For this entry, read Susan Sontag's "The Image World" (the first attachment on Blackboard under the "Academic Analysis" tab).
Then, apply her idea of photography's powers of acquisition and control to your analysis of one photograph from our blog. In your analysis (which should be a paragraph of 4-10 sentences), use one quote from Sontag's essay.
Photography is more than just an image; it is a representation of reality. The power of photography can be seen through the experience attained from the image produced. In the photography titled, Down in the Valley, J. Maltos captures a scenic image of a waterfall flowing down a mountain peak just below a big blue sky. The duplicated world fragment created by the photographer is a cherished memory of a calming ambiance the audience can all relate to. Photography has control in redefining the experience with endless possibilities. Susan Sontag claims, “…the notions of image and reality are complementary. When the notion of reality changes, so does that of the image, and vice versa” (160). In a sense, photography is linked to what we know and images that we see.
ReplyDeleteNice work, Judy. I especially like your integration of the concepts of duplication and fragmentation.
DeletePhotography may seem for some a mandatory art. Some take photos to force memories in their brain, to never forget the good times of vacation, etc. But photography has a sort of passion about it. There truly are 1000 words in each photograph. The passion seen in photos is expressed "as if photographers, responding to an increasingly depleted sense of reality, were looking for a transfusion" (Sontag 161). The beauty a photo reflects is lovely and full of life. They embody life and what it means to live. K. Barrios's "Las cataratas de Guatemala" or "Guatemalan Waterfalls" shows the beautiful colors as if watching the waterfall flow in person. The uniqueness this photo shows captures the scenery to its full extent. Each photo is a mastery of art, proof of existence, and proof of beauty. As the author emphasizes, aesthetic value can be seen in anything. And that is what photography is.
ReplyDeleteNice work, Christine. I like your idea that photography is the modern age's "mandatory" art.
DeleteI do have a question, though. You say that each photo is a mastery of art and proof of beauty. Are no photographs generic and meaningless? Is there no such thing as a "bad" photograph?
Hmm. You bring up an interesting point. I think that there isn't really any bad photographs, because there's beauty in everything. I'm sure there are a few exceptions, however, for example, modern art is pretty much taking abstract "uselessness" and calling that beauty. And in some ways, it is. Graffiti has a sort of style to it, and a crunched up piece of paper shows the tendency towards randomness. There's hidden beauty in everything. :) But I definitely could see where you're coming from as far as "bad" photographs go.
Deletephotography has changed the world in so many ways. Museums filled with photos of inspiration, devastation, even restoration for some people. Capturing images captures more than just a singe action in time, it catches moods, feelings, background information, it gives insight to the past. " Photography has powers that no other image system has ever enjoyed because, unlike the earlier ones, it is not dependent on the image maker" (Sontah 158). This means that the picture isnt made beautiful because of the image maker. Like the "electric feel" by C. Dawson, that picture looks marvelous even if someone else took that picture. The image maker did not need to be there in order for that picture to be marvelous. The photographer does not make the image, the image makes the photographer.
ReplyDeleteSukhjinder, I like your last line, but it creates a bit of a paradox. Doesn't the photographer --by framing the scene-- "make" the image? In other words, the jellyfish are swimming, but by framing (and choosing color settings and shutter speed), doesn't the photographer create the image of the jellyfish?
DeletePeople share their experiences by taking pictures of families, friends, vacations, or selves. It has come down to the point where society has become very dependent on the use of photography. In C. Juban's photo of Disneyland, she captures the beauty and vibrant colors of flowers in a little segment of the amusement park. Many of us have been to Disneyland but we all experience it a different way, or maybe even the same. But in the essay, “The Image-World”, Susan Sontag states that, “Photographs do more than redefine the stuff of ordinary experiences and add vast amounts of material that we never see at all”. It is not just the precious things that photographs can capture but the reality itself. The “image-world” that she describes in this essay can essentially blind us from actual reality. One can take a picture of an object and exclude the environment or reality around it. Photography can regulate or manipulate society unless we know how to control it. "To process the world in a form of images is, precisely, to reexperience the unreality and remoteness of the real".
