In relation to studying the book "evidence", a series of photos without captions. Created in the 1970s by photographers Larry Sultan and Mike Mandel, Evidence is a thought provoking series of images more than it is a satisfying and pleasant experience to observe. Each photograph in this book could be viewed as random and unrelated but under the title of "evidence" each image seems to be more forced, carrying out an unknown purpose. Evidence is documents, facts to back information. Photographic evidence, at-least in the 70s, was seen as the most reliable and solid source wether it was for crime cases or something as simple as ID. With this context the title of the book seems to establish even more power in the images and speculation in the observer.
Beyond Evidence |
A video essay on the book "Evidence" |
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-1977 by Larry Sultan and Mike Mandel “EVIDENCE”
- taking images from one context to another creating a story and narrative - evidence title applies a concern with truth insinuating any image and the story told in the photographs can create real meaning - going through approx 2 million images narrowing down to 59 |
- created a new culture of narrative in photography by decontextualising and giving new context to archived images originally perhaps documents in government and political archives
- functional documental photographs creating meaning
- context is everything
- once out of context into another context put together creates poetry new story’s the poetic narrative telling a story with only visual language start having relationships in a non linear narrative
-image becomes an actor in political movement
- written word is often just as important as the photograph when it comes to the photograph’s meaning
- there is an order to the photographs with a build up and climax much like a story encapsulating the theme of creating narrative in photography.
- functional documental photographs creating meaning
- context is everything
- once out of context into another context put together creates poetry new story’s the poetic narrative telling a story with only visual language start having relationships in a non linear narrative
-image becomes an actor in political movement
- written word is often just as important as the photograph when it comes to the photograph’s meaning
- there is an order to the photographs with a build up and climax much like a story encapsulating the theme of creating narrative in photography.
THE GREY AREA |
Why are we so much less trustful of photographs as a source of evidence or proof today than we were years, decades, centuries ago? With rising popularity in media in our generation, everything we see in media is becoming less and less trustworthy. With the rise in accessibility to AI technology a well as easier use of editing software, photographs can be altered or created from nothing. It is now strangely more rational to assume anything shocking in the slightest is fake. For documentary photographers, it is now more difficult than ever to provide evidence through photographs, the distrust in any photograph from the general public becomes a challenge. The grey area between real and forged photographs could be an interesting place to explore foe photographers, creating a sense of mystery and uncertainty for the onlooker. The phrase documentary uncertainty, to me, means a series of unexplained and photographs without captions that seem to depict a real life event. the lack of information creates an eerie sense of mystery surrounding the photographs.
Here is my first attempt at making a series of photographs related to the theme of the grey area. I took these photos on the grounds of my school, looking for obscure places that could leave explanations to the creativity of the onlooker.
Nooks and crannies, dark hallways and other surfaces and objects that caught my eye were what I focused on to try and mimic the sense of mystery and enigmatic presence that I saw in the "evidence" photo book. I think the ones that were most successful were the hallway photos (the bottom three). This is because of the gloomy lighting with its yellow-green tinge. Without context these hallways become more sinister and unnerving. |
Grey Area photo story
This is my second attempt at making a photo series in relation to the theme of "the grey area". these photos, unlike my first attempt, were taken outside of school. This allowed for more creative freedom. For some photos, I was inspired by how in the evidence book, some of the photos were cropped, creating a sense of obscurity that was not in the original photograph. For example, for the first photo, it is just my friend holding his pet snake, but cropped, the green lighting and scaly texture creates an enticing image. Many of the other photos are from run down buildings and structures, abandoned and stuck in the past as if they were frozen in time. This creates an uncanny and almost eerie atmosphere to the photographs. I also was inspired by evidence to use flash photography on most of these photos to imitate the documentary-style images.
Jack Latham
Jack Latham's work is almost like a representation of mystery. Liminal spaces, strange subjects, scenes of action and misplaced objects are just a few of the strange and peculiar things Latham photographs. To me, Latham's work is more thought-provoking than meaningful, prompting questions rather than emotion. The only emotion I personally experience from observing his series would be confusion along with a sense of unease.
PARLIAMENT OF OWLS
Latham's series "parliament of owls" could be seen and one of his most varied and intriguing series. Most of the photographs depict liminal spaces - usually spaces a viewer would expect to be full of people and busy but are empty. These places seem to be abandoned, almost decaying and forgotten. This leaves us feeling uncomfortable without a logical explanation, something just isn’t quite right. The photographs depicting subjects are either of owls or of singular people as the centre of the photograph or very far from the lens. His subjects being presented in the same way as owls which are notoriously birds of prey could suggest the people in his photographs are malevolent or could have malicious intent. This is emphasised by the subjects often looking directly into the camera as though they are looking into the eyes of the viewer. The few images of subjects being placed much further from the camera creates a feeling of remoteness which in turn could suggest danger from the lack of refuge a remote environment entails. All in all this series depicts an unknown danger, a grey area that encapsulates the unknown or uncanny valley.
