Research Log

1. Henri Cartier-Bresson http://www.magnumphotos.com/C.aspx?VP3=CMS3&VF=MAGO31_10_VForm&ERID=24KL53ZMYN

Henri Cartier-Bresson is a street photographer who focused on the people of society at the time. For instance, a lot of his shoots include close-ups of strangers in the streets. Cartier-Bresson observed the lifestyle of the era, and used a black-and-white series to indicate the history of the images. Even though Cartier-Bresson was suggested within the exam paper, I still would have researched him as I would like to observe the contrast between his black-and-white images of his era, to my street photography of modern day. I think this would be an interesting topic to explore, and Henri Cartier-Bresson explores his era, which I would do for modern day. 

2. Tony Ray-Jones https://www.lensculture.com/articles/tony-ray-jones-tony-ray-jones-1941-1972

Like Henri Cartier-Bresson, Tony Ray-Jones is a black-and-white street photographer, who observed the streets of England, as well as other places, and photographed what he saw. A lot of Ray-Jones' work features strangers in the street going about their daily lives, which is what is so interesting about his photographs as they are so realistic and natural. I like the concept of street photography as it is unplanned and spontaneous. 

3. Homer Sykes http://www.homersykes.com

Homer Sykes is a Canadian-born, British photographer who focuses mainly on personal projects and landscapes. After shooting photojournalism for many years, Sykes decided to capture the inner essence of who British people are in the 1970s, throughout his photos, by using his street photography to capture real life events. He mainly uses black-and-white photography. Homer Sykes, Tony Ray-Jones and Henri Cartier-Bresson all use black-and-white, and all shoot street photography, which is why I believe all three of them were suggested for research. 

4. Peter Henry Emerson http://www.britannica.com/biography/Peter-Henry-Emerson

I chose to include Peter Henry Emerson, as his photos represent classic photography, which is what he stood for. His photographs include black and white, sepia and brown tones, which make them look quite ancient, and this gives off the 'classic' effect. Emerson believed that photography should show exactly what the eye sees, but in an art form. Therefore, he did not believe in retouching or editing his photographs. All of his images are exactly what he saw, and no retouching was involved. I like this idea of classic photography, and creating the perfect image that you want, just by the use of the camera and what you see yourself. 

5. Mary Ellen Mark http://www.maryellenmark.com

I chose to research Mary Ellen Mark as she shot a series of images called "Ward 81" whereby, she captured images of mental health patients within their institution. Mark said herself, that she wanted to photograph those who were "away from mainstream society, and toward it's more interesting, often troubled fringes". I believe that Mark definitely portrayed this through Ward 81, as Mental Illness is not an easily accepted issue, and a lot of people in modern day still don't "believe" it's a "real" illness. However, through Ward 81, Mark has captured the realistic and almost horrifying episodes and events that happen in a mentally ill patients life. A lot of the photos within this series feature unhappy  and struggling patients at the most extreme. I think Mark really captured what Mental Illness actually causes, and through photography, it is possible to show people real life events, and prove the extremities of an issue. 

6. Natalia Pereira http://www.junk-culture.com/2012/09/natalia-pereira-dismorfobina.html

Natalia Pereira created a series of images called "Dismorfobina" whereby she explores how our identities are deformed when we try to fit into a 'mould'  that isn't meant for us. Pereira is based in Barcelona, and wanted to focus on Body Dysmorphic Disorder (BDD) which is an illness in which those who suffer, feel as though they do not fit into their own bodies, and this ultimately causes depression and other mental health issues. To bring attention to this illness, Pereira used models, and tied a few elastic bands around their faces, which created the "mould" which their faces obviously didn't fit with. By 'deforming' the models' faces, Pereira has 'deformed' their identities. A lot of mental health issues are ignored and disbelieved, but by photographing and paying attention to them, photographers are enabling people to see how certain illness 'feel' like. 

