Final Reflection
Since the American Civil War, the history of photography has run parallel to the major events of the United States. Additionally, the technological aspects of photography have progressed over time, from the tintypes of the Civil War to the current digital age; allowing photojournalists to capture the history of the U.S. with ever-increasing and widespread coverage. Photographs not only allow historians to get a glimpse of the moment in time that they are studying, but more importantly, photographs have a credibility and lack of bias that cannot be matched by other mediums, and it is this aspect of photographs which makes them essential to the study of American history.
During the Civil War Matthew Brady, who owned a photo studio where he photographed portraits of many historical figures, decided to break out of the studio and record the history of the war. He organized a staff of photographers and together they began making images on battlefields across the nation.[1]
Although Brady and his team did not cover a lot of battlefield action (mainly because cameras of the time were large and heavy, so this would have been very dangerous), they did photograph a lot of the action behind the lines, including the daily life of soldiers and the casualties of the war.[2]
In 1862, Brady created a gallery of images in New York titled “The Dead of Antietam,” which included many photographs of dead soldiers on the battlefield. His photographs documented the carnage of the war and opened many people’s eyes to the bloodshed of the war. The New York Times said that “Mr. Brady has done something to bring home to us the terrible reality and earnestness of the war.”[3] This was one of the first times that photography was used in a journalistic way to show what words could not adequately describe. Not only were these images eye-opening to people who saw them at the time, but they are also now used to study the war.
Although the cliché phrase “a picture is worth a thousand words” may not be exactly accurate, we can learn a lot from one photograph. For example, we can see the dress of the men in the photographs, see the weapons that were being used, learn something about the conditions of the battlefield, etc. Additionally, with few exceptions, we can assume that these photographs represent the situation accurately. For example, when one does academic research, it is necessary to cite multiple sources. When looking at primary documents, a white southerner will most likely tell the story of the Civil War much differently than a black slave. However, (although the photographer does choose what they include or do not include in their photographs and what events they go to, which does intuitively create some bias) a photograph shows exactly what happened. Viewpoint discrimination is much less likely; one sees exactly what went on. Because of the polarized viewpoints that were commonplace during the Civil War, this lack of viewpoint discrimination is why photographs have proven so valuable for the study of this conflict and would remain valuable throughout the study of domestic conflicts in the United States.
It can be argued that much of the history of the United States, especially before the Civil Rights Movement, was written by white males who wished to portray themselves in a good light. Lynchings and race riots were common in this time period and were never reported to their full extent. However, one photograph of a white mob surrounding a black man hanging from tree can quickly give historians and students insight into some of the atrocities that happened at the time. Additionally, images of destruction, such as an entire black community burned to the ground as it happened in the Tulsa Race Riots, cannot be disputed.
Another example of the photographs’ ability to display unbiased reality being critical for the study of a tumultuous time in the United States is the study of the Civil Rights Movement. During this time, blacks were often subject to violence by police, people that should have been protecting them. However, many understood how important it was to have these tragedies seen throughout the nation, and because of this, there is documentation of the violence and discrimination that went on during this era.
However, the Civil Rights Movement is also a reminder that photographs, although inherently more neutral than most other journalistic work, are not completely free from bias. The human element involved in the making of a photograph opens this medium up to bias. Photographers, regardless of how objective they try to be, choose what to photograph and what not to photograph. They also choose which pictures they send out to news services. For example, groups such as the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (S.N.C.C.) commissioned photographers to photograph events. S.N.C.C. would then print and caption the photos and send them to news outlets. Civil Rights groups also notified photographers in advance to make sure their events were covered.[4]
Although these photographs have proven invaluable in recounting the Civil Rights Movement, it is necessary to remember that even photographs, capturing moments that actually did occur, can represent that situation inaccurately. For example, what if a situation occurred during the Civil Rights Movement in which two photographers came across a situation where a white police officer was acting violently toward a black man, and then the black man reacted in self-defense by striking the police officer? Both photographers took photos of the situation rapidly and captured both the white officer striking the black man and the black man striking the officer. The photographers’ own viewpoints and ethics would determine which photographs they would publish. Taking a photograph is just as much of an editorial decision as choosing which articles to run in a newspaper.
However, despite this opening for partiality, a photograph still remains one of the most important mediums for the study of history. Julian Cox, the curator of photography at the High Museum of Art, said, “The importance of photography could not be overstated in raising public awareness of events.”[5] Clearly, the photographs were important at the time. They helped others know what was going on and see the travesties that were taking place right in their backyards. However, just because many of those events no longer happen does not mean those photographs have lost importance. They will forever be used to study the Civil Rights Movement and can help provide an immediate understanding of some of the atrocities that occurred during that time period. This is one of the reasons that the High Museum recently held an exhibit, titled “Road to Freedom: Photographs of the Civil Rights Movement, 1956-1968,” that displayed 150 images from the Civil Rights Movement.[6] These images will not allow Americans to forget what many worked so hard to accomplish.
