• Who are we photographing, and why
• How are we photographing these things, and why?
• Who are we photographing for?

“New ways of seeing and sensing are regarded with suspicion, as unjournalistic manipulations of reality. ”

“Crisis […] also means opportunity.” 

This second quote resonates with me so strongly, because the global crisis of the current pandemic, and the (not quite such a crisis) of me being unable to return to Japan at the present time has resulted in the opportunity for me to undertake this project. There have been many other instances in the past 18 months that this quote also relates to.

Bush, L 2019, “Photojournalism’s First Century – can it survive another?” Viewed 03 April 2020. <https://witness.worldpressphoto.org/photojournalisms-first-century-79645873e363> 

I like this combination of text and image, that the way that censoring the words of the original text forces new meaning. Using a Communist Party text and censoring it comments on broader social and political issues, and gives the work deeper meaning. In other words, to use this technique without reason would remove its effectiveness.

De Middel, C 2013-14, Party. photographic series, viewed 03 April 2020, <http://www.lademiddel.com/party.html>

Viewing Jan Rosseel’s ”Belgian autumn. A Confabulated History” is almost overstimulating. There is such a variety of imagery and secondary visuals, that for me it almost becomes too much. Whilst I have developed a strong appreciation for this type of curation of photography styles to develop a project, I think that this work has a little too many different elements. Of course, with a larger body of work, the ability to seamlessly integrate elements increases, but I also believe there must be a limit.

I do really like the above collection of images though. The colour palette, negative space, and use of scale give this collection a curious feel. 

The main element that I was able to draw from this series was Rosseel’s ability to blend studio shots with documentary photography. I have not yet come across this in my visual research (although I am sure that many other photographers utilise it.) Coming from a commercial background, I was wondering if I could make use of my studio and lighting skills with this project, or if that would be considered fabrication of the ‘real.’ It would need to be done in a way that the images flow with the rest of the body of work, as is the case with this series.

Below is a selection of the studio shots, which sit alongside still life, landscape, and artefacts.

Rosseel, J 2010-15, Belgian autumn. A Confabulated History., photographic series, viewed 03 April 2020 <https://janrosseel.com/archive/belgian-autumn-a-confabulated-history>

I didn’t imagine that I would become so engrossed in the work of Rafal Milach when I was first instructed to watch a presentation of his photo book “7 Rooms.” At first, when I began to watch Jörg Colberg present the work, I was not drawn in to it as I felt disconnected from the subject matter. The images and scenes depicted a world so far removed from my own, that they almost felt made up. Like a movie set that had been constructed in a distant country that I would never visit.

But then Colberg turned turned the page and a portrait of a woman wrapped in a white blanket appeared. This struck me as both an aesthetic and subject matter that I could relate to, and that related to my project. That woman, with her flat gaze, staring out of frame at something (or nothing.) That woman, wrapped in the safety of the familiar blanket. That woman, with her expression that I was unable to pin down (boredom? annoyance? uncertainty?) That woman represented how I feel. 

(Above) Images from the series “7 Rooms” by Rafal Milach.

From there, I explored more of Milach’s work. Although I am instantly drawn to the simplicity and structure of the images, I feel that the vast difference in my surroundings and those depicted in the images would make it hard to replicate that same desolate feel (the house that I am staying in at the moment has too much junk.) I was also influenced by a small collection of works from the series “In The Car With R,” particularly the faded photographs, and scans of notebooks and journals. I would like to investigate incorporating a similar feel into my project, as I feel that this type of imagery can support and enhance a body of work, particularly if it is diaristic in nature. I like the faded ares of the photographs- and I feel that not revealing everything can sometimes say more about a subject that if that subject was completely clear and pin sharp.

(Above) Images from the series “In The Car With R” by Rafal Milach.

Although I have just begun to conceptualise my work, it is important to consider the final product. Of course, I would like to curate a printed photobook of my work, but I am also considering how to show my series as a set of hung images. I really like the way that “In The Car With R” is presented in a range of sizes and layouts. I would like to play with scale in the presentation of my own final piece.

