How much of what we see in a photograph is real?
What do you feel are the “truthful” qualities of photography?
Share some of your experiences with photography and how it has impacted your life.
Part II: View Bill Viola, The Reflecting Pool
and share your thoughts with the class
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I love physics and I'm very much interested in the optics aspect of physics as well. We see objects because the lights reflect back from the object that is exposed to light. If there is not a presence of light then we would not see anything as the light from the object would not reflect back to our eyes. The black color that we perceive are all the objects that would absorb the light. Isn't this interesting? I feel it very much interesting and I love the fact that Artist use this fact when they create their Art.
One of the forms of the visual Art is photography which literally means "light writing" or "light drawing" (Frank, 121). We use the light reflecting back from the form that an artist thinks has a content and certain subject matter to record it in the forms of a photograph which is basically a carbon copy of the Art that an artist sees.
The fact that it is almost a carbon copy of the subject matter and it can be captured using camera, which can be saved in numerous quantity, the importance of photography is vital in today's world where everyone can be an artist and, share their art and information to the rest of the world. As Edwin Land said, "Photography can teach people to look, to feel, to remember in a way that they didn't know they could" (Frank, 121), I think it has changed the way we look our world today and I can't imagine the world without photography. Photography has become a way of life for most of us and those individuals who think it hasn't been then they are wrong. They have taken pictures or at least been a part of a photography - may be when they get their driver's license!
Photography is not only important to Art but it is equally important for any other fields as well. Science, social change, politics, business and almost all the field has relied on photography to carry message or a medium to further develop the particular field since its development. I can't imagine the world without photographs as it has become an integral part of our culture. Even then, if I have to imagine world without photography then it would be dull and separated as countries, area and distance.
Reality is different for different individuals. The form that is seen in the photography can be manipulated. For instance, the color, contrast, hue of the form in the picture can be edited with modern software application that the photographers may use. This may change the reality and the perception of reality by the viewers of the picture. But, the content and subject matter may stay same and it may just enhance the reality that the artist wants to portrait. But, if an artist manipulate the whole picture to give different content and subject matter from the one that he/she took the picture of, then; yes! the objects in the photograph may disregard the reality. But, basic trend is that the pictures would never lie and speak for itself.
One of the truthful qualities of photography should definitely be its ability to capture events, arts and subject without manipulating the content. A true photographer just recognizes the art and uses the camera to capture as it is. Now, it is his art to capture it in a way he would wanted others to view it rather than manipulating the content after he takes the picture. Photography would always be used as a medium to capture moments of life to share.
I always feel good to see the broad aspect of everything even if it's very minute. I never get tired to see a full moon, stars, sky and clouds. In 2008, everyone was sleeping in the jet plane but I was on my own world communicating with infinite sky and clouds and the broader view of the lives down below. Now, I realize that all I was observing and feeling was an Art and I wanted to capture it. I'm enjoying my piece of art now. If I wouldn't have captured it that time then I couldn't recall what I felt as much as I do now!
To be true, I was smiling when I first saw the video Bill Viola, The Reflecting Pool. It didn't grab my attention which would have if I were, may be, a 10 year old. This is because I know exactly what is happening out there in the video.
A video is basically a combination of many images that work together in time (Frank, 134) We can manipulate the sequence of these pictures before or after the actual sequence to create the moving image which is the video. We use the frame to edit the images in the video.
We can notice that when the man is standing by the pool and when he is up in the air, the frame or the video changed from light contrast to a dark. Then, slowly the man in the air tends to disappear in the consecutive frame which is made lighter and lighter to match the color of the light green color of the leaves of the tree. Then, the reflection of people in the pool without them actually present is also manipulated very smartly.
For myself, this is not at art. I don't see any message on this piece of video. It may be for other individual or I may find an Art in to it by looking at it more closely. I saw the movie called " Green Lantern" today and I saw infinite number of Arts on this movie. I would consider it as an Art not the video by Bill Viola, The Reflecting Pool!
Works Cited:
Frank, Patrick. Prebles' Artforms. Tenth ed. Upper Saddle River: Prentice Hall, 2011. Web. 4 June 2011
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