Narrative Codes
Semiotics
This is the study of the meaning-making on the basis of signs. In photography this is the observation of symbolism used within an image or the 'reading' of the picture.
Roland Barthes was one of the first people to study the semiotics of images and he developed a way to understand the meaning of images.
Denotation - this refers to the meaning hidden in symbols or images. A denotation is 'what we see' in the picture or what is 'there' in the picture. It is the literal meaning of the image.
Here it is very clear that we can see a woman paying her respects in the form of writing.
This image was taken after the London bus bombings of 2005.
Connotation - this is arbitrary in the that the meanings brought to the image are based on rules or conventions that the the reader has learnt over the course of their life. It is the immediate cultural meaning from what is seen in the picture, but not what is actually there. Connotation is what is implied by the image.
From very young ages we are taught to learn the meanings behind each colour on a traffic light.
Coded Iconic - according to Barthes the coded iconic message is the story that the image portrays. This message is easily understood and the images represent a clear relationship. An image of a bowl of fruit, for example, might imply still life, freshness or market stalls.
This fruit bowl invites the feeling of freshness or market stalls.
Non-coded Iconic - this is another part of Barthes theory of understanding images. Non-coded has nothing to do with the emotions from the image as a whole. It is the 'literal' denotation, the recognition of the identifiable object in the photograph, irrespective of the larger societal code. Using the bowl of fruit example, this photograph is just that, a bowl of fruit. a non-coded iconic has no deeper meaning, the image is exactly what is shows.
Juxtaposition
Refers to the fact of two things being seen or placed close together with contrasting effect. For example; fat person next to a skinny person, tall person next to a short person, dark colours next to light colours, circles next to rectangles, old people next to young people.
April 19, 1971. Chicago, IL / Vivian Maier.
Rhetorical
One's ability to understand what an image is attempting to communicate. This includes creative choices made within the image such as; colouring, shading, object placement etc.
Stylistic
The Decisive Moment & its role in an image
Henri Cartier-Bresson
Bresson was a French humanist Photographer, who held his first exhibition in the Louvre 1995. He is regarded as the master of candid photography, especially when using 35mm film. He is also regarded as a pioneer of street photography with his mentality being that of capturing the 'decisive moment'.
The decisive moment and the brain.
In terms of photography, first procedural learning occurs allowing you to learn how to hold the camera and actually know how to get the image in focus. Then the motor cortex tells you how to take the photo. When learning a task, the cortex has to make a conscious effort to carry out the ability, once repeated and learned, these skills can be recalled unconsciously.
Bresson uses both the conscious and the unconscious when taking an image. He was particularly great because he spent a tremendous amount of time consciously perfecting his skills, unconsciously setting up his shots, guiding his camera so that he could release the shutter and capture the decisive moment. This ability depends on the relationship between the two.
Roland Barthes
A French literary theorist who published 'Camera Lucida' in 1980. In this book he identified the theory of punctum and studium.
- 'The studium indicates historical, social or cultural meanings extracted via semiotic analysis.'
- 'The punctum points to those features of a photograph that seem to produce or convey a meaning without invoking any recognisable symbolic system.'
The punctum punctuates the studium to evoke a response from an audience. The viewer has to reject all knowledge for the punctum effect to occur. The punctum turns into the studium once expressed into language.
Planned or Luck?
Street photography depends on uncertain factors that often the photographer isn't in control of. The decisive moment is when everything in the picture makes sense and has a meaning, which is often difficult to replicate in street photography as it is candid. This make the decisive moment seem random, like the photographer got lucky with that frame in time. To capture the decisive moment you must be; alert, persevering, curious and decisive with colour.
Photographers
Sebastiao Salgado
Is a Brazilian documentary photographer and photojournalist. He uses photography as a narrative to expose political, social and environmental problems.
Taken with a Canon 1D X MkII.
Working exclusively in black and white suggests the use of film, ironically.