ReplyDeleteNice work, Veronica. I like how you mention the exclusionary power of photography: a photographer chooses what to include and what to exclude when she or he takes the photograph and presents the image of reality.
DeleteThe advent of the camera has allowed magnificent photographs of nature, in the state of serenity and tempest. An example of this is C. Bidwell’s photograph of “Vacation Exhaustion.” Bidwell, in a sense, is harnessing the power of the sun, ocean, and the wind, combining the forces into a small, yet visually powerful space. According to Sontag’s “The photographic exploration and duplication of the world fragments continuities and feed the pieces into an interminable dossier, thereby providing possibilities of control that could not even be dreamed of under the earlier system of recording information: writing” (156) has been accomplished in “Vacation Exhaustion.” Bidwell has been able to delineate a moment in time, allowing others to visualize something that could not be fully comprehended in a verbal account.
ReplyDeleteThe Photography of C. Bidwell's "Vacation Exhaustion" is a nice and beautiful picture. It is priceless not for what is within, but for what is beyond the photograph and photographer because many of us want to go on vacation, but what are we going to do to accomplish that goal. A vacation can be relaxing, but also exhausting at the same time. It reminded me of how one's life can be or what one can make of their life I think that's where the "control part of photography" comes in. Susan Sontag states, on page 166 that, "Photographic images are pieces of evidence in an ongoing biography or history. And one photograph, unlike one painting, implies that there will be others." What Sontag means is that our photographs reflect who we are and where we come from they represent our lives and our history the good, the bad, and the ugly the evidence is there in our photographs. One photograph can say many words only if it could speak, but the majority of us don't see beyond the photography or photographer they only see within.
ReplyDeletePhotography produces powerful images for its viewer. Images are taken during all adventures of life such as family and friend gatherings and travel. Susan Sontag makes a great point when she states “ As the taking of photographs seems almost obligatory to those who travel about, the passionate collecting of them has special appeal for those confined-either by choice, ill capacity, or coercion-to indoor space”. For those who do not have the privilege to adventure out these collections of images bring some of the outside world to them. In the photograph "Infinite Blue" the perceiver can escape their reality and lose themselves in the image of deep blue sea with sailboats.
ReplyDelete“Photography is acquisition in several forms. In its simplest form, we have in a photograph surrogate possession of a cherished person or a thing, a possession which gives photographs some of the character or unique objects” (Sontag 155) This quote goes well with E. Tobias’s “Family Spring Break, 2015” because this quote says that pictures of loved ones from family or friends and make the photograph a unique object to the beholder of the picture. With E. Tobias’s photo you can see that there are loved ones all in the picture and that they truly care for each other and with this picture I can look upon it and not just see a piece of paper with faces on it but I can loos upon it and see the uniqueness of it and how this photo now has character. Sontag’s quote here stood out because it is a way of taking something that is an inanimate object and giving that same project and giving it deep meaning and something that has a unique possession.
ReplyDeletePictures are important to people in today’s society. People get on social media everyday and post pictures of themselves, friends, food they ate, pets, and places they have been. Others judge people’s lives based on these few captured moments. According to Susan Sontag, “Such images are indeed able to usurp reality because first of all a photograph is not only an image, an interpretation of the real; it is also a trace, something directly stenciled off the real, like a footprint or a deathmask.” A picture replaces the real thing, but not exactly. There are no emotions, no weather, no atmosphere, and no music. In E. Tobias's "Family Spring Break, 2015,” we see everyone is smiling and brought together. But the picture doesn’t show what is really going on. Is everyone having a great day? What worries lie behind some of these smiles? What music is playing in the background? It’s like the old saying, “Don’t judge a book by its’ cover.” From viewing the picture, we only get a trace of what is happening, but a trace or glimpse is better than nothing at all.
