Reading a Photograph

 I say that purposefully. Because as much as we like to think  of our photographs as being seen they are read. By reading  I am  not saying everything in a  photograph is interpreted in our minds as having some meaning.  Some might say "Look  maybe your photographs get read but  really for me it's all out there".  However I beg to differ. First  take something as basic as  the shape of the frame.  In  a panoramic landscape  layout the eye is usually drawn to the  amount of "breadth" that is captured.  When its oriented in a profile our eyes immediately  go up and down and we see "height".  Choose to show either black and white or color and our pictures are viewed  either "artsy" or real. This is normal. When we look at a photograph the first question is why am I looking at it. Is there something familiar? Is there something unusual? All these things are asked and interpreted by the mind to have meaning.

 With that in mind we need to state clearly in our photograph what we want the viewer to focus on. If you want the viewer to notice the red shoes on a little girl.  You can't put her on a red couch , with red carpet because it won't pop out.  However if the room was all in plaids and there is a tie dyed green dog in the room people might not  notice the red shoes either. We have to help the viewer to find and clearly understand what it is we want them to see.

 This is accomplished with focus. Light and shadow, shiny or dull, large or small,color and a  host of other factors help to point us to what to look at. This is what you as a photographer have to learn to shape much like you would any textual document.   You have to choose the right "words" as it were.

 Much like any great writer one of the best ways to know how to communicate well  is to read often. This exposure to great literature gives the mind the  right mental tools to  draw from when we craft our piece.  So when you look at a photograph it helps us to shape what are your thoughts.  I think its important to before you analyze a photograph  that you first go with your gut. Do you like it. What are your first feelings on the photograph. There are no wrong answers. Its important to understand what you feel before you start trying to "break it down" This is important because  your first reaction though not fixed  and may later change, it can help you to see that you have bias or a natural affinity to certain types of photographs

  Next in important to come up is a validation for those feelings.  The why. As you start to describe   the why the picture is good or no good your mind tries to come up with some kind of objective viewpoint. You can start to see the choices that the photographer made. Was the viewpoint eye level. Is the light soft or hard?  How dark the surrounding elements are.  Is the photographer drawing me down a path ?How much of the key figure do you see? Was everything centered? Was this on purpose? Were the the arrangements  of objects incidental or purposeful. Are the colors in this photograph natural or   artificial?

 When you take this step now you begin to  see deliberate choices and you start to ask yourself would I have made those choices? The more you do this the more you know what needs to be done to have the same level of success with your shots. All of us judge whether we think a given  photograph "works" or not and our goal is to be as effective as possible  effectively conveying out message.

 For example in this photo, Does the shape guide your eye? Why? Was the choice of  Black and White deliberate? Why not natural colors? Why is the person  not facing us? What does that mean? Is he recognizable? If he is why was this shot taken of him?  Does knowing the man in the shot and the time that the photo was taken give it a new meaning?

But in the end why? Why read so much,  Because whether you read War and Peace  or a a bawdy Limmerick when you look at it you have an impression, so make it a good one.