There are a mixture of light and dark tones in this image, which creates a balanced portrait. The feathered headdress is dark and frames the face within the image via contrast between the light and dark tones. This is interesting as we usually expect to see depth of field as a way of directing the viewer's eye towards the subject.
This image is part of a photo-series that highlights the hunting habits of Yawanawa tribe, which he feels are destroying the environment that immediately surrounds them. The photos intention is to simply document what they look like, but portrays the innocence of this destruction, even though none of it is clearly visible to the viewer. Conversely, he mentions that when they do hunt, they set fire to the amazonian forest that they are situated in.
The core audience for this photo-series will be environmentalists or people passionate about portrait photography. Additionally I feel the typical westerner, who has not been exposed to different cultures outside their own environment will be able to use this as a learning resource.
Translated to my own work will be a focus on using different framing and composure techniques as a way to draw focus on the subject of my images. For my planned project this will be important, as a way of leading the viewer's eye to the core of the image and its message.
Robert Capa
Capa is one of the most greatest war/street photographers. He was a war photographer for WW2 alongside others such as, spanish civil war, Japanese invasion and french war. This image was in 1944. This image was the best out of the whole film he produced - used film camera. His war photography was mainly to show the significance in war. To go back and look on and show bravery to become history and to show bravery then for the soldiers country to be proud of.
Robert Capa was the only still photographer to wade with the 34,250 troops on to Omaha Beach during the D-Day landing.
The tones within this image are mainly high tones due to the natural light reflecting onto the water. The darkest parts of the image show a soldier and damaged equipment and broken down barricades. His photo is very grainy and blurry but the rawness of the soldier's face still stands out and draws you into the image. Not all rolls of film that were shot made it back from the beach, due to being lost and damaged (by water in particular). The other photographs in the negative films were blurry and grainy, leading to just a fraction of the photos taken being developed - this is his best outcome from that set. Having this knowledge adds a special quality of rarity to the image, providing a level of mystery surrounding what could have been showcased.
Through this collection of photographs, Capa was trying to portray the true nature and significance of WW2 to the viewer - this was his message. Being the only photographer on that beach he would have felt a duty of care, even amongst everything going on around him, to tell this story as it was. Being in the thick of it almost gave him no choice but to take quick, unfiltered, true to life images.
This image will have gained an audience through being published in newspapers, most likely being seen by the middle and upper classes first. However, much like today's viral images, this will have spread throughout the whole nation because of the raw nature having that hard hitting effect on people emotions.
This will inspire my work through its off the cuff nature. Often some of the best images are ones taken in the moment, where you don't have the time to react and you are relying on your artistic instincts. However, because of the editorial nature of my project work, my shots will need to be set up so that I am more than ready to capture the moment when it arises.
Don McCullin
A British photojournalist, particularly recognised for his war photography and images of the underside of society.
This image was taken in Northern Ireland in 1971, but was not published until 2013 when it was put on display at the Tate Modern in London. This photo was taken using a film camera and consequently developed using gelatin silver paper. The tones in this image are very low and this helps to draw out the fearful emotion. This is also amplified by the dark brick work surrounding the armed police contrasting against the bright paintwork of the shop entrance where we can see a lady standing back in shock.
The message of that this particular image is trying to convey is the link between the Irish government and the cover up of the murder of an Irish citizen. The reason they are trying to establish this message is to highlight to the rest of the country the severity of what is is really going on, on the streets of Northern Ireland. I believe the audience that will see this image is a more middle class and/or educated older generation - this particular group will understand and relate to the context and history behind the scenes in the picture. It may also appeal to a younger generation who study art or who have a particular interest in history, inspiring them to research this period because of the powerful nature of the photograph.
This will inspire my own work by making me think about the mood that is captured in my photographs, especially those that are of a candid nature. I think that images like this develop a greater reaction from the viewer and help to demonstrate emotionally driven messages within a picture.