Photographic Research Practices | Preparations

Photographic Research Practices Complete by 6 October

Watch these lectures

Tutorial

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    Rosanne van den Berg
  • Photographic Thinking (exercises completed in class)
    Mark Westmoreland

Read these texts

Sutherland, Patrick
2016
Extending the Frame: some notes on learning documentary photography and constructing photo essays from groups of photographs. VAR Supplements. (November 1, 2016). Link ➙
Botticello, Julie
2016
From Documentation to Dialogue: Exploring New ‘routes to Knowledge’ through Digital Image Making. Visual Studies 31(4): 310–23. Link ➙

Prepare your equipment

This module requires that you make photographs. With the variety of tools available, you may easily fulfill this task by using the camera function on your phone. If so, you may want to download a camera App that allows you greater control (see below). If you have access to a DSLR then you will be able to engage with the manual settings more readily, which will ultimately improve your skills.

Photo Apps

Android

DSLR Camera Pro
Camera Zoom FX
Footej Camera
Manual Camera
ProCapture
Camera FV-5
Open Camera

iOS

Manual
Halide
VSCO
ProShot
ProCam 5
ProCamera
Camera+ 2

Mobiel

Whatever you chose, be sure you know how to adjust the controls. Following Rosanne’s video module, practice adjusting these photographic settings. The goal is to make your camera discipline as skilled as possible, so you can do it without thinking about it.

  • Experiment with the Exposure Triangle: ISO, shutter speed, aperture
  • Experiment with Shutter speed and its effect on motion
  • Experiment with different apertures in combination with zoom or different lenses to test depth of field. Try Short & Long Lenses, keeping the object the same size.
  • Photograph a face close up on WA and Standard Zoom
  • Experiment with Backlight (what criteria defines your technical choice?)
  • Experiment with light sources (low, natural, bright) adjusting ISO, test image noise.

Photographic Research Practices Complete by 13 October

Watch these lectures

Seminar

Read these texts

Sutherland, Patrick
2016
The Photo Essay. Visual Anthropology Review 32(2): 115–21. Link ➙

Search online for these Documentary Photographers

Henri Cartier-Bresson
Alex Webb
Ed Kashi
Gueorgui Pinkhassov
Moises Saman
Venetia Dearden
Jessica Dimmock
Donald Weber
David Alan Harvey
James Nachetway
Lynsey Addario
Alexandra Boulat

Adam Ferguson
David Monteleone
Christopher Morris
Rena Effendi
Bruno Barbey
Harry Gruyaert
Susan Meiselas
Steve McCurry
Dominic Nahr
Trent Parke
Raghu Rai
Marcus Bleasdale

Antonin Kratochvil
Maciek Nabrdalik
John Stanmeyer
Stephanie Sinclair
Tomas van Houtryve
Lana Slezic
Stanley Greene
Nina Berman
Pep Bonet
Andrea Bruce
Alixandra Fazzina
Yuri Kozyrev

Write journal entries to these prompts

In addition to your general entries/reflections on tutorial exercises, field studies, and method reflections, respond to the following module specific prompts.

  • How do different framings and compositions impact your feelings toward an image?
  • How formal aspects of image making impact the relationship to the content?
  • How does the camera make you feel? Reflect on your positionality.