7. Lee Jeffries http://leejeffries.500px.com

Lee Jeffries is a UK photographer, but I particularly chose to research him because of his project with homeless people. After meeting a young homeless girl by chance, Jeffries decides to photograph them - but does not describe these photos as a type of photojournalism or portraiture. He instead wanted to honor and praise the homeless, not pity them. Therefore, he captures their true identity, because he doesn't sugar coat the truth, and this is portrayed through the set of images that he shot - although the photos are dark, this project gave the homeless that were involved, a little happiness in their lives. This series of images related to my topic of Issues and Observations as homelessness is a universal issue, and needs to be publicised a lot more through charities and the media.

8. Christian Sampson http://www.christiansampsonphotography.com

Christian Sampson has produced a series of photographs which show the 'haunting reality of what mental disorders look, and feel like'. The images above express the feelings and struggle of OCD and Schizophrenia. Sampson spent a lot of his time researching each individual illness that he created an image for, before actually shooting because he wanted to create the most accurate depiction of each illness as he possibly could. As mental health is a personal issue for me, I also want to create images that express the feelings of battling with your own mind on a daily basis, and Sampson's work has influenced me greatly in how to present such feelings. 

9. Alec Soth http://alecsoth.com/photography/ 

Alec Soth has photographed places such as Paris, Minnesota, Mississippi as well as the people living in them. He has also focused on the feelings of love. I chose to feature Alec Soth as he has captured photographs that depict the differences between countries and it's people. I also like his portraits of people with their homes, and in various locations that mean something to them. 

10. William Eggleston http://www.egglestontrust.com

Most of William Eggleston's work is very colourful and vibrant, and that is why I chose to feature him in this post, as a lot of the photographers so far, shoot in black and white. Eggleston is particularly interested by inanimate and ordinary objects such as vending machines, bicycles and road signs. However, through his use of colour within his images, he seems to transform an ordinary object, into something extraordinary. 

11. Martin Parr http://www.martinparr.com

I wanted to include Martin Parr in this log as he is one of the most famous street photographers, and his work is quite modern. Parr likes to capture the time and era within his images, which I like as I can capture images like his, using his influence. A lot of his images include people travelling on holiday, and using their phones to take photos and 'selfies' with selfie sticks, which I can personally relate too. I think this is why I enjoy Parr's work so much. 

12. David Hoffman http://www.hoffmanphotos.com

David Hoffman's work interested me due to his series about Homelessness and Protests. Hoffman's work is very basic photography, but because each photograph has such a strong message behind them, his work is very powerful. I particularly enjoyed looking through the photographs of people protesting, as I had not yet considered this as an 'issue'. But of course, protesting is a powerful way to deal with all sorts of issues within society. Hoffman has photographed all kinds of protests such as ones against Poll Tax, Slut Shaming, Climate Action and Strikes. 

13. John Birdsall http://www.johnbirdsall.co.uk 

Like David Hoffman, John Birdsall also photographs protests and homeless people, along with a lot of general street photography. Therefore, these images that he has shot relate to my project of Issues and Observations and as they capture all sorts of social issues, they are influential. However, Birdsall's more recent work focuses on disabilities and underprivileged individuals. For instance, Birdsall has shot photographs in India of people who are being affected by diseases such as Polio. He has also visited rehabilitation centres and hospitals for disabled children, and people with learning difficulties as well as other illnesses. I like how realistic Birdsall's work is, like there's no hidden messages, all of his work literally shows what is literally right in front of him, and I like how genuine his images are. 

14. Sally Mann http://sallymann.com

Sally Mann's photography has caused a lot of controversy, and criticised by many. This is because Mann photographed her own children's lives through every moment, including the good and the bad. For instance, Mann has a photograph called "Jessie's cut" which shows her daughter Jessie bleeding. Mann also photographed her children naked, as they would run around and play in the garden in the nude. This is what caused a lot of problems, as some people saw it as child pornography. However, Mann has argued that she was merely capturing her children's lives through a mother's eyes. Therefore, Mann's work doesn't show any issues, but it caused problems and controversy because there were differences in opinions about the images. 

