Research for Documentary Photography

Henri Cartier-Bresson:

This image is photographed by Henri Cartier-Bresson. He has captured the cyclist in the top left corner of the 'rule of thirds.' This captures the 'decisive moment', as if this image was photographed a second later, or earlier, then the photographer would not have got the same image. I like this image as the stairs act as a 'leading line' taking you downwards. In addition, the curve of the pavement also acts as a 'leading line'.

I like this image as Henri Cartier- Bresson has captured another 'decisive moment' as this image could not be recaptured again. The lines of the stairs are curved, which takes your eye on a journey downwards. The rushing pidgins contrast the empty, calm, quiet stair way. Furthermore, this image appears to be taken in a tube station, which are usually busy (especially in London), therefore it leads us to question why it is not busy…

This image interests me as the black, peeling paint appears almost as blood. In addition with this the boys almost pain stricken face complies with this, as it almost appears as though he has been shot? This image interests me further as it also it makes you question why only the bottom half of the wall has peeing paint? This image is interesting as a whole as it causes many questions to arise in the observers head. 






Richard Billingham:

This image is extremely  private as it's captured in their home, whilst the individuals are sharing an intimate moment. Richard Billingham therefore must have had a trust built allowing him to photograph these types of images. I like the saturation of the colours in the image, the vast amount of colours make the image appear busy and chaotic. 

This image interests me as the individual photographed is in a bright blue robe, this is the main focus of the image as the background is dark, with cluttered objects in the background, whilst the foreground is white. consequently, it's evident how the blue robe jumps out in-between the dark background, and white foreground. It's evident from this image that the individual does not live in a luxurious house, instead he perhaps may habitat in a council house. This is deducted from the cluttered surfaces in the background, which indicate a lack of pride and care in the house. Furthermore, this lack of care for the house may reflect it's owners lack of care for themselves- again this is highlighted in the fact the individual is smoking, despite obvious health repercussions. 







Richard Billingham is extremely different from Henri Cartier-Bresson. Henri's images are all in black and white, and all obtain a decisive moment. Whereas Richard's photographs are highly saturated and busy with colour. Richard's images are more private and intimate than Henri's, due to Henri's being photographed in public, in contrast to Richard's ones which are photographed in a home, with the same individuals. I prefer Richard's images to Henri's due to the colour as i believe it makes the image more interesting, also the intimacy we see in Richard's images is rare. 


Sally Mann:

In this image i believe Sally is challenging gender stereotypes. The young boy in the image appears to have a fluffy scarf around him, this would primarily be seen as a girls toy, however here we can picture it on a boy. Consequently, Sally may have been trying to portray how both boys and girls don't have 'set toys' they have to play with. In addition the boy appears to have drawing all over him, this could be interpreted as lipstick, therefore we can infer he was playing with make-up; this contrasts typical, generic gender roles as boys are meant to enjoy sport, and getting dirty- not make-up. 

This photograph is again challenging gender roles. The young girl is holding what appears to be a cigarette, however this is a candy stick sweet. This allows us to understand how our eyes can trick us. The girl appears masculine to an extent in this image, she is standing hunched over, not tall and poised, as a woman is portrayed. Furthermore, the girls expression on her face is bleak, portraying attitude. This image is one of my favourites, as the young girls hair is messy, which is seen as more of a masculine trait, as girls tend to be clean.

In this image the man appears as though he is protecting the young girls, i believe they all may be naked in the image as they're showing how they are exposed, with no front or fabrication. I admire how the background is blurred, allowing the viewer to fundamentally focus on the man, and the two girls. In addition, the image being black and white adds to the weariness of the image- as you do not know why they're in the forest?, and why they have no clothes on? Moreover, the black and white effect allows you to focus easier on the main aspect of the image (the people), rather than any surrounding objects.