ReplyDeleteIn the photograph that C. Blunt posted titled "Ooh, Aah" the subject of the photo was captured quite well. This is because it gains control of the entire photograph and is able to draw onlookers into a place in which one feels part of the picture, the photograph seems to control the thoughts of the observer and focus them onto the gigantic fireworks. The subject is so clear in the photo that the water even enraptures its beauty through reflection. It almost seems as if the boom of the brilliant lights should be felt and heard in that very moment. In Susan Sontag’s “The Image World” she brings this argument forward; “But a photograph is not only like its subject, a homage to the subject. It is part of, an extension of that subject; and a potent means of acquiring it, of gaining con¬trol over it” (p. 155). After setting eyes upon the beautiful lights, water, reflections and general feeling this picture comes to life, and not only has the subject been acquired but it is brought to life, and it in turn brings to life feelings, smells, thoughts and memories to those who witness it.
ReplyDeleteIn C. Blunt's photograph "Ooh, Aah" the essence of the fireworks in the picture are clearly portrayed to the audience. The bright explosives in contrast to the dark background is extremely eye-catching. The smoke also adds to the dark and mysterious background contrasting the lights on the water. All of these add to the experience the audience gets while viewing it; you can hear the familiar sounds of water crashing on the shore, fireworks booming in the sky, and the light smell of smoke as it falls from the sky. In Susan Sontag's "The Image World" she argues that photography "...offers, in one easy,
ReplyDeletehabit-forming activity, both participation and alienation in
our own lives and those of others--allowing us to participate,
while confirming alienation" (page 167). I agree with this because when someone is viewing a photograph, such as the one mentioned above, they begin to visualize that moment and remember familiar sounds and smells associated with such a thing. This allows the audience to participate in the activity in our mind while being removed from the actual moment.
Susan Sontag's "The Image World" implores an individual to see life for what it is rather than what it looks like through the lens of a camera. The piece is rather reminiscent of "Plato's Allegory of the Cave". Plato uses an allegorical scenario, prisoners in a cave basing their realities on shadows, to explain the naivety and blindness of humanity.In the same sense Sontag is conveying the idea that we rely on images for our perceived reality. But images are simply a shadow of the real thing, they are not to be confused with reality. Rather, according to Sontag, "Images consume reality.Cameras are the antidote and the disease, a means of appropriating reality and a means of making it obsolete." C. Bidwell's "Vacation Exhaustion" is a stunning photograph that makes one want to lose themselves in the picture, almost as if one were actually there. But therein lies the problem with photos. No matter how real they may seem, they are only a shade of reality. To experience the true reality one must visit the beach.
ReplyDeleteIn Susan Sontag's "The Image World," there were many quotes that stood out to me but one stood out more than others. "Photographs are a way of imprisoning reality, understood as a recalcitrant, inaccessible; of making it stand still. Or they enlarge a reality that is felt to be shrunk, hollowed out, perishable, remote. One can't possess reality, one can possess (and be possessed by) images-as, according to Proust, most ambitious of voluntary prisoners, one can't possess the present but one can possess the past (163)." Photography is a very powerful form of art. Although some people think the pictures they take everyday to post on social media mean nothing, they are a way of communicating to the world. Some people may see a picture of a flower and think it's just a simple picture of a flower, where the person who took the picture might see the flower and remember what a wonderful day they had when they took the photo. M. Martinez's "Jar of Expressions" photo can have a lot of emotion that goes with it. To M. Martinez, the photo can bring back a hundred different memories. It's a way of "making reality stand still." To an outsider, the photo can bring back memories that they may have thought were lost or "enlarge a reality that is felt to be shrunk."