“In the Car With R” hanging at LA Art Museum / Hveragergi, Icealnd 2011

Milach, R 2013, 7 Rooms, photographic series, viewed 02 April 2020 <http://rafalmilach.com/7-rooms>

Milach, R 2012, In The Car With R, photographic series, viewed 02 April 2020 <http://rafalmilach.com/in-the-car-with-r>

Whilst my project is still in the development stage, I am investigating different mediums of storytelling. I was initially considering including shots from CCTV cameras in Japan to depict what I was missing out on, and then thought to narrow it down to CCTV cameras around my house in Osaka. 

I have been able to locate a “live camera” (as they are called in Japanese) that is situated on a building that points to a small park I passed through twice a day to get to my local train station. However the view is not very clear, and is mostly of power lines. 

I did find this website where you can watch live streams from around the world, and I was able to refine the results down to Osaka, but not further to Suita (what you would refer to as my local council.) The interesting thing with this site is that the camera feeds are different every time you visit, and even if you re-visit the link of a CCTV camera you had previously seen, it does not re-appear the next day. Each time you view the stream, it is a unique, fleeting moment that cannot be repeated.

I spent (too much) time watching some of the streams, and recorded some footage of what appears to be the exit of a train station, a local street, and a laundromat housing a single anonymous figure doing his laundry. I do like the way that the screenshots above invite the viewer to imagine a narrative.

I want to make this kind of work. These images combine all the elements that I want to capture in my series. They are raw and honest. Uncomplicated. And emotive without being too direct. The colour palette, square format, and use of negative space are all elements that I aim to emulate in my portrait work. I also like the way that they are heavy and solemn in their feeling without being overtly dark. 

Rosella’s site also includes a PDF of the photobook this series was made into, however this has a different title; You’ll Know It When You Feel It. I think these images are quietly powerful.

Rosella, R 2012, You didn’t take away my future, you gave me a new one, photographic series, viewed 31 March 2020 <https://www.raphaelarosella.com/you-didnt-take-away-my-future-you-gave-me-a-new-one>

Notes from “Photography: The Key Concepts.” David Bate.

• A documentary photograph always has a point of view.
• “Reality is what we believe exists […] it also involves what individuals wish to exist.”
• Can my work be objective and give a ‘true’ visual description of my situation? Or will I always present a subjective view no matter how honest and un-biased I aim to be?

Bate, D 2016, Photography: The Key Concepts, 2nd edn, London.

With consideration to the work of other photographers I have been looking at, I did a quick test shoot to see if I could begin to replicate the aesthetic and mood of that style of image. In particular, I paid attention to the work of Rinko Kawauchi (the square format of these images also emulates Kawauchi’s work.) 

As a very rough shoot, I think that some images have potential for development. I think that this kind of image is quite unremarkable on its own, but as a series or a piece of a larger puzzle, each image can add something.

There is minimal adjustment to all of these images. Just alterations to white balance, tone, and curves. It feels refreshing not to do any retouching, especially after working in the commercial realm extensively.

Yokonami, O, 2007-2015, various photographic works, viewed 29 March 2020 <http://www.yokonamiosamu.jp/>

I listened to an online lecture titled ”The Contemporary Face of Suffering“presented by the Institute for Philosophy and Religion. Although my work does not directly relate to suffering, there were some points that I felt resonated with the type of ideas I want to express

• “Illness and health are like two identities that we all possess as human citizens.”
• Metaphor distorts reality, but we cannot write without it.
• Inauthenticity can overwhelm viewers emotionally.
• “Evoke our common humanity in narratives with which we can identify.”
• What are the ethics of looking from a distance? - disconnect.
• Any photograph “documents and transforms an event.”
• “Narratives make us understand.”
• Narrative requires us to sustain attention.
• “Sympathy diminished by distance” - this referred to sympathy for people in war, however I feel that it might also be a useful thought for  my project.

To read next;

“The Volcano Lover” - Susan Sontag 

Jurecic, A 2013, The Contemporary Face of Suffering, viewed 29 March 2020, <https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PPeEFZN7pmg>