Photography is also very important to the study of the Vietnam War. Most importantly, the Vietnam War is one of the few times in the history of the United States that photographs from a war were not heavily censored. Because of this, a wide variety of photographs that showed all sides of the war were published.
For example, Malcolm Browne photographed a monk lighting himself on fire in protest of the treatment of Buddhists in South Vietnam in 1963, Eddie Adams photographed a South Vietnamese chief of national police executing a suspected Viet Cong guerrilla prisoner in 1968, and Nick Ut photographed a young, nude girl running away from a napalm explosion in terror and agony in 1972.[7] All of these photographs were published and displayed the brutal reality of war that many had never seen before. These photos contributed to growing public opinion against the war, which continued to increase until 1973 when the last of the U.S. troops were pulled out of Vietnam.[8]
When viewers see these photographs, they are seeing a moment in history captured exactly as it took place, and they are allowed to interpret that moment of history for themselves. No longer do they question if an event happened, such as a Viet Cong being executed at point-blank range, or napalm being dropped on women and children; a photograph allows them to move past their questioning of reality and begin to question why a specific event happened and what is its significance, questions that lend to the true meaning of studying history.
As time moves forward, photographs will continue to impact how we study history. Now the majority of Americans own a camera or at least a camera phone, and the photographs they take will be studied in the future. Not all Americans write, but nearly all of them take photographs. Because of this, it will continue to get easier to get an average American’s perspective. If a historian of the future wants to know more about fashion, for instance, they will go back through photographs on Flickr, a photo sharing website. Or perhaps that same historian wishes to know more about a specific event or place; they can search Flickr’s images using the tags that users have added to their photographs.[9]
Clearly, photographs are a great way to study the history of the United States. It is hard to imagine a history survey course being taught without the visual aid of photographs. They give us a realistic glimpse into time period we are studying and allow us to see and feel the emotions that Americans felt in the past. The ability of photographs to accurately depict a situation from the past and to then allow others to analyze this situation and its effect on our country is a powerful tool, one that will continue to have an impact on our nation and allow us to better study our past in the future.
1.“Matthew B. Brady,” The Library of Congress, Civil War Photographs, accessed June 22, 2011, http://memory.loc.gov/ammem/cwphtml/cwbrady.html
2. Ibid.
3. “How photography brought home the Civil War,” MSNBC.com, accessed June 24, 2011, http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/42541705/ns/technology_and_science-science/t/how-photography-brought-home-civil-war/
4. “Civil Rights Battles, in Black and White,” The New York Times, last modified March 26, 2010, http://lens.blogs.nytimes.com/2010/03/26/archive-14/
5. “Civil Rights Battles, in Black and White.”
6. Ibid.
7. Kenneth Kobre and Betsy Brill, Photojournalism: the Professionals’ Approach, (Amsterdam: Focal, 2008), 447-49.
8. Ibid.
9. “Flickr of idea on a gaming project led to photo website,” USATODAY.com, accessed July 17, 2011, http://www.usatoday.com/tech/products/2006-02-27-flickr_x.htm
iPhone photographs in the New York Times
A photo from Damon Winter's "A Grunt's Life" taken on an iPhone. Photo by Damon Winter, Courtesy of the New York Times.
In 2010, Damon Winter, a photographer for the New York Times, created a photo story out of images made on his iPhone. The story, “A Grunt’s Life,” was published on the New York Times website and photos from the story, taken on Winter’s iPhone, were published on the front page of the New York Times. The story also won third place in the feature picture story category of the Pictures of the Year International competition.
Winter said he used the phone to take pictures because it was “discreet and casual and unintimidating,” which allowed him to capture intimate moments that would have been impossible with a large, professional camera.
Winter’s use of the iPhone to create images that were published on the front page of a leading newspaper not only demonstrated far photography has come, but also how any camera can be used to make a meaningful, powerful image.
The New York Times. “Through My Eyes, Not Hipstamatic’s.” Accessed July 17, 2011. http://lens.blogs.nytimes.com/2011/02/11/through-my-eye-not-hipstamatics/
Flickr and Facebook Launch
In 2004, two websites that would forever change how consumers share photographs were launched, Flickr and Facebook. In 2005, Facebook introduced the Photos application to their website. This allowed users to upload photos for all of their “friends” to see. It also allowed users to “tag” their friends in those photos, so that they could be sure their friends would see them.
