My Own Try at Photojournalism:
Image by: Courtney Welsh
Image 1: “Winter Causing Absence of Recess”- This image was taken 12/04/2019, of Homer Street Elementary School. It reminded me of my school days where we would gear up in our ski pants and winter boots to go sledding, build snowmen, and have snowball fights. But upon dismissal of my class, I usually hear the voices of screaming children… but not this Wednesday. Inner-city children, absent from their beloved playground this particular day.
Image by: Courtney Welsh
Image 2: “The Simple Bliss” This weekend, 12/07/2019 I was able to catch up with my grandmother in her apartment in Gilbertville, Ma. We were able to watch the cars go by and chat about life while being undisturbed. Very Scenic.
Image by: Courtney Welsh
Image 3:
“The Serenity of Prayer”- This candid image snapped of my sister, Aidyn Welsh saying a brief prayer to our grandparents as the Holidays approach. Our grandparents were the hosts for every holiday- it’ll be a difficult one.
Revaluating the course:
Do you now have a revised definition of photojournalism? Please explain why, or why not?
-Reflecting on what I defined photojournalism as in “M2 - Book Introduction Blog Post”, I would still agree upon what I had said. It reads in my post, “in the simplest terms, photojournalism can be defined as the art of utilizing photographs to communicate a message or event to an audience.” There is a lot that goes into perfecting that picture that could potentially explain a situation without any text that has to do the explaining. This holds true in Professor Nordell’s explanation in his video when he says to “divide the word into two words: photo and journalism.” The action of taking a photo is done by the photojournalist- which a photograph has evolved through technological advancements as researched in the course. The journalism portion is conveying the message portion through publishing their works.
Do you have any new ideas about why it is important to know the History of Photojournalism? Please explain why, or why not?
-I still agree as to my explanation as to why it is important to know the history of photojournalism. Photojournalism is reflective of where we were as a nation, where we are in the present, and where we are headed. It is important in documenting important events, social reform, etc. to illustrate to the future generation any things that need to be revised or prevented from reoccurring in the future.
What big "Ah-ha" moments did you have during the course? By "Ah-ha" moments I mean those times when you encountered a significant new idea that opened your mind and you went "Ah-ha"! Please specifically mention at least two "Ah-ha" moments. Post specific and relevant images.
-One of the biggest concepts that I could refer to as “Aha-ha” moments was in “M4- Pre-Digital Photographic Technology” and my opioid crisis mid-term project. The first “Aha-ha” moment was because I was completely unaware of how far our cameras have evolved. One of the older camera technology that stuck out to me was the wet plate process of 1851. This was the most interesting technology because I have utilized both film and digital cameras but had been unaware of what true early technology looked like and how it operated. As Milbury College of Art states, the process of the ”’wet-plate collodion’ exposure and development of the negative had to be done within a ten-minute time frame while the light sensitive chemicals were wet, requiring photographers to bring portable darkrooms into the field.” Below is an image of the process and a picture that is a product of this process.
-The second “Aha-ha” moment I had during this course was when I was preparing my midterm assignment. I was able to meet with Professor Nordell and learn how to use apple technology, manipulate my videos I took, how to add pictures, and how to add slides. I was nervous to take on such a big task because I had never used an apple desktop or it’s film technology. However, I had a lot of fun doing so and it was something that I probably would have never done within my academics if I hadn’t taken this course.
Image source: https://sites.middlebury.edu/landandlens/2016/10/17/albumen-print/
Image by: Ivan Sijak
Image source: http://www.artcoup.com/category/wet-plate/
Please also revisit the question: Do photographs change the world? Think about the images that you have encountered this semester that have made a powerful impact on you. Mention and post specific images.
-I absolutely would say that photographs change the world. When a photograph is taken in a situation that is otherwise ignored or holds some sort of ethical question behind it; it creates a need for a conversation to be had. If there were on people that set off as their duty to photograph things on a global level, issues that do not directly impact our everyday lives would continue to be ignored. As Professor Nordell states, “if a tree falls in the woods and there is no photojournalist to take a picture of it, did the event happen? Can the event become part of history?” This question brings up a valuable point, that if we had no photojournalists that document history as it happens, it would leave future generations to make the same mistakes because they are unaware of how the event played out. There are many photographs within our course that have stuck with me and I think it can be shown to in some way or another, “changed the world”. To me, all of these images illustrate hardship that each of these individuals endeavored and without telling the specifics it creates empathy within its viewers. They are below:
Image by: James Nachtwey
Image source: https://www.canon-europe.com/pro/stories/james-nachtwey-memoria-interview/
Image by: Dorothea Lange
Image source: https://americanhistory.si.edu/collections/search/object/nmah_1313354
Image by: Kevin Carter
Image source: https://www.digitalphotomentor.com/20-most-famous-photographs/
Compare and contrast your Creative Experiential Exercise in Section 2 and with your self-reflection in Section 3. Do you now feel more connected to photojournalists, past and/or present?
-I have definitely developed a more appreciation for photojournalists throughout this course and by attempting to create my own experiential exercise. I do feel as though by analyzing photographs within the course that I feel definitely more connected with them and more educated when looking at different types of journalism sources. When doing the exercise, I had a difficult time trying to find things to document. I understand now that some photojournalists have assignments that they must fulfill but others such as freelance photographers do not. They could run into the same issue and must find what would be interesting in the public eye and earn money for them. Another issue I ran into when doing this exercise was that I did not have any technology other than my iPhone 6. But upon reflecting on this, I put myself in the scenario of a photojournalist that was particularly prepared that day to photograph and something interesting appeared and all they had was their cellphone. In this instance, I would say that I definitely could identify more with the present photojournalists.
3 specific examples of knowledge you gained about the History of Photojournalism from reading your classmates' Photojournalist Profile posts
Valerie Goly- Technology Timeline: After reviewing all of the mid-terms, I really enjoyed the layout of her timeline. It displays all of the technology 1021 A.D. - 2007. She used really clear images that showed what each technology looked like and briefly how it was used.
Alexa Costa- Working in the Digital Age- This student, in particular, I enjoy reading her posts because she’s very detailed and put together. But post specifically I enjoyed because it showed images that complimented it. She explained that blogs were first invented in 1997 when college students would post articles pertaining to their classes and journal entries on what they were educated on- how ironic.
Ariyon Mickle -Photojournalist Profile- I really enjoyed Ariyon’s photojournalistic profile. I think overall, doing and viewing everyone’s photojournalistic profiles was my favorite part of this course. I really enjoyed viewing the different styles and what the photojournalist’s life entailed. Carol Guzy’s profile stuck out to me in particular because I so thoroughly loved the images that she took.