15. Vasil Germanov http://vasilgermanov.com/work/

The images featured above are just a few of the series Vasil Germanov created of 'beauty victims'. These photos are portraits of made up and beautiful women, but who have seriously bad injuries, such as black eyes, cuts, burns and bruises. These photos were created to advertise domestic violence against women, but in a 'artistic' and 'fashionable' format. Germanov wanted to create beautiful images, that portrayed a powerful message without making them depressing and gloomy. Although there was controversy over whether or not these images were appropriate as they don't truly represent how domestic violence victims 'look' and 'feel.' However, this could have just been because they felt uncomfortable about being faced with the truth of how extreme and serious domestic violence can become. 

16. Daryna Barykina http://darynabarykina.com

Daryna Barykina is a Florida based fashion and beauty photographer. However it is her personal work that particularly interested me because of my project Issues and Observations. Barykina has two series within her personal work called 'bruised behind the mask' and 'stigma', which both contain images fighting against social issues. For instance, 'bruised behind the mask' features portraits of women, with cracked china doll-like faces, which reveal a bruise, cut or burn. This is because Barykina is highlighting that domestic violence victims hide behind a 'mask' to conceal their injuries, as they are too afraid to out their abuser. 'Stigma' however, focuses on bullying towards anorexia, 'geeks', 'goths' and all different kinds of women. In each photo, there is a woman surrounded by all the horrific names she has been called, and in each photo the woman is harming herself in some way. For instance, in the image above, the woman is starving herself because she believes she is 'fat' and 'ugly' due to the name calling. In the other images, a woman is holding a gun, and another is overdosing on pills. This series shows how name calling and bullying can have a major affect on the person it is aimed at, and could cause a death. 

17. Barbara Kruger http://www.barbarakruger.com

Barbara Kruger's work is very pro-feminism and all about women's rights. However, Kruger shoots basic photographs of women such as portraits, and then it is the text that she edits on to them that makes them so powerful. Kruger is especially famous for her photograph of a woman with the text "your body is a battleground". Within these images, Kruger fights against prejudices against women such as the identification of beauty and self worth. Kruger's photographs are black-and-white, but the text itself is white, with a bold and bright red border behind, so it is completely obvious and emphasised. 

18. Joel Parés http://www.joelpares.com

Joel Parés explores the variety of judgements that are made on a daily basis universally, not only in America, which is what he focuses on particularly, through 'judging a book by it's cover'. Paré's has created a series viewing these judgments from both sides of the story. For instance, as you can see above there are two images for each individual, one of which is showing their true self, such as a patriarchal american and a 'queer'. The other side however, flips the view completely, as one is a Full-time pastor, and the other is the founder of the Family Outreach Program. I enjoyed looking through these images, as this is a major issue socially. I liked Paré's way of portraying what should be equality, instead of prejudice and judgement. 

19. Liora K http://www.liorakphotography.com

I wanted to study Liora K because of her obvious feminist views that her photography explores. At the beginning of this topic, I knew I wanted to explore feminist views, women's rights, gender equality and equality, but wasn't sure how to capture that within a photograph. However, Liora K gave me the inspiration, and I used her photographs as a basis for my own work. Liora K explores many issues within her work such as domestic violence, rape victims, consensual sex, and overall, how women are viewed as a sexual object. I enjoyed looking through the many messages and quotes painted on her models, including both women and men. 

20. Gillian Wearing http://www.tate.org.uk/art/artists/gillian-wearing-obe-2648

Gillian Wearing is an English photographer and video artist, and describes her work as 'editing life'. Wearing's work could be seen as political, as for one of her projects, she shot a series of images of people holding up signs, with their biggest confession written on them. For this shoot, Wearing approached strangers on the street and asked them to write down what was on their mind right at that minute, and hold the sign up for her to photograph it with them. One photo from this shoot, particularly received a lot of attention as it includes a businessman in a suit, holding up a sign which states that he is desperate. Throughout these images, Wearing's shows the view of the public, as well as her own view, and highlights a lot of issues within society today.