Definition and Explanation

 When thinking of photojournalism and its roots two questions pop into my head: 

1. When studying today's news photographs, why is it important to comprehend how photojournalism has changed over time?

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2. How can photographers today make better or more ethical choices in their work if they've developed a greater understanding of the beginnings of photojournalism?

Personally, I believe that it is incredibly important to study today's photographs. Studying past events helps us to better comprehend the look and feel of the news photographs of today. It shows how past techniques and events impacted current processes. As said in the video titled Why Study History, "those who do not remember the past are condemned to repeat it" Photographers could prevent the mistakes that were made by the ones before them by making more responsible and educated choices by learning about moral issues and previous challenges. A good quote that sums up my whole point is presented in the second video titled Why Study History, " And understanding the past is the key to understanding the present." 

Photo by Kaylie 9/2/2024

I took this photo as I was driving through New York City on my way to a concert. While I am in no way the type of person who is inspired by the city. I tend to not like big cities. I find them overwhelming and too fast-paced for me. I would prefer a local quiet town in the mountains or near the beach much more. While all of those things are true for me, I still find cities very beautiful. Just this one picture is so pretty and inspiring to look at. It really makes you grasp just how big the world is and how small you are in the grand scheme of things. I think this picture shows photojournalism because it really makes you think and can incite multiple different perspectives and emotions across different people. As Professor Nordell talks about in his video, photojournalism started with pictures being taken to be put inside journals. I think the photo, like the one above, could be used in a journal to discuss cities or buildings or a variety of topics. 

 

Photo by Kaylie 9/6/2024

This photo above is of my baby cousin Avery. She is currently 7 months old. While she is very cute I do not personally think that this photo would be an example of photojournalism. I think this because while the picture incites many different emotions for me since she is my cousin and I love her and babies, I do not think for all people this would cause any type of emotions or thoughts. To me, this is a personal picture that incites personal feelings. An example of this would be some random person on the street coming up to me and showing me a picture of their family. While to them they would care a lot about that picture since it's personal and sentimental, to me it is just a random family whose picture I am staring at. Jason Henske sums up my feelings for this in his video when he talks about how taking such personal pictures does not always seem like work to him necessarily and how he develops a close connection with those in the picture. while looking at this picture I do not see an artsy picture that is capturing something, rather I see a family picture or just a home picture meant to capture a quick moment. 






My current relationship with the news is complicated. I am a very type-A person so I like to stay onto of the news and current issues. Pictures and videos play a huge part in this grasp of information. Sometimes it's the first thing that draws me into an article or even an issue as a whole. In today's society which is run by quick news, TV shows, and TikTok, people need to find quick ways to draw attention and gain viewers. Pictures, videos, and quick flashy words are the way to do that today. I'd like to say I follow a bit of every type of news, but sometimes I do have to take somewhat of a step back to not get overwhelmed with the issues in today's society. But overall I like to keep up. I enjoy being able to talk to my close friends and family about current issues, whether on a neighbor basis or a worldly basis and know what I am talking about and be able to really research the situation if I am interested.