photograph essays

Today Christina Nichole Dickson looks at the topic of Photo Essays. Christina is a photojournalist for Revolutionary Media. She is also an instructor with the Institute in Photographic Studies. Her work may be found at Christina Nichole Photography.In the last twenty years, video and film have become the predominant forms of modern storytelling. But before video, there was photography. And for the last one hundred years photography and storytelling went hand in hand.Now more than ever, the power of storytelling ought to be harnessed. But telling a story with photos takes more than just a skillful photographer. An impacting photo story can only be developed by skillful photographers who understand the emotions and concepts behind ever-great story.The form of such a story is called the photo essay.What is a Photo Essay?A photo essay is very simply a collection of images that are placed in a specific order to tell the progression of events, emotions, and concepts. Used by world class photojournalists such as Lauren Greenfield and James Nachtwey, and Joachim Ladefoged to name a few, the photo essay takes the same story telling techniques as a normal essay, translated into visual images.A photo essay isn’t simply for photojournalists however. Every human being is drawn to stories. Whether you are an amateur or a professional, the photo essay is a brilliant way to bring your images to life and touch your family, friends, and coworkers.1. Find a topic: Photo essays are most dynamic when you as the photographer care about the subject. Whether you choose to document the first month of a newborn in the family, the process of a school drama production, or even a birthday party, make your topic something in which you find interest.2. Do your researchh: If you document a newborn’s first month, spend time with the family. Discover who the parents are, what culture they are from.
Drag queens pose on covered bridges. Puppies learn to swim. Metal heads cuddle with kittens. Polish witches wave incense sticks. This is just a sampling of scenes from the best photo essays of 2014. It was hard to choose only 24—runners-up included shots of New York’s extremely well-dressed dogs and very hip, very bearded Sikhs. These photographs are eye candy, but also so much more: They give you an intimate look at characters you might never otherwise encounter (the biker chicks of Marrakesh), and reveal lifestyles you might not otherwise have known existed (and may wish to remain ignorant of, in the case of the Purity Ball movement in America’s Bible Belt). Some illustrate contemporary social and political issues, like the widespread misrepresentation of Native America, while a few just put original spins on the Internet's bread and butter—cute animal photos. What these photo essays have in common, and what makes them so powerful, is that they all tell stories. None are merely decorative. They serve as a reminder that at its best, photography is a storytelling tool. Purity Balls: Like A Wedding, Except To Your Dad It’s a lot like a wedding, except to your dad. At purity balls, a Christian religious ceremony that's gaining popularity, American girls (some as young as four) vow to their fathers that they'll remain virgins until marriage. The formal events tend to include dinner, a keynote speech, and ballroom dancing, and the girls get decked out in, um, white gowns. The father, as High Priest of their home and family, makes a pledge to protect his daughter's purity during the affair. Often, they exchange purity rings. Stockholm-based photographer David Magnusson captures all this in his book Purity. Over the course of five months, Magnusson traveled to purity balls in Louisiana, Texas, Colorado, and Arizona. On each occasion, he spent an hour interviewing and.
A Post By: Lynsey Mattingly As a photographer, you are a storyteller. The nouns are your subject matter; the verbs are the color and contrast that keep the story moving. A cast of characters all working together to get your point across. Instead of proper grammar, you ensure proper exposure. Instead of spelling errors, you watch for tack-sharp focus. For those times when the story is especially important and meaningful, or for when one image doesn’t say it all, there is the photographic essay. With blogging and social media, photo essays are more popular than ever: humorous or emotionally relevant, sparking debate or encouraging compassion, each with a story to tell. I’ve mentioned before that taking on a photo project is one of my favorite ways to reignite my love for photography, but beyond that, it’s a great way to get your message across and have your work seen by a larger group. A photo essay is intriguing; it’s something to talk about after people hear that you’re a photographer and want to know about the glitz and glamour of it all. It’s the perfect thing to tell them after you’re done going on and on about all of the red carpets, the celebrities, the fame, and the fortune. It also can be extremely satisfying and kick-start your creative wonderment. By definition, a photographic essay is a set or series of photographs intended to tell a story or evoke emotions. It can be only images, images with captions, or images with full text. In short, it can be almost anything you want it to be. Which is where I struggle most–when the options are limitless. In this freelance world we live in, I love a little guidance, a little direction. Ideally, someone to tell me exactly what they want and promise to be thrilled with whatever I produce, for my fragile artist ego can’t take any less. While I continue my quest for that, I offer you these 5 tips for creating your own.