ReplyDeletePhotography is a unique way to capture memories in the form of a physical picture, digital image, or data. Not only does photography capture memories, in essence it was its original intention, but also photography has become an art, a form of expression, and can help tell a story by its powerful imagery. It is a way to remember the times we cherished the most, paint an image for ones to see who did not witness a marvelous event first-hand, or can make one feel emotions through its projection. Photography has really impacted our lives in ways it didn’t seem possible in its creation. A photographer can be anyone now and with a click of a button, that part stayed the same over the ages; they are empowered to create a work of art or lock in a moment in time. It is something meaningful in their life. For instance, the photo titled “Babies” by R. Cha, tells the importance and love R. Cha has for her children. The photo will hold many memories and stories behind it for years to come. It is unique to her and it captures a moment in time where time stood still and that snapshot was one second but it was enough. Susan Sontag states that, “Photography has powers that no other image system has ever enjoyed because unlike the earlier ones, it is not dependent on an image maker.” (158). Susan Sontang couldn’t be more right. R.Cha’s picture cannot be replaced or made by any machine in the world. Earlier times called for skilled painters who could paint portraits of individuals or abstracts. This is a picture that was taken to hold on to memories we don't want to forget. The siblings captured in the picture were not drawn by an image-maker but were photographed by their loved ones.
ReplyDeletePhotography can capture many experiences of people and things. There is a saying going around that a picture is worth a thousand words. Those thousands words can be significantly different because many people have different interpretations. Through these interpretations, the “image-world” can alter our experience of reality. For instance, in J. Leon’s “The Art of Food” Leon captures the style and artistry of an appetizing meal. However, someone can look at this photo but not have the same meaning as I have. Some can be allergic to shrimp or some would not like vegetables in their food. Therefore, it will restrain people’s behavior by not wanting to eat a meal like that; or, if others view this photo as appealing, then they would want to eat this type of food. Susan Sontag conveys interpretation when it comes to photography. She demonstrates, “A photograph is not only an image, an interpretation of the real; it is also a trace, something directly stenciled off the real” (p. 154). Photography can present knowledge where it can capture, analyze, and store the information in a way that provides possibilities for control. It can be utilized as a means for evaluating, concluding, and controlling behavior because it is more evident to reality. Thus, photography proposes a warning to us humans; if we cannot learn to control it, it will be used to control us.
ReplyDeleteFor many, photography is a social thing. Photos serve not only as personal reminders of one's experiences, but perhaps more importantly, as powerful tools used to export an idea, a brand, an illustration of success. In that sense, photos are rarely candid, they are prepared highlights which serve as a means towards validation or proof of existence as hinted by Susan Sontag: "people in industrialized countries seek to have their photographs taken--feel that they are images, and are made real by photographs" M. Tobia's "Summer in Hawaii", seems to follow that trend, here the subject acquires personal control over herself, her image, through the self-taken photograph.
ReplyDeletePhotography has become an essential part of our lives. We tend to have the urge to capture almost anything we experience on camera. These experiences can vary from an amazing place we visited to a selfie with your best friend. The purpose behind it is to capture the moment, but most importantly, to share it ( instagram, facebook, etc...). I think this is expressed though K. Barrios's photo " Las cataratas de Guatemala. I have personally never travelled to such a beautiful place, but i am swayed by her photograph. Susan Sontag states that "as the taking of photographs seems almost obligatory to those who travel about, the passionate collecting of them has special appeal for those confined-either by choice, or incapacity, or coercion-to indoor space" (162). This quote is reflected through the photograph because it would have have been lamentable to see such a beautiful place and not take a picture and share it with those of us who cannot travel there.
ReplyDeleteIn J. Leon's photograph "The Art of Food" captures the very essence of appetizing food. It shows off vibrant colors, distinguishable ingredients and great presentation. To the person who actually ate the taco he or she experience something incredibly different from the viewers of this photo. The viewer of this photo can only imagine and receive a false experience of the actual thing. What the viewer experiences from the photo may not be the real feeling when they actually experience what is in the photo. In fact if the viewer tries the taco, his or her experiences will most likely be different from what he or she imagined prior to trying the taco. The taco image gives the viewer false experiences that we do not have in real life. "Knowing a great deal about what is in the world (art, catastrophe, the beauties of nature) through photographic images, people are frequently disappointed, surprised, unmoved when they see the real thing." (Sontag 168). In this quote Sontag differentiates what is perceived from the real thing. In this case what we see in the taco photo as something appetizing and delicious, in reality it might taste like trash.
