Photography Analysis

Language for Discussing Photography

Paper 1 will contain multimodal texts. It's entirely possible that Paper 1 will contain texts that are only visual. Some of these visual texts are likely to be photographs. Where this is the case, HL students must write about such texts; they have no choice. In addition, photographs may form bodies of work that will be used by students as part of their Individual Oral and/or their HL Essay. It follows that students must have a language that enables them to talk and write about photographs. Of course, a language for talking about photographs is not the same as understanding photographs and what they could mean. Nevertheless, we do think it important that students can describe and discuss what they see. The following vocabulary list is really quite basic, but it does provide an introductory inventory for students to work with. (from www.thinkib.net)

TYPES OF PHOTOGRAPHY

Abstract photo

An image emphasising formal elements such as line and shape rather than particular, recognizable objects.

Content of a photo

The subject, topic, or information in the image. In this image, the content includes layers of posters in what is likely an urban place, with a woman smoking a cigarette in the background.

Direct Approach

Capturing an image of a scene in a straightforward way without using distortion or unusual angles.

Documentary photography

Photographs where the main purpose is to record a place, person(s), or event.

Purpose: To create a mood of intensity or seriousness?

Expressive photo

Photographs where the main purpose is create an impression or mood.

Purpose: To highlight the unique architecture of the building?

Geometric shapes

Simple shapes found in geometry such as circles, squares, rectangles, triangles, and so on.

Purpose: To illustrate the emptiness of the space?

Intention of a photo

The reason(s) why the photographer made the image.

Landscape photo

A photograph of the natural environment.

Objective photo

A point of view that attempts to limit personal bias, considering all information with equal regard and fairness.

Organic shapes

Shapes that are based on objects in nature such as tree, mountains, leaves, and so on.

Subject of a photo

The main object or person(s) in a photograph.

Theme of a photo

A central or unifying aspect in a body of work or collection of works.

VISUAL ELEMENTS to consider

High angle

Angle

This is the vantage point from where a photograph was taken. It is often used when discussing images taken from an unusual or exaggerated vantage point.

The photo of a cat above is an example of eye-level angle.

This still from Inglorious Bastards is an example of low angle.

This photo of the Avengers above is an example of high angle.

Background

This is the part of an image that seems to be towards the back. In this photograph, the factory smokestacks are in the background, whereas the wire as are in the foreground. The uppermost crossing wires are the focal point of the whole image.

Symmetrical balance

Balance / Symmetry / Asymmetry

This refers to the distribution of visual elements. Symmetrical balance distributes visual elements evenly in an image. Asymmetrical balance distributes visual elements unevenly.

Bokeh

Bokeh produced by blurring the background of an image; it is popular in portraits as it forces you to focus on the subject.

Composition

This is the arrangement or structuring of formal elements that make up an image.

The composition in this photograph is characterized by two large buildings in the foreground and the belfry of a large church in the center background.

Cool Warm

High Saturation

Colors

Warm vs Cool Colors: The two broad types of color are warm and cool. Warm colors include red, orange, and yellow, while cool colors include green, blue, and violet.

To create a desired effect, a photographer can edit the photo to accentuate either the cool colors or the war colors. How would you describe the difference in effect between these two images?

Saturation describes the intensity of the color. And lightness refers to how light or dark the color is. A grayscale or black-and-white photo has no color saturation, while a full-color photo of a field of sunlit wildflowers might be extremely saturated.

The photo of the fruit to the left is an example of high saturation. The photo is slightly overexposed as well, as is evident from the slightly washed out kiwi fruit.

Grayscale: Below is an example of a grayscale photo for your reference. This photo is called grayscale instead of black and white because there are actual shades of gray in the image. This lends the photograph more warmth in terms of its effect.

Grayscale

Contour

The outline of an object or shape.

The contour of the woman in the photo below creates a melancholy mood as well as a sense of reflectiveness and isolation.

The moody contour of a woman's profile

Contrast

Contrast the difference between the light and dark areas within your images. High contrast means the blacks are darker and whites are brighter, vice versa.

The image to the left is an example of a colour photo with high contrast created by the shadow of the cathedral rooftop.

These four black and white images below all have high contrast.

High contrast B&W images

Wide depth of field

Shallow depth of field

Depth of Field

Depth of field (DOF) is the distance between the closest and farthest subjects in a scene that look noticeably sharp in an image.

Varying degrees of exposure

Exposure

Is the amount of light entering the camera’s sensor. Too much light and the image is overexposed and not enough light and it’s underexposed.

Why do people so often post selfies on social media that are overexposed like this image below?

Overexposed photo

The focal point is the star.

Focal Point

Where does your eye land first? This is the focal point of the photograph.

Intentional Framing (above and below)

Framing

Framing in photography refers to the process of composing a picture. It involves choosing what you'll include in the frame and what you'll leave out. The goal is to create a pleasing or compelling composition that directs the viewer's attention to the subject matter.

Light

Areas of brightness and shadow. Light can be used to suggest time of day. Light may be artificial or natural, harsh or soft, reflected or direct.

Questions to consider with lighting:

Where is the light coming from? Behind the camera, to the side or is it the camera pointing into it like a silhouette?
Is it natural light or has the photographer used flash?
Are there harsh shadows or soft light/shadows
Is the image over exposed or underexposed? What could this give the impression of?
What time of day was the image taken in? If it was taken outside is it sunrise, midday, sunset or at night?

Lines

Objects in photographs can sometimes act as lines. They may be used to establish outline, direction, movement, and energy. Lines can be, for example, straight, curvy, thick, or thin.

Fast shutter speed

Slow shutter speed

Shutter Speed

Shutter speed is the speed at which the shutter of the camera closes when taking a photograph. A fast shutter speed creates a shorter exposure — the amount of light the camera takes in — and a slow shutter speed gives the photographer a longer exposure to light. To capture a fast-moving object clearly, a fast shutter speed is necessary, otherwise blurring will occur.

Nature

Setting

This is the actual physical surrounding or scenery whether real or artificially constructed.

The setting of this photo is outdoors in nature, possibly in a desert.

Texture

This is about the quality of ‘feel’ in the photograph; if you could touch an image, what would it feel like?

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