PARLIAMENT OF OWLS
Latham's series "parliament of owls" could be seen and one of his most varied and intriguing series. Most of the photographs depict liminal spaces - usually spaces a viewer would expect to be full of people and busy but are empty. These places seem to be abandoned, almost decaying and forgotten. This leaves us feeling uncomfortable without a logical explanation, something just isn’t quite right. The photographs depicting subjects are either of owls or of singular people as the centre of the photograph or very far from the lens. His subjects being presented in the same way as owls which are notoriously birds of prey could suggest the people in his photographs are malevolent or could have malicious intent. This is emphasised by the subjects often looking directly into the camera as though they are looking into the eyes of the viewer. The few images of subjects being placed much further from the camera creates a feeling of remoteness which in turn could suggest danger from the lack of refuge a remote environment entails. All in all this series depicts an unknown danger, a grey area that encapsulates the unknown or uncanny valley.
- this photograph is, in my opinion, the most discomforting of the “parliament of owls” series
- everything in the frame points towards danger - the location, the danger sign the man in the water, he seems almost like a supernatural being. - though the man being distanced from the camera should make the spectator feel more comforted, like there’s time to get away or somewhere to run, for me it added to the feeling of discomfort as it feels as if I’m frozen in fear. the way he’s centred in frame adds to the feeling of being fixated on him with nowhere else to look. |
SUGAR PAPER THEORIES
Much like “parliament of owls” in “sugar paper theories” Latham captures documentary-style photographs that create a mysterious narrative. This series of images is almost poetic in its strange story-telling and the images lack of context adds greatly to their uncanny nature. This series is a mixture of full colour portraits and locations with black and white older looking photographs that seem to display crime scenes and secret operations. Whilst looking through the photographs I somehow got the feeling that something was not quite right. Looking through colour images builds the suspense and I got a sense of climax when the darker, more moody black and white photographs came up.
Much like “parliament of owls” in “sugar paper theories” Latham captures documentary-style photographs that create a mysterious narrative. This series of images is almost poetic in its strange story-telling and the images lack of context adds greatly to their uncanny nature. This series is a mixture of full colour portraits and locations with black and white older looking photographs that seem to display crime scenes and secret operations. Whilst looking through the photographs I somehow got the feeling that something was not quite right. Looking through colour images builds the suspense and I got a sense of climax when the darker, more moody black and white photographs came up.
- this photograph was the most climactic for me in the “sugar paper theories series - amongst the other photographs, this one seems to stand out, it’s violent and eerie in a very unsettling way - the black and white somehow adds to the surrealism of this image and adds to the documentary aesthetic making it seem even more like a real occurrence |
Clocks for seeing
Here are photographs I took around my school to try and represent my experience at school. The "cameras are clocks for seeing" quote written by Ronald Barthes encapsulates the relativity between photographs and time. Clocks and cameras both require the mechanical expertise to create and are both objects/devices we use to capture and to understand and use time. Whether a photograph captures a memory or moment, they always capture a real life event.
Environmental portraiture strongly relies on the concept of reality. Most environmental portraits capture pre-existing people
Photoshoot
Hiroshi Sugimoto
Hiroshi Sugimoto, a Japanese photographer creating images from around 1980 to present day. Sugimoto creates a very wide range of different photographs. The subject matter of his images changes with each project and seems very different from one another. However, his photographs seem to have one thing in common: they all capture the existence and/or passing of time. To me, all of his photographs seem to stretch time, whether it's long exposure or something historical, his pictures capture long periods of time. When I visited his exhibition, I immediately noticed the stillness and serenity of Sugimoto's images. This stillness seemed to be the only recurring theme throughout the exhibition and therefore caught my attention as Sugimoto's main theme in his photography. This stillness is what linked his photographs to time.
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Daidō Moriyama
Daidō Moriyama, A Japanese photographer widely known for his black and white street photography throughout his career. He began his as an assistant photographer and alter moved on to create his own documentary-style snap-shots of life. Unlike Sugimoto, Moriyama captures much more candid photographs, increasing relatability in a sense of surrealism. He also photographs more posed portraits of some people. However, these people seem to be in their quintessential form, as though the shoot was not planned prior to its execution. When it comes to Moriyama's street photography, the business of everything that's in frame mirrors perfectly the hustle and bustle of city streets. verisimilitude is sometimes further increased by slight blurring caused by movement in he photo. This also further amplifies his recurring theme of movement.
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Photo Analysis
Hiroshi sugimoto
- very still no movement |
Daidō Moriyama
-very busy and full of movement |
I also became fascinated by the architecture in and around the exhibitions and how it somehow mirrored them. perhaps this was because of the impactfulness of being surrounded by so many of each of the photographers images. However I like to think it was because of the subtle yet intense relatability of their pictures.
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For Hiroshi Sugimoto, his photos capture familiarity in a range of different ways. Some of his main ways of conveying familiarity that I noticed were through historical moments and figures that are most likely known by the onlooker, natural forms relating to the world around us, artefacts that encapsulate culture and long exposure or blurred focus on images that make the onlooker feel as though they are experiencing the passing of time focused on a specific subject. For Daidō Moriyama, the images he produces seem to capture snippets of time, minuscule moments that are busy and full of movement. Much unlike Sugimoto, Moriyama captures more humanitarian photographs. when Sugimoto rarely photographs people, Moriyama constantly captures people and the environment that surrounds them. Moriyama's representation of time and relativity comes from more urban life and seems more personal that the work of Sugimoto.