ReplyDeleteLet me start by chuckling a little. As I read this, my first thought was this must be how my great grandparents felt about the television. The author scoffs about people using images through photography instead of experiencing life for themselves. She further explains that people are materializing the world through images and imaging machines. While reading this part I feel as though she is saying photography dehumanizes the world. Instead of feeling the coldness of the ocean air, instead of smelling the salt, instead of feeling the gritty sand, instead of hearing the ocean crash, and instead of standing small next to the giant sea and feeling humbled, people can simply look at a picture.
ReplyDeleteMy second thought was, this is exactly how I feel about Facebook. This made me laugh even harder. I am so tired of people pretending that Facebook is real. People have so much wrapped up into social media.They compare posts, they get angry with posts, they judge pictures. I was a waitress for 10 years before I started CSUB. It would blow your mind how many people would meet family and friends for a meal- all the while each was on their Facebook. Not to mention conversations about Facebook. People talk about Facebook like its a real thing. "Oh today on Facebook...". "Did you see her new profile pic, what a slut." ITS NOT REAL.
This brings me to my quote. The author makes a claim that "people in industrialized countries seek to have their photographs taken-feel that they are images and are made real by photographs". At the time this was written it was referring to images. Today this applies to likes on an image. The more likes you have the more real you are. So hurry up and post as many picture as you can. All the while missing out on any real life while consumed in cyber world. While I am laughing, I am sad that it has come to this. Sadly, in a few years my concerns (just like the author's) will be outdated, and inevitably laughed at.
I am sorry this is so long. I could not stop myself. In the future I will contain it better.
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ReplyDeletePhotography allows us to capture a moment and look back at them to relive and share with others those feelings and emotions felt during that time frame. Today we use photography almost everyday, with updated technology it’s at our fingertips, to share events happening in our lives with friends and family. Susan Sontag writes, “Photography has powers that no other image-system has ever enjoyed because, unlike the earlier ones, it is not dependent on the image maker” (158). As noted in S. Adamson’s photograph “Santa Cruz Island,” the photograph conveys nature’s beauty, drawing you into the peaceful surroundings. Regardless of who captured the photograph, like Susan Sontag conveys, the viewer can feel the power of the image. Immediately viewing this image I wished to be standing where the photographer was standing, to relax and soak in the beauty of the Santa Cruz Island. The photographer doesn’t make the image; the image captured makes the photographer.
ReplyDeletePhotography provides us with an escape from the world we know. It can bring us to a non-existent reality or it can aid us in an attempt to relive a specific point in our lives that may no longer be present. Susan Sontag addressed this point in her essay "The Image World" when she wrote "photographs are a way of imprisoning reality, understood as recalcitrant, inaccessible; of making it stand still." This can be seen in R. Cha's "Babies!". She photographed children when they were babies, but they will not remain this way forever. They will eventually grow up, and the reality of them as babies will no longer exist. Photography provides a way to preserve this precious time, and remind us of what once was.
ReplyDeletePhotography has become a very common part of life. Whether we use it for capturing a beautiful view of a place, a special moment in our lives, or just a fun day with friends, it is an amazing tool we have to save these moments to where they will be remembered. T. Stewart's "Best Christmas Gift EVER" picture illustrates this. This picture captured the very special and life changing moment of this person’s life, and will serve as a reminder of this day through this picture. Susan Sontage states “photography is acquisition in several forms, in its simplest form, we have in a photograph surrogate possession of a cherished person or thing, a possession which gives photographs some of the characters of unique objects” (Pg 155). This quote is reflected in this picture because it captures that special moment of a cherished person in a life changing experience, which is absolutely beautiful.
