Component Two
Photographer Research - Robert Frank
Robert Frank;
Research: A photographer that I researched was Robert Frank. Robert Frank began studying photography in 1941 and spent six years. In 1947 he travelled to the United States, where Alexey Brodovitch hired him to make fashion photographs at Harper's Bazaar. However between 1950 and 1955 he worked freelance producing photojournalism and advertising photographs for LIFE, Look, Charm, Vogue, and others, this is where he became an icon in the photography world as Frank's perspective on American culture, combined with his carefree attitude toward traditional photographic technique, shocked most Americans who saw his work at the time, as well as the fact that within this time he had published his book based around American culture.
Photo One;
This is a photo that has been taken of the windows on a bus and the people inside. The image is in black and white and has a representational style to it. The photo shows how different ethic groups were treated during the 19th century as the coloured people were forced to sit at the back of the bus to keep the different ethic groups separated. I like the photographers used of leading lines, shape and tone in this image however I do believe the image could have been cropped a bit better to make the main points in the image more central. I think the artist has achieved this photo by waiting near a bus stop for a bus to go by and using a tripod to keep the camera balanced so there was no movement in the photo that would create blur.
Photo Two;
This image has been taken from the window of a hotel room, you can tell it was taken from inside the room as the curtains that would normally cover the window are still in view, since they are netted curtains they allow you to see the rooftops of the buildings around the area through them. I like the photographers use of techniques such as depth of field and tone as well as the positioning of the curtain to add a mysterious element to the image. I think the artist as achieved this image by physically holding the camera at the desired angle and manipulating the curtains to be a certain way in the image.
Photo Three;
In this photo it shows a man on the subway of New York resting his head on a mirror, the main photo you see is actually the reflection of the mirror, by doing this the photographer has made it so a viewer would have to sit and look at the photo for a while to figure out what angle the image was taken at, in the reflection of the mirror it shows men in suits siting in their seats as well as the trains windows, the mirror itself acts like a window into other people perspectives. I like this image as the artist has used some key elements when taking the photo such as tone, perspective and reflection. I thick the artist has achieved this image by capturing a scene at an unique angle, I think the main idea behind this image is that different people will always have different perspectives on different events or issues.
Photo Four;
This photo interests me as it is a image of two windows next to each other, one with a old man with a grumpy look on his face looking out of his window and the other of a man in a coat that is being covered up by the american flag, I believe this could be some kind of metaphor for how Americans are blinded by their pride for their country. I like the photographers use of patter, shape and tone in the image however I wish the image was taken at a wider angle so that both windows could be fully seen in the photo.
Overall;
The above images were photographed using Black and white film. The resulting images represent graphic images of urban America. The prints were created to achieve a deliberately high contrast which makes the images stand out. The windows in the images imply different peoples views in American as indicated by the emotions shown on the peoples faces and in the story behind each image. The image has connotations of 1950's America where racial discrimination was still a big issue and would war two had recently finished but the impact of the event were still being dealt with and American was slowly having to rebuild itself.
I gained inspiration from this by producing my own images based on windows which I ended up editing to be black and white to help represent the photographers own work.