Critiquing Photography
My multimodal presentation examines the groundbreaking work of W. Eugene Smith, a pioneer of humanist photojournalism. Smith’s iconic photo essays—Country Doctor, Spanish Village, and Minamata—blend artistic mastery with social activism, using stark black-and-white imagery to expose injustice and celebrate resilience. His signature style—dramatic lighting, deep shadows, and cinematic framing—transforms documentary photography into emotional storytelling. From the exhaustion of a rural physician to the haunting suffering of mercury-poisoned villagers in Japan, Smith’s work forces viewers to confront raw humanity. Beyond magazines like Life, his legacy lives in galleries, books (Let Truth Be the Prejudice), and even film (Minamata, 2020). By merging aesthetic rigor with moral urgency, Smith redefined photography as both a mirror of truth and a hammer for change.
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Studying W. Eugene Smith shattered my assumptions about photography’s purpose. I once saw it as either artistic expression or factual reporting, but Smith proved it could be both. His Minamata series—especially Tomoko Uemura in Her Bath—showed me how a single image could condemn corporate greed while being visually transcendent. I also learned that great photographers immerse themselves in stories; Smith lived with subjects for months, turning empathy into art. Most importantly, his work taught me that photography isn’t just about capturing reality—it’s about challenging it. Now, I see the camera as a tool for witness and rebellion, just as Smith did.
Descriptive
My photograph is descriptive simply because it's just a jellyfish.
Explanatory
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My photograph is explanatory because of the sign explaining what the charcoal pit has at this resturant
Interpretive - By Rick Hulbert
This photograph by Rick Hulbert is interpretive because the viewer is left to decipher why it was taken in this particular manner, what meaning it has, and what purpose it serves.
Aesthetically Evaluative
My photograph is aesthetically evaluative because it shows the various nicely assorted and stacked cups
Ethically Evaluative
This photograph from Bettmann is ethically significant. As the Contemporary Arts Center of Cincinnati and its director were charged with obscenity for displaying Mapplethorpe's work, causing controversy.
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Theoretical
This photograph by Philippe Halsman is theoretical. it combines unrelated objects or elements to create dreamlike and thought-provoking compositions that question reality.
