Many photographs in journalism, especially magazines are faked in one way or another. To show this, I have found an example of where this has been done. The example is from a magazine that shows photographs of Jennifer Lopez, Nicole Kidman, Jordan, Billie Piper and Madonna, all with the face of Pat Evans. This technique is known as montage, which are two things combines. In this case, this is the body of the selected celebrities with the face of someone else. The reason for this is to show readers how easy it is to fake a photograph in this way.
Another technique that has been used here is cropping. Cropping is where you take parts of a photograph out to focus in on something. Every photograph on the page has been cropped, to focus in on a person’s face. This has been done to show the real celebrities face, to show who they are.
Digital enhancement is another technique that is used to fake photographs. Although it has not been used in these photographs, it is commonly used in magazines, to take away wrinkles and marks on someone’s face. Digital enhancement can do many other things also. It can take, or put on age to someone, it can make someone look bigger, or smaller then they really are.
A strong thing that a photograph can also do is shock people. This is done to show an audience something important, to prove something or to change opinion. To demonstrate this, I have studied a picture of the World Trade Centre attack, just as the second tower explodes. This photograph is from the Daily Mirror newspaper.
The reason for the photograph is to show people not only what happened, because words can do that, but to show people the devastation. The publication would be able to shock anyone with this photograph, because it is so devastating, which makes the target audience anyone who sees the photograph.
I personally think that this is a good photograph when used to shock people. This is because it shows terror and the horrific results of the terrorist attack. The photograph also make me feel sorry for the victims of the attack, even though I cannot see them in the photograph, people obviously died in the explosion. The photograph also makes me feel angry towards the people who carried out the attack.
A photograph can change public opinion. The photograph I have chosen to demonstrate this is one of the charred remains of a dead soldier in his burnt out vehicle. The photograph is one from the first Golf war.
The photograph appeared in the observer, which is a political broad sheet paper that is always against war. This photograph was used by this publication to show its readers a victim of the war. It is a powerful photograph, which would have helped them change public opinion. There is a quote that can describe what this photograph can do.
“With all the arguments and discussions about the Vietnam War, what did the visual image do? It ended the war.” Cornell Copa (Photographer)
This quote is very true, because when things like what is seen in the photograph are wrote about, the readers do not really acknowledge what is going on. However, when people see what is going on, people can understand it easier and acknowledge it.
A photograph can freeze and encapsulate a moment in time. A photograph can capture a decisive moment in time. An example of this is the photograph of the World Trade Centre attack. The photograph shows the explosion, as it is happening, so you do not just see what has happened, but people see how it happened.
I believe that a good press photo is one that does its intentional job. For example, the photo of the dead soldier I used was very good, because it changed public opinion, which was the affect the publication wanted. This is also the photograph I liked best, because it showed horror and sadness, and also showed people what was going on during the Vietnam War.
I also believe that news needs to use imagery to be successful. Words are not always enough to tell an audience about something that is important. Because of this, I believe Newspapers are better with photographs.
Modern technology is also using photographs. You can send photographs through emails, digital cameras, where you can see a photograph before it is printed, and photos can now even be sent by using mobile phones. People will use photographs because they can get a point across a lot better then words can.