Flickr, was started not as a social-networking site, but strictly as a photo-sharing website. However, it implemented “tagging” as well. By allowing users to tag photos with certain keywords, this made photographs searchable. Users could also upload photographs to Flickr and then share the URL with friends or family so that they could see their pictures.
The combination of Flickr and Facebook greatly reduced the need for the average American to print their photos. Now they could take a picture on their digital camera, upload it to their computer, and share it with their friends and family over the Internet. This revolutionized how photographs would be used in shared and used in the digital era.
Facebook. “Timeline.” Accessed July 17, 2011. https://www.facebook.com/press/info.php?timeline
USATODAY.com. “Flickr of idea on a gaming project led to photo website.” Accessed July 17, 2011. http://www.usatoday.com/tech/products/2006-02-27-flickr_x.htm
Embedded Journalism
In 2003, with start of the war in Iraq, the U.S. military started a policy of “embedding” journalist, including photojournalist, in military battalions. With this program, journalists who wish to cover the war and travel with the American military could sign a contract with the military, which includes restrictions on what they can write about and what photographs they can transmit, and then be allowed to travel with a battalion.
This program allowed many journalists safer front-line access than going alone, however, because of the restrictions placed in the contracts, the same types of images coming from embedded photojournalists do not show many of the brutalities of war that were shown by photojournalists in Vietnam.
This program, which is viewed by many as a sly way for the government to censor the photographs and coverage of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, is controversial but does allow many to see a slice of war that they otherwise may not see.
PBS.org. “NewsHour Extra: Pros and Cons of Embedded Journalism.” Accessed July 17, 2011. http://www.pbs.org/newshour/extra/features/jan-june03/embed_3-27.html
University of Nebraska-Lincoln, College of Journalism and Mass Communication. “Embedded Journalism: The Good – and Bad.” Accessed July 17, 2011. http://journalism.unl.edu/cojmc/alumni/jnews/0304_winter/komarow.shtml
The Nikon D1 and Newspapers Transition to Digital
The Nikon D1.
In 1999, Nikon released the Nikon D1, which was the first completely integrated digital single lens reflex camera. It had a 2.74 megapixel sensor and cost about $6,000. This camera had the same lens mount as Nikons film cameras, allowing photographers to use their old lenses on the new body.
The introduction of the Nikon would start the transition of photojournalists and newspapers from film to digital, which would have an enormous impact on the industry. Now photojournalists could take an image and transmit it almost immediately to their editor, where it could be published. Additionally, with the transition to digital, photographers would no longer have to buy film, allowing them to shoot as many pictures as they wished, with no extra cost.
Practical Photography Tips. “Digital Photography Timeline Part 2–1990s.” Accessed July 17, 2011. http://www.practicalphotographytips.com/digital-photography-timeline.html#axzz1SIv0dqrt
The First Digital Cameras
The Dycam Model 1, the first digital camera available to American consumers.
In 1990, the first digital camera that was commercially available to American consumers was invented, the Dycam Model 1. This camera was only able to capture images in black and white with a resolution of 0.09 megapixels. In other words, for nearly $1,000, one could own a camera that could produce a 1 ¼ inch by ¾ inch photo. However, this camera was able to transfer photographs directly to a computer, which would prove extremely valuable over time.
In 1991, the Kodak DCS-100 was introduced. At a price of $13,000, it was targeted at professional photojournalists. The Kodak DCS-100 was actually a digital sensor that could be attached to a Nikon F3 SLR film camera. This digital sensor took the place of the film allowing images to be recorded electronically and then stored on the unit’s hard drive until being transferred to a computer.
The Kodak DCS-100, the first professional digital camera.
Although most photojournalists and newspapers did not switch from film to the Kodak DCS-100 digital camera, the camera did show the possibilities of the future. Throughout the 1990s, most newspapers began transitioning to digital workflows. Although most pictures were still be taken on film, the negatives would then be scanned into a computer where editors would work with the digital files until the entire paper was printed.
Cheap Shooter. “Oh How Far We’ve Come: A look back at digital camera history.” Accessed July 17, 2011. http://www.cheapshooter.com/2007/08/30/oh-how-far-weve-come-a-look-back-at-digital-camera-history/
Digicam History. “1990s.” Accessed July 17, 2011. http://www.digicamhistory.com/1990.html
Macworld. “Looking back at 35 years of the digital camera.” Accessed July 17, 2011. http://www.macworld.com/article/156514/2011/01/35yearsofdigitalcameras.html
Photoshop
The Photoshop icon.
