task 1 · task 1 tomasz gudzowaty tomasz gudzowaty born in warsaw, poland on 19th september 1971....

Task 1 For this task, I will be talking about well-known, professional photographs. I have chosen

who are Robert Capa, Tomasz Gudziowaty, Steve McCurry and Yousuf Karsh. I have picked 2

of their pieces of work (Per Photographer) and will discuss photographic category, purpose,

image analysis and meaning.

Robert Capa

Robert Capa was born in Budapest, Hungary on 22nd October 1913. He was a war

photographer and a journalist. He has captured many great events of the first half of 20th

Century such as Spanish civil war, Chinese resistance to Japan, invasion of Sicily, D-day, Post-

war Russia and few more to name. Last combat photography adventure he went to was First

Indochina war in North Vietnam from which he unfortunately didn’t come back from. On

May 25th of 1954 he stepped on a landmine and was killed.

Germany Near Wesel

March 24th, 1945

American paratroopers landing in

Germany.

Genre: Journalism, war, landscape.

Purpose: History event

documentation.

Composition: The rule of Two thirds

can be seen in the image – The

ground finishes around bottom

lines. The vintage point is the height

of a normal man standing.

Depth of field: Wide depth of field.

Paratroopers in the sky are eye

catching.

Lightning: Soft natural light, around

morning time.

Pattern/Tonal range: Mid-Tones

with low contrast and textures.

Narrative: The Photograph has

been taken to show American

troops fighting the Nazi Germany.

To show the progress and victory

beaning near. The photograph is

spectacular as most of the image is

sky - A sky filled with landing

soldiers in the biggest military

conflict of the mankind.

Meaning: The picture conveys happy and proud

emotions of the progress Allies did toward the

further we have today rather than scary future

under Nazi rule.

Task 1 Paris, Place de l'Hôtel de Ville

August 26th, 1944


Purpose: History event documentation.

Composition: The rule of Two thirds can

be seen in the image – The crowd is in the

middle row. The vintage point is the height

of a normal man standing.

Depth of field: Wide depth of field. The

man standing up in middle is eye catching.

Lightning: Soft natural light, around

midday.

Pattern/Tonal range: Good tonal range

with visible contrast.

Narrative: When snipers in buildings

overlooking the Place de l'Hôtel de Ville

opened fire on the triumphal parade, the

panicked crowd fell to the pavement.

Meaning: This picture shows both

happiness and sadness. People of Paris

went out to streets to celebrate their

freedom and rescue from under the Nazi

rule yet the crowd’s reaction to the

sniper’s shots shows how truly horrified

they were and what they must have been

through.

Task 1 Tomasz Gudzowaty

Tomasz Gudzowaty born in Warsaw, Poland on 19th September 1971. He is a documentary

film maker, portrait and art photographer. He has become known worldwide and

recognised after numerous publication and winning awards. From 90’s he has been traveling

the world and has been over to 100 countries. His break through cam in 1999 after winning

a First Prize in Nature-singles category in the World Press Photo competition. He has proven

to be a good photographer by winning two more awards in nature photography. After year

2000 he has switched to sports photography. In 2003 he was among the winners for his

photoshoot story about Gongfu monks of Shaolin Temple in China. In 2008 he stitched back

to nature photography. He has been progressing with his photography work and been

awarded new awards. Today he is the most recognised Polish photographer of the 21st

century.

Shaolin temple, China – Year 2003

Genre: Journalism, sports, religion.

Purpose: Travel, Buddhist culture.


be seen in the image - Hand and bricks are

in the middle box. The column bricks are

in bottom left and right boxes. The monks

face is top right box. Picture has low

vintage point.


bricks breaking in half are eye catching.

Lightning: Hard light, natural in day time.

Pattern/Tonal range: Good tones with

high contrast.

Narrative: Buddhist monk in training and

improving his physical strength through

exercise. There is a lot of meaning about

this picture but what is really special about

it, is that it seems to freeze the time. The

bricks have broken in half, there are

particles lifting from the brick. The monk’s

face expression and the white and black

effect make the picture truly amazing.

Meaning: Training for a monk is hard and

takes a life time. Monks believe that no

matter how good you are you can always

be better. Being able to destroy bricks

with hand shows a true dedication to the

religion and the training – It’s almost like a

sport with some spiritual training.

Task 1

Genre: Journalism, sports, religion.

Purpose: Travel, Buddhist culture.


be seen in the image – Containers with

water are at bottom row. Monks are in

middle row. Background is most visible in

top row. This picture has an average man’s

height vantage point.


monks are easily visible and eye catching.

Lightning: Hard light, natural in day time.

Pattern/Tonal range: Good tones with

high contrast.

Narrative: In this image the Buddhist

monks are carrying out another one of

their daily training activities. By playing on

some sort of instrument – most likely a

drum. They create sound waves which

cause the water to lift of their containers.

The reason why this image is so breath

taking is because like in previous image it

gives effect of time being frozen as the

water particles are in the air.

Meaning: Buddhist training which lasts for

hours. While their training they strength

their physical strength and shape

spiritually.

Task 1 Steve McCurry

Steve McCurry is an American photographer born in Darby, United States on 24th February 1950. He has worked in photojournalism and editorial. He is very well known for a photograph of “Afghan girl” which has made an appearance of National Geographic’s magazine cover. He is a winner of many awards in field of photograph. One of most notable awards he received are Leica Hall of Fame Award, Hasselblad Master and Robert Capa Gold Medal for Best Photographic Reporting from Abroad. McCurry breaking point for his career was when he crossed the Pakistan border going to Afghanistan. He has done so by disguising in Afghani garb. Due to high border control, he left the border with rolls if films sewn inside his clothes which were later published by New York Times, TIME and Paris Match. McCurry has taken part in many armed conflicts and a journalist photographer. Some of those would include Iran-Iraq war, Lebanon Civil war, the Cambodian civil war, Afghan Civil war and few more to name. Steven McCurry is very well known for portrait photographs but also does take some landscape photographs which also are worth seeing.

