Our discussions of documentary photography have taken me back to an idea we started off with earlier this semester, which is the representation of truth. When creating documentary photographs, the factual truth becomes very important — and, although we initially spoke about truth in many different contexts, it applies to documentary in its most literal form. I proceeded to think about some of the more ‘literal’ or documentary-style photographs I’ve taken, since my primary interests in photography lie elsewhere.
When I shot this photo at last year’s walkout against the war in Iraq, I wanted to be sure I captured the spirit of the event. I wanted to crop as little as possibly, ensuring the viewer could see each detail: the competing signs, the smirk on the student’s face, the anger of the woman who lost her son in Iraq, and even the shocked gaze of an onlooker in the background. I had no interest in zooming in artistically on one particular expression or creatively angling this scene; instead, I wanted the viewer to see a bit of everything, and see it for what it was. This photo exactly captures the feeling that characterized their exchange of words. Other war supporters, however, did take the event more seriously, respectfully making their presence known while not offending the protesters. Although I disagreed with those who were there to express their support for the war, for Bush, or for the Republican party, I also wanted my photographs to be unbiased.
Beyond the actual images I was shooting, I had to think about how to present the finished product. Typically, when I decide whether I want a photo to be black-and-white, I concentrate on the strength of the tones and the vibrancy of the colour. Which style would better complement various elements of the image? How does tonality affect the message I’m trying to send or the artwork I’m trying to create? Here, though, my intention was perhaps more focused on presenting ‘serious’ images than creating noteworthy artwork. I wanted them to look like something that might be published in a newspaper alongside an article about the event, and so I processed them with that in mind — even though I knew, in reality, I merely planned to put them on Facebook and upload them to Flickr. Either way, I view them very differently than those photos that I consider my more ‘artistic’ ones, and ultimately feel that they are confined by very different parameters and views of the ‘truth’ than was discussed earlier in this photoblog.
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