Defining a True Photographic Essay -- Photography Photograph Essays

The â€Å"True† Photographic Essay We live in a world bombarded by photographs. Whether it is advertisements, news, art, fashion, or propaganda, photographs are widely considered the most powerful form of representation. However, not all collections of photographs can be given the title of a â€Å"true† photographic essay. Even visual rhetoric theorists stipulate various requisites for this name. So then†¦what is a â€Å"true† photographic essay? To rightfully earn this title, the photos need to be accompanied by a text. But not just any text. Photo theorist W.J.T. Mitchell agrees with writer James Agee that co-equality is a central formal requirement for the photographic essay (290). The first requirement for the true photo-essay is that there needs to be a â€Å"balance† between the text and the visual in power, reference, and layout design. In terms of power, neither the text nor the visual can dominate the other. For example, an effective photographic essay would not be a combination of photos taken by Dorothea Lange with a text written by a junior high school student. Dorothea Lange’s professionalism, developed through a process of technical education, hands-on experience, and multifaceted influences, drastically exceeds the writings of a young student, whose only technical education has been a Keyboarding class, whose hands-on experiences have been the English teacher’s book reports, and whos e multifaceted influences have been the pressures of his adolescent cohorts. Although this example is a rather extreme case, it is used to explain that if either the text or the visual overpowers the other, the imbalance denies it the title of a â€Å"true† photographic essay. Moreover, the same is true when speaking of reference. In several b... ...hat the text can do that the visual could never do, and vice versa, but their collaboration stimulate question and interpretation, creating a dialogue in the viewer’s mind. There is power in the union of the text and the visual. Nonetheless, we live in a high-speed, technological age where time equals money, and taking the time to read is expensive. So we must adapt. For photo-essays to be effective in the contemporary world, the text and the visual have to balance power, reference, and design. They have to be able to stand independently, and at the end collaborate in perfect synergy to create the â€Å"true† photographic essay. Works Cited Blakesley, David, Collin Brooke. â€Å"Visual Rhetoric.† Enculturation 3:2 (2001): 2-4. Mitchell, W.J. Thomas. Picture Theory: Essays on Verbal and Visual Representation. Chicago: The University of Chicago Press, 1994.