Can Photographs Change the World?

Photo by Julian Ribinik 

 To portray the picture that has affected me personally, I chose the picture of the bride and groom above. Growing up I loved weddings and having an aunt who is a wedding planner, that is exactly what I want to do. I think that weddings are such a happy and fun time overall, no matter the size or destination. So much of what we see in the news and online is negative and overall sad. I chose this photograph because it brings a sense of happiness and joy to those who look at it. the excitement the bride and groom show can almost be felt through the picture, which I think is the whole point of photojournalism. I believe photojournalism is when you can feel emotions through a picture which I definitely believe is true for this exact picture. You can feel the excitement and the love, and with the picture being black and white it almost makes the scene more dramatic. As Jonathan Klein says in the TED talk, "Images provoke reactions in people." Most pictures in the news, or even when you search photography on Google, that pop are negative and bring about sad emotions. The picture I chose brings me happiness and reminds me of my love for weddings. In his video Professor Nordell likens photos to trees, sharing, "If a tree drops and no one hears it, does it really make a sound?" I think this correlates because weddings happen every day, in the same way, that pictures are taken every day, and no one notices. I do not believe that people stop and think about all of the photographs taken ever like they do not stop to think of all the weddings, but that does not mean that the photographs and the weddings aren't happening. That makes when you do see a special, meaningful wedding picture or a powerful photograph in the news that much more impactful. 

Photo by Matt Collamer 

While I do not believe that photographs can change the world, I do think that they can change how a lot of people feel. Using the term "change the world" is too broad and not necessarily true in every sense since there will always be an outlier, that is why I disagreed. As previously said, I do believe however that these pictures bring a sense of uplifting and can change how one views the world. The picture above does change the way I feel slightly, it makes me feel grateful for what I have, and also want to be a better person and spread kindness to others, like his sign is asking for. In my opinion, the world has become not a friendly place. Like in the photograph by Jeff Roberson, people are always looking at their phones and have lost a lot of human connection. His sign reminds people to be more human and talk to one another. I believe that people in the United States are also selfish and absorbed in themselves, their belongings, and even technology. I think this is portrayed in the different Times front pages. while all the countries can give up the cover to celebrate another country or give recognition to a tragedy happening in another country, for the most part, the United States is only about themselves and their problems.