Iraqi invasion of Kuwait 1990


Purpose: History event documentation.


be seen in the image – The ground takes

2/3 of an image. The vintage point is the

height of a normal man standing.


burnt tank and body.

Lightning: Soft natural light after sun set.

Pattern/Tonal range: Dark tones, with

low-medium contrast. A different pattern

between ground and tank metal sheets.

Narrative: This image shows the aftermath of Iraq invading Kuwait. The image is very powerful due to the remaining’s of a burnet human body left on a battlefield. In the back is a gun lying on a ground and a destroyed tank. Farther in the background can be seen two large fires leaving the whole sky lit above. The ground looks burnt as if a large fire has swept through the whole area destroying every ling thing that once lived here. The purpose of such images is to show what terrible things war does to people and its effect to civilians who live in the fighting zones.

Meaning: The picture conveys sad and

terrifying emotions. An act of killing is

horrible sin for a man to do. This picture

shows that how brutal war is and the

twisted, burned limbs, with a smoked tank

and fires on horizon make the place look

as a nightmare right from hell. This picture

sends a short message of how violence is

the very last option to resolve issues.

Task 1 Ladakh mountains, India

Genre: Journalism, nature, travel,

landscape.

Purpose: Geographic location photo-

presentation.


be seen in the image – the middle column

has a road with a man standing in the

middle of it. The mountains with the

desert almost meet in half row.


contrast between sand and snow.

Lightning: Soft natural light in afternoon

light.

Pattern/Tonal range: Mostly dark tones

with some light ones. Hight contrast. A

different shade between snow and sand.

Narrative: Landscape image of Ladakh

mountains in North India. Located near

the Great India desert. The Ladakh

mountains belong to the Himalayas

mountain range. A lonely man in a middle

of a road in a deserted place shows that

Ladakh mountains are a harsh place for

any leaving creature and not suitable for

life. Deserts are associated with heat and

snow is associated with cold. The image

showing both desert hills and snowy

mountains in the back create a natural

contrast and shows the magnificent

beauty of this place. The high mountain

peaks in the background compared to

little man show of how much of giant are

the Himalayas mountains.

Meaning: This picture is emotionless, how

every for some it may be surprised in to

wonder by the natural beauty.

Task 1 Yousuf Karsh

Yousuf Karsh was an America-Canadian photography artist, very well known for his portrait

photography. Born on 28th of December in Mardin, Turkey. Has died on 13th of July 2002 in

Boston, United States. Throughout his life and photographer career his has taken Portrait

pictures of iconic people – biggest personalities of 20th Century which have shaped the

world we know today. An absolute master of black and white portraits perfectly balancing

black and white and shadows with light in his pictures. He is called one of the greatest

portrait photographers of 20th Century. He has received an order of Canada. His most known

works are a portrait pictures of Winston Churchill and Marilyn Monroe. Many of his pictures

were used as cover pictures for magazines.

John F. Kennedy

1960

Genre: Journalism, history, fashion.

Purpose: Well-known public figure portrait

picture.


be seen in the image – Head of President

Kennedy is from middle tile to top right

tile. His hands are on left bottom tile.

Depth of field: Wide depth of field. Face

outline easy catches the eye.

Lightning: Hard light from fluorescent

lightning.

Pattern/Tonal range: High tonal range

with high contrast.

Narrative: Portrait of President F. John

shows him calm, in hands put together to

a prayer like position, looking to

something distanced. The shadows with

lights is perfectly balanced showing him in

the dark yet being able to see his features

perfectly.

Meaning: Pictures of well know public

figures are important. At this point now

we are writing history, however no one

knows their faith. Neither did anyone

know President Kennedy was going to be

assassinated. He was an important figure

and a good president about whom

younger generations learn about today.

Professional pictures as such not only

show us the people that may be gone -

They also show us the importance those

people had in their time.

Task 1 Audrey Hepburn

1956

Genre: Journalism, history, fashion.

Purpose: Well-known public figure portrait

picture.


be seen in the image – Audrey Hepburn

face is centred to the left middle and top

tiles. Her hair at the beck are located in

back-middle tile. The chin is roughly in the

middle leaving the body bottom half of

picture. This way a portrait picture is

perfectly balanced.

Depth of field: Wide depth of field. Face is

very eye catching.

Lightning: Soft light from fluorescent

lightning.

Pattern/Tonal range: Well highlighted

tones with high contrast and very well

outlined facial features.

Narrative: “The French novelist Colette

picked her out of a ballet lineup to play

Gigi on stage, and her career was

launched. When I photographed her in

Hollywood and commented on her quality

of sophisticated vulnerability, she told me

of her harrowing experiences during the

Second World War. Years later, in the

Kremlin, Chairman Brezhnev agreed to sit

for me only if I made him as beautiful as

Audrey Hepburn”. – Yousuf Karsh

Picture of Audrey Hepburn is a complete

opposite type of image to President

Kennedy. The background of image is

white yet the actress is perfectly balanced

out with dark hair and clothing creating it

one of Karsh’s selected work

masterpieces. Karsh managed to catch

beauty of actress in the best way possible.

Meaning: Documenting a well know

person at the time of their greatness in

career is a gesture of remembering them

once they’re gone. We all like to be seen

in the best way possible. Well taken

pictures of well know public figures will

make us imagen what were those people

like and make them easier to remember.

task 1 · task 1 tomasz gudzowaty tomasz gudzowaty born in warsaw, poland on 19th september 1971....

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