DeWitte, Ralph M. Larmann, M. Kathryn Shields Chapter 2.5 Photography PART 2 MEDIA AND PROCESSES

Matthew Brady

Lincoln granted permission in 1861 with the proviso that Brady finance the project himself. His efforts to document the the war, bringing his photographic studio right onto the battlefields earned Brady his place in history. He employed traveling and had 17 fellow photographers to go out and photograph scenes from the Civil War. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=koLnFvPaya0

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Lewis Wickes Hine, Ten Year Old Spinner, Whitnel Cotton Mill, 1908. Photographic print. Library of Congress, Washington, D.C. Chapter 2.5 Photography PART 2 MEDIA AND PROCESSES Lewis Wickes Hine, Ten Year Old Spinner, Whitnel Cotton Mill

 Used photography to tell the story of child labor

 Impersonated a salesperson, inspector, etc., to get access

 Took careful notes about the working conditions

 Published the photos to inform the public

 Resulted in laws protecting young children

Gateways to Art: Understanding the Visual Arts, Debra J. DeWitte, Ralph M. Larmann, M. Kathryn Shields John Filo Kent State University Nick Ut June 1972 1970 Pulitzer-Prize Photo Near Trang Bang Vietnam Pulitzer-Prize Photo Chapter 2.5 Photography PART 2 MEDIA AND PROCESSES The Art of Photography

. A Great Debate

 Record of “reality” or artform? . Does photography have to be one or the other? . Contemporary art

 Photo-based art is very widespread as stand alone work and as tool

 Fine-art museums began collecting photos in the 1980s

Gateways to Art: Understanding the Visual Arts, Debra J. DeWitte, Ralph M. Larmann, M. Kathryn Shields Chapter 2.5 Photography PART 2 MEDIA AND PROCESSES Making “Artistic” Photographs . How do methods used in other media relate to photography? . What effects are distinctive to the medium of photography? . Other ways to make “artistic” photography

 Clarity and realism

 Optical effects

 Photocollage and photomontage

 Colorizing or altering the image in some way

 Message and/or strength of the image?

 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FpJOA4J57o4

 Basic photo developing -

Gateways to Art: Understanding the Visual Arts, Debra J. DeWitte, Ralph M. Larmann, M. Kathryn Shields

The Photography as Fine Art Debate When is the line? How much does the equipment get in the way? Brian Lukas Hurricane Katrina The Rescue Boats 2012 Chapter 2.5 Photography PART 2 MEDIA AND PROCESSES Photocollage and Photomontage

. Collage

 Both the process and the product

 Created by gluing together separate materials on a single support

 Can be made with photo-based materials • Called photocollage

 Photographs, text, pre-printed materials

 Unique product

 Photomontage • Made to be mass-produced • Layered beforehand, re-photographed, or scanned

Gateways to Art: Understanding the Visual Arts, Debra J. DeWitte, Ralph M. Larmann, M. Kathryn Shields Oscar Gustav Rejlander, The Two Ways of Life, 1857. Albumen silver print, 16 x 31”. Royal Photographic Society, Bath, England Chapter 2.5 Photography PART 2 MEDIA AND PROCESSES Oscar Gustav Rejlander, Two Ways of Life . Steps to make the combination prints in the darkroom:

 Rejlander made thirty separate negatives

 Cut out each area like a puzzle piece

 Exposed the negatives one at a time

 Covered the rest of the picture while each part was exposed . Took six weeks to make . Looks like one seamless scene . Photomontage-the photogapher for the first time is altering the photo(s), adding his “hand” to the final product

Gateways to Art: Understanding the Visual Arts, Debra J. DeWitte, Ralph M. Larmann, M. Kathryn Shields 2.86 Loretta Lux, The Waiting Girl, 2006. Ilfochrome print, 11⅞ x 15⅞” Chapter 2.5 Photography PART 2 MEDIA AND PROCESSES Loretta Lux, The Waiting Girl

. Digital process to assemble compositions

 Lux subtly manipulates the and proportions, sometimes makes painted backgrounds. Then digitally retouches. . It takes several months to a year to create each image

Gateways to Art: Understanding the Visual Arts, Debra J. DeWitte, Ralph M. Larmann, M. Kathryn Shields Sandy Skoglund, Radioactive Cats © 1980. Cibachrome or pigmented inkjet color photograph, 25⅝ x 35” Chapter 2.5 Photography PARTSandy 2 Skoglund, MEDIARadioactive AND PROCESSES Cats

. Brightly colored “tableau” or arrangement

 Green becomes more intense against the gray

 Altered in such a way that looks Surreal

 Combination of fact and fiction

Gateways to Art: Understanding the Visual Arts, Debra J. DeWitte, Ralph M. Larmann, M. Kathryn Shields