Project Proposal

Through the Looking Glass: Self Through Reflections

It’s almost human nature to look into any reflective surface as people walk by. I know I catch myself looking at my reflection in store windows, shinny surfaces, even at my job in the freezer window every time I pass.  I don’t understand why we have this weird obsession with looking at ourselves.  Is it because we want to make sure our hair or our makeup isn’t out of place? Or is it just because we’re narcissistic?

The idea of narcissism dates back to Greek Mythology and the story of Narcissus.  He was led to a pool where he saw his reflection.  He was so memorized by his beauty that he fell in love.  He ended up dying at the pool because he was unable to leave his image in the water.  This is an extreme case obviously but still us humans do a similar thing even if it is just a glance for a brief second.

I’m going to be doing my project on reflections of myself in these little “mirrors” that I look at myself in daily. Whenever I catch myself looking in a window or a shiny object and remember to I’m going to take a photo of the reflection that I was seeing in it.  I wanted to do this because I just want to see all the different places where my narcissism begins to show.  By taking these photos I can see what is happening in the reflection around me too.  Usually I only focus on myself and pass by but it will be interesting to see what the rest of the world is doing around me as they are also reflected in the image.

I took a couple photos of myself in reflective images in the past that have always stuck out to me and I’ve never forgotten about so I’m going to be adding those to the selections just to show what originally got me started on the idea.  These photos were the main reason that I chose to explore this topic more thoroughly.  However, the majority of the photos are going to be new from the beginning of my time in Dublin until the end of the semester when the project is due.  From all of those I will sort out and pick the best looking representations of what I’m trying to show in my portfolio.

Reflection photo I took that influenced me to photograph this topic

I’ve decided to photograph only reflections of myself because this way maybe I’ll learn the rational behind why I glance at my reflection so often everywhere I can.   I also think that it would be a lot harder to get good reflections of other people unless you ask them if you can take it.  But the downside of asking them if you can take it is you can’t really get a natural photo.  They would try to act unfazed by the camera but would still have a different pose than if you would catch them in the act without them knowing.

As for the look of these photos I always like to edit photos a little bit because I think there’s always something you can do to make a photo look better than the original print. However for most of these reflection photos I want to edit them to look more like a dream-like photograph or like mystical.  Just to kind of go along with the idea that the mirror shows a different image to every person and at every moment which makes it seem like it’s another world inside the reflective surface.  By editing my photos the way I plan it will add to this idea of a different world being seen in these mirrors each time they’re looked into.  Once all these photos are taken and put together its going to be interesting to see what patterns arise and what things are different in each and how the entire look has changed over time.

James Nachtwey Documentary Questions

1.) What kind of personality do you think photojournalists like James have? What kind of person do you think can do a job like that?

To be able to do such a emotionally taxing job like Nachtwey does you have to try to be emotionally detached but also to be able to empathize at times.  One of the people in the film said that to do what he does you can't be devoted to two things you have to kind of be single-minded and a loner that way nothing holds you back from getting the best work.  He is able to stay focused in the field but when he has to take photos of people he is able to show empathy towards them, enough so that they are accepting that he is there documenting the tragedy that occurred in their life.  It's something that you have to prepare yourself for subconsciously to be able to get through.

2.) What do you think of his approach of photographing people?

At first I was shocked at the fact that he was getting right up in the faces of these people who had lost everything or loved ones and snapping photos.  But then I saw how great these photos would turn out and understood that to take a shot like that you would have to do that.  None of the people seemed to mind that he was there, it was almost as if he was a ghost because they acted so natural and didn't even notice him.  After he said that people accepted him because it gives them a voice and shows the rest of the world what they're going through and the right and wrong, I was a lot more okay with his technique.

3.) What kind of subjects does Stem Magazine cover?

Stem magazine covers real new stories and puts the reader right in the action where James is.  It covers the tragedies from wars that are happening in the world. 

4.) What conflicts did he cover in the film?

Two of the biggest conflicts that stood out in the film were from Rwanda and the train-track segment.  James said Rwanda was the most intense war he'd seen.  He didn't understand how people could have such fear and hatred towards each other and how they could harm each other like that.  After that war ended the losing side spread out to nearby countries and soon after there was a cholera epidemic which James also covered.  He said that he was likely taking pictures of people dying from the disease who just a few years earlier he had taken pictures of killing people in gruesome ways.

Another story that stood out was the one he covered at the train-tracks.  I don't remember where exactly it was but people would come in from the countryside to try to make a better living for their family in the city.  They would build houses out of boxes and other things they could find and live rent free by the rail-road tracks.  One of the men he covered was missing a leg and an arm from a drunken night getting hit by a train.  Despite his disabilities he still cared very much for his kids and went off to work everyday.  These people lived in dangerous situations but they worked so hard for their families they cared so much about which was very moving.

5.) What pictures ended up being used?

The most dramatic pictures are always the ones that end up being used.

6.)Why did he become a war photographer?

He made the decision to become a war photographer in the early 70’s when he was in Vietnam because he was witnessing history and through photography you could document it.  It was dangerous but also adventure and you got to feel peoples’ emotions.    Photographers tell a different story than what political and military leaders tell and he wanted to tell the truth.

Robert Capa Photos

Robert Capa: “If your photographs aren’t good enough, you’re not close enough.”

            Picture post introduced Robert Capa as the “Greatest War photographer in the world,” despite the fact that he hated war.  He was born in Budapest in 1913 as Andre Friendmann to Jewish parents.  He studied in Berlin until he was driven out by the threat of the Nazis which led to him settling  in Paris in 1933.

            With the help of photojournalist and his girlfriend Herda Taro he invented the famous American photographer we know as Robert Capa and sold his prints under that name.

            He began covering the wars in 1936.  He covered the Spanish Civil war and the second world war.  He was there for D-Day landing, the liberation of Paris and the Battle of the Bulge.  In 1954 after he said he had quit war photography he went back one last time for an assignment in Indochina.  Sadly while there he stepped on a landmine and was killed.  However his legacy lives on through his amazing photos some of which are the only photos available of certain events.

           

Liberation of Paris

American in Fighter Plane

Parachutist Preparing to Board the Plane

Photoshop work

Original

Black and White Version

Brian Original

Brian Black and White

Two Girls Original

Two Girls Selective Color

Fish Original

Fish Cropped and Turned

Sea Bird Original

Sea Bird Fresco

Sea Birds Paint Daubs, Spatter and Dark Strokes

Sea Bird Spatter and Accented Edges