In 1990, Photoshop 1.0 was released. A digital image editing software, Photoshop allowed photographers to use computers to edit their photographs. Photoshop enabled photographers to make adjustments that would have taken much longer in a darkroom, in a few simple clicks. These edits could also be undone.
Although Photoshop, or a similar digital image editing software, has became a necessary tool for most photographers today, it has also led to huge ethics debate amongst photojournalist. Photoshop wasn’t necessarily required to manipulate images; this practice began much earlier than it’s release. For example, in the 1920s the Evening Graphic used over 20 photographs, cut and pasted together by hand, to recreate an image from a trial. In 1982, National Geographic moved the great pyramids of Giza in a photograph so that it could be used on cover. However, the invention of Photoshop made this sort of digital manipulation much easier. Now, photographers could even manipulate photographs on their computers before sending them to their editors.
Photoshop would continue to change photography from the 1990s until present. It has continued to redefine ethics of photojournalists as well as make the impossible possible with the help of digital manipulation.
Computer Arts. “The history of Photoshop.” Accessed July 17, 2011. http://www.computerarts.co.uk/in_depth/features/the_history_of_photoshop
Kobre, Kenneth, and Betsy Brill. Photojournalism: the Professionals’ Approach. Amsterdam: Focal, 2008. Print.
The Vietnam War
Brigadier General Nguyen Ngoc Loan, police chief of Saigon, executes a Viet Cong suspect. Photo by Eddie Adams, Courtesy of Wide World Photos.
A Buddhist monk burn himself in protest of the treatment of Buddhists in South Vietnam. Photo by Malcolm Browne, Courtesy of the Associated Press.
A 9-year-old girl runs away from a napalm explosives dropped by American bombers in Vietnam. Photo by Nick Ut, Courtesy of the Associated Press.
A young woman grieving over the body of Kent State student that had been killed when the National Guard opened fire on students at the campus who were protesting the invasion of Cambodia. Photo by John Filo, Courtesy of John Filo.
Media coverage was a huge part of the Vietnam War, and many attribute photographs from the War is the main cause of changing the public opinion of it. With the popularity of television growing and many newscasts coming from Vietnam, the ability of the photograph to freeze a decisive moment and have that image burned in the publics mind contributed to their importance during the war.
Three main photographs from the war that attributed with changing American’s public opinion are Malcom Browne’s photograph of a monk’s self-immolation in protest of the treatment of Buddhists in South Vietnam, Eddie Adams photograph of South Vietnamese chief of national police executing a suspected Viet Cong guerrilla prisoner, and Nick Ut’s photograph of a young, nude girl running away from a napalm explosion in terror and agony.
These photographs displayed the brutal reality of the war that many had never seen before. They were widely published and ingrained in the publics mind.
Additionally, photographs from the home front, such as John Filo’s photograph of a young woman grieving over the body of Kent State student that had been killed when the National Guard opened fire on students at the campus who were protesting the invasion of Cambodia, helped persuade the public against the war.
Kobre, Kenneth, and Betsy Brill. Photojournalism: the Professionals’ Approach, 447-49. Amsterdam: Focal, 2008. Print.
The Instant Camera
The Polaroid Model 95, the first instant camera. Courtesy of Polaroid.
In 1944, Edwin Land, an employee of Polaroid was taking pictures when his daughter asked why she couldn’t see the pictures right after he had taken them. Land began researching instant film and in 1948 the first instant camera became available to the public.
The camera, the Polaroid Model 95 (named due to its $95 price), was widely popular and sold out quickly in many stores. This new invention increased the popularity of photography with everyday Americans because now they could take a picture and see the results within minutes.
In 1963, the first color instant film became available and further increased popularity. This was the beginning of the popular Polaroid camera that would remain successful for several decades.
Save Polaroid. “History.” Accessed July 11, 2011. http://www.savepolaroid.com/history/
The First Photo Story
A photograph of the first photo story. The group of pictures, taken by W. Eugene Smith for life magazine, told the story of a country doctor's daily life. Photograph by W. Eugene Smith, Courtesy of LIFE.
In 1948, W. Eugene Smith photographed what would become known as the first photo story. In his story, Country Doctor, Smith documented the daily life of rural physician at work. This marked the first time that photographs were used to tell a complete story, not just show a scene from an event or an essay of a place.
Howard Chapnick. Truth Needs No Ally, 31-31. Columbia, Missouri: University of Missouri Press, 1994. Print.
The History of Photography 