Documentaries & Reading Response

The Genius of Photography Video Documentaries & After Photography by Fred Ritchin

The three part documentaries of Genius of Photography that we watched in class were an eye opening into the history and contemporary world of photography. It declares the mediums

The first part took us back in time to as early as the 1800’s to look at the pioneers and master photographers such as:
- William Henry Fox Talbot; and the invention of the Calotype which produced a positive/negative effect.
- Jerry Spagnoli; recognized for his unique work with the daguerreotype process that produced a detailed dept of field, allowing subjects to appear real, almost as if they are about to pop out of the print.
- Nadar; known as the Andy Warhol of his time because of his photographs of upcoming celebrities, and his use of the photograph as an object through his creation of the rotating image.

As well as looking at other artists, curators discussed the medium of photography as an easy medium as a result of the progression the art form has taken. At the same time, photography is also a hard medium because the photographer needs to have a personal vision. As a result, one of the medium’s greatest powers is that it created a new way of looking at the world into fragments. This is because “a photograph has edges; and the world does not. The edges separate what is in the picture from what is not” (Shore, 28). Therefore we capture a world different to what is really seen because the frame around the eye narrows the viewer’s point of view and crops off and minimizes the entire scene the viewer is looking at. Although “for some pictures the frame acts passively. It is where the picture ends. The structure of the picture begins within the image and works its way out to the frame” (Shore, 32), and in other “pictures, the frame is active. The structure of the picture begins with the frame and works inward” (Shore, 35).

The second part looked at contemporary photographers like:
- Nan Goldin: Whose photographs were perceived as confessional photography because of journeys she took among the gay and transsexual communities. One of Goldin’s concepts to her images was to show the normality of the transgendered and gay people. She talked about how her photographs allowed her to be present in a moment, and to then be able to hold on to that moment and save it.
- Sally Mann: Encourages people to photograph the things you love because it is what makes the photograph the best.
- Nobuyoshi Araki: An artist that has no limits with his photographs. Araki takes photographs of his daily life, and tends to shoot what he wants to remember. His mind set is to reveal the inner self of the subject and for him to be able to do that, he needs to be in the mindset.

One of the focus topics in this documentary part was on the photography going out in search of the self and engaging directly with life. “As an object, a photograph has its own life in the world. It can be saved in a shoebox or in an album or in a museum. It can be reproduced as information or as an advertisement. It can be bought and sold. It may be regarded as… a work or art. The context in which a photograph is seen affects the meanings a viewer draws from it” (Shore, 10). In taking into account the photographic archive, they are created and found in a wide variety of places to serve various purposes. The most common and familiar photographic archive for many is the family album – the collection of family portraits and moments meant to capture the family history as well as preserve those moments for recollection and memories. Other photographic archives exist in libraries, museums, cultural centers, and so on as a means to collect, catalog, organize, and preserve images for not only historical reflection and research, but also to celebrate what has been created from a societal and cultural perspective. One of the largest, if not the largest photographic archive that exists now is the digital one found on the Internet. This is especially so because “there is a substantial number of potential witnesses; by the year 2010 it is expected that we will be producing half-a-trillion photographs annually” (Ritchin, 19).

The third part, a mind blowing fact made known in the documentary was that Edward Steichin’s The Pond-Moonlight was sold for almost 3 million dollars but I actually did a follow up to this, and found out that as of now, the most expensive photograph is Andreas Gursky, 99 Cent II Diptychon which was sold for 3.3 million dollars. For a photograph to even reach a million is shocking let alone over 3 million. Also, there was a look into the current digitalized of photography. It seems we are constantly surrounded by images everyday from the television, documentaries/films, newspapers/tabloids, popular movies, magazines, etc. Technology has changed the way people look at the world because it is speeding up and changing the way people understand the world. This ties into the Ritchin’s After Photography reading because he states “like all media, photography is a reflection of societies that have spawned and embraced it. It can also be a powerful instigator, in both obvious and highly subtle ways, for societal and personal change” (Ritchin, 15). An artist that was mentioned that I found interesting is Gregory Crewdson who uses staged Hollywood type production to capture scenes like an American suburban dream said he was only ‘interested in the images, and that the camera is just necessary.’

Ever since I received my first camera in 1996 (over 14 years ago), until now, one of the reasons I am still attracted/fascinated/interested in photography is because I want to take photographs because I want to visually remember what happened/was happening in that frozen moment in my life. At the same time:
- I want to create art.
- I intend to document the event.
- I wish I could take photographs in my dreams and have the prints.
- I hope to take my favorite photograph tomorrow (inspired by Imogen Cunningham).
- I notice the graphic design elements in the photograph.
- I aim to evoke a response.
- I dream of influencing others someway, somehow.
- I look forward to finding out what something/someone will look like photographed.
I could go on and on about Photography means to me in the 21st century but I believe that the main reason I take photographs is because it is definitely a passion of mine that I am in love with, and when you love something, it becomes a part of you as an individual.


Shore, Stephen. The Nature of Photographs. The John Hopkins University Press, USA. 1998.