This month’s Photojournalism Links collection highlights 10 excellent photo essays from across the world spanning five continents, including Pete Muller‘s powerful work shot in the Ebola-ridden Sierra Leone. His two sets of photographs, featured below, were made on assignment for National Geographic, and are the first two in a four-part series examining the epidemic in West Africa. Muller’s pictures document the battle fought by medical workers, body collectors, and burial teams to bring the crisis ravaging the Freetown and country, under control. The story and images from the city’s King Tom cemetery are particularly harrowing; in just a few months, it has been expanded to three times its former size and the large number of fresh burial mounds make it look more like a construction site than a typical graveyard. Pete Muller: How Ebola Found Fertile Ground in Sierra Leone’s Chaotic Capital | How the Fight Against Ebola Tested a Culture’s Traditions (National Geographic News) Uriel Sinai: In Africa, Mosquito Nets Are Putting Fish at Risk (The New York Times) These stunning photographs by Uriel Sinai from Kenya, Tanzania, and Zambia, show how mosquito nets meant for Malaria protection have ended up being widely used in fishing, since they are cheaper than actual fishing nets and can be even more effective, especially in shallow waters. Andy Spyra: The enemy within: Boko Haram’s reign of terror across Northern Nigeria | The enemy within: A closer look at survivors of Boko Haram attacks across Northern Nigeria (The Washington Post In Sight) The German photographer has spent more than three years documenting the northern Nigeria. His pictures provide a rare view into communities under Boko Haram’s terror. Mosa’ab Elshamy: Exploring the Mawlids of Egypt (TIME LightBox) These excellent photographs capture spiritual celebrations within Egyptian Sufism. Manu Brabo: In Ukraine.
There's something they say about words and pictures, so we won't belabor this too much. Below you'll find some of the most eye-catching photographs we ran on the site in the last year. Set aside some time to scroll through each one: They're an amazing window onto everything that's happening in the world—from Detroit's collapse and the economic rise of China and the Middle East, to environmental disasters at home and abroad. And then, less seriously, some great photos of those ridiculous fake tree cell phone towers, hilarious examples of what happens when strangers draw your Facebook photos, and a series of the true residents of Portland, who are crazier than anything you've seen on Portlandia. You'll enjoy them all. And if that's not enough, you can see our favorites from last year here. 1: Beautifully Mashed-Up Photos Show The Glory And Wreckage Of Detroit The Detroit Now and Then project artfully combines vintage photos of the city with images of what’s there now, providing a poignant reminder of what the city was, what it is now and—maybe—what it could be again. 2: Portraitlandia : Photos Of Portland's Most Portland-y Residents If Portlandia were a photo series, it would probably look something like Kirk Crippens’s Portraitlandia, which features iconic Rose City residents in their natural habitats. 3: Look At These Chinese Workers Carrying Mind-Blowing Amounts Of Stuff Shanghai’s migrant workers are the foundation of China’s economy, ferrying goods around the city on their bicycle. But if these photos of them look impossible, that’s because they are. Their loads have been digitally increased as part of a photo project on the Chinese economy and global consumerism. 4: Gorgeous Vintage Photographs Of America In The 1970s, Captured By The EPA In the 1970s, the EPA commissioned photographers to take photos of the environment and the human condition of American life.
Main article: Essay A photo-essay is a set or series of photographs that are made to create series of emotions in the viewer. A photo essay will often show pictures in deep emotional stages. Photo essays differ from purely photographic works to photographs with captions or small comments to full text essays with a little or many other photographs. An article in a publication, sometimes a full page or a two-page spread A book or other complete publication. A web page or portion of a web site. A single montage or collage of photographic images, with text or other additions, intended to be viewed both as a whole and as individual photographs. Such a work may also fall in the category of mixed media. An art show which is staged at a particular time and location. Some such shows also fall into other categories category. In fashion publishing especially, a photo-editorial – an editorial-style article dominated by or entirely consisting of a series of thematic photographs See also[edit] Charticle Photojournalism Photography Art Retrieved from Categories: PhotographyPhotography stubs.