Siempre en mi cabeza - always in my head: Truth in documentary photography

March 06, 2016  •  1 Comment

siempre en mi cabezasiempre en mi cabezaSiempre en mi cabeza - always in my head; they are humans too

The image of a young refugee from the Syrian holocaust sitting in a street with her child on her lap made me think of the words below published by the Museum of Modern Art in New York. Please click on the blue  links:

Photography has often been perceived as an objective, and therefore unbiased ,medium for capturing and preserving historical moments. Yet the choices made by a  photographer—including how the image is composed composed, what is left in or out of the shot, and how it may be manipulated after it is taken—necessarily impacts how we perceive the image. It also raises critical questions about how willingly we accept any one photograph photograph as the definitive truth.

Photographs can bear witness to a definitive moment in history or even serve as a catalyst for change. They can foster sympathy and awareness or, alternatively, offer critical commentary on an historical figure or event. The photographers discussed here aim to wordlessly capture the essence of events they witnessed—though the question of accuracy is always up for debate.


Comments

Holger(non-registered)
I think the opposite is more engaging and accessible, the myth of the grand narrative of the Objective, ONE essence of situation, ONE identity etc. is disengaging and disparaging. If we deliberately personalise our access, i.e. declare our subjectivity, what for us is the essence and what we have witnessed (in our limitations), then it is not about accuracy but intimacy and vulnerability in our work, on our promotion of what we see and ultimately who we are. It is not about documentation but the exteriorisation of WHAT IS...Siempre en mi cabeza - always in my head! No?
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http://www.magnumphotos.com/C.aspx?VP3=CMS3&VF=MAGO31_10_VForm&ERID=24KL53ZMYN

http://www.anseladams.com/ansel-adams-photography/yosemite-special-edition-photographs/

http://www.billbrandt.com/

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