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ReplyDeleteIt has became easier to captured any moments of our life because cameras have improved. Photography happens in the daily basis. The moments that we captured through the lens of a camera refreshes our experience; therefore, photography allow us to create more memories. In Susan Sontag's "The Image World," Sontag states, "Photography has powers that no other image-system has ever enjoyed because,unlike the' earlier ones, it is not dependent on an image maker(158)." This quotes explains the importance of photography, which has impacted our life in a positive way. Furthermore, in K. Barrios's "Las cataratas de Guatemala," Barrios captures this beautiful waterfalls because Barrio thought that the moment should be remembered forever. Photography re-enforced Barrios' memory.
ReplyDeleteThe invention of cameras has impacted our society to a great extent. According to Susan Sontag, “ . . . through image-making and image-duplicating machines, we can acquire something as information (rather than experience)” (156). I believe this to be true because photography is utilized in various fields of study to enhance or assist in our education. The power of photography is such that it allows us to gain knowledge about places, organisms, and other aspects of life that we have not yet seen. For example, by viewing K. Barrios’s photograph, “Guatemalan Waterfalls,” a person who has not travelled to this location can learn about the city’s fascinating and natural scenery.
ReplyDeletePhotography creates an illusion for the viewers to feel the same experience but it is not the same as witnessing in person. From experience, people are amazed when looking at photographs of people vacation trips, historal landmark, popular scenararies. But, "Knowing a deal about what is in the world through phtographic images, people are frequently dissappointed, surprised, unmoved when they see the real thing" (Sontag, 168). The photograph by C.Bidwells "Vacation Exhaustion" expresses the warm, breezy climate at the beach and the great experience the photographer was enjoying. But the only way I can validate that, is if I experience that vacation for myself at that exact location.
ReplyDeleteA painting can give representation of an image; but can’t give a true depiction of reality, because a painting is simply a representation of the painter’s perception. Whereas a photograph is an interpretation of what’s real. In the photograph titled “Basket of Sunshine", N. Solorio’s captures the image of a beautiful baby girl smiling in a basket of laundry. Happiness exudes from the photograph, and that happiness can be cherished for a lifetime. Susan Sontag claims, “…But a photograph is not only like its subject, a homage to the subject. It is part of, an extension of that subject; and a potent means of acquiring it, of gaining control over it. (pg.155)” In a sense the power of the reality can be felt, photographs provide that reality.
ReplyDeleteA photograph plays a very important part in the life of a person. It allows us to remember some great memories we made with friends, how overweight we were in the past, or how younger we looked without all the makeup in our face. With a simple photo you can go back in time and put yourself inside that one picture, reliving the memories all over again. Although all the photographs might not be considered great by different people, the photographer will always appreciate his/her picture because it turns on the memory switch inside the brain. I believe the best pictures are the ones that remain hidden for years inside some boxes, because when we come to have those pictures in front of us, 99% of the time we put a smile on our face. In the words of Susan Sontage, "Photographic images are pieces of evidence in an ongoing biography or history. And one photograph, unlike one painting, implies that there will be others." What I understand from this passage is that a photograph captures who we are in life. It pieces the events that occur in our life and forms a giant puzzle when the photographs are placed together. We never stop taking a photograph because we want to seize those intense moments we have in life. An example of a great photograph is S. Momi's "Joy Caught Off-Guard" because it tells a story to the viewer while showing the vibrant beach scenery in the background. By simply seeing this picture, the photographer was able to capture the excitement of these boys as various poses were being made. Most pictures are just like this one, that grasp the great moments we experience and never seem to forget.
ReplyDeleteIn Susan Sontag’s “The Image World”, “In its simplest form, we have a photograph surrogate possession of a cherished person on thing” (156). As displayed by N. Solorio’s photograph “Basket of Sunshine”, the center of the photograph is a little girl. She is clearly a valued person in the photographer’s life and is the focus of this photograph. In this, the simplest moment in which the adorable little girl is in the laundry basket smiling back towards her.
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