We never look at just one thing; we are always looking at the relation between things and ourselves
John Berger, Ways of Seeing
Photography is not, and cannot be an ‘objective’ art. Although the camera can only capture light bouncing off objects that are in front of the lens, the photographer behind the lens will always be making subjective judgements about:
– what exactly to include in and out of the image and composition
– when to take the image to include what they want in terms of eg action and lighting
– how to take the image eg type of lens, depth of field, shutter speed
Although all the above are affected by technological possibilities and constraints of particular cameras that have changed over time, photographs have always been made in relation to the photographer’s subjective purpose for the image:
– feelings about the object (even if photographing cells under a microscope)
– intended communication of those feelings for a particular audience
– subjective reactions of different audiences to the image
Lee Miller: A Portrait of Space
Lee Miller’s photograph is really intriguing – and becomes even more so the more I look and then read how it was made and constructed. I first saw Lee Miller’s work about 20 years ago at an exhibition in Paris.
When I first saw the image in the context of the topic thread here, I assumed that the rectangle was a small looking glass like the ones one often sees in bathrooms in India and Islamic countries. So a blank mirror reflecting nothing back of the photographer as if her mind was clouded, blank and probably depressed. Echoing then the arid stone desert outside. Obviously somewhere like Egypt or North Africa/Arabia but no culture or distinguishing features to be seen. A bleak landscape through a torn curtain seen by a blank mind. Just space.
But when I looked up the discussion about how this particular version of the scene was constructed and why it was selected, I discovered I had misunderstood.
Lee altered the framing of the whole photograph to try to accommodate a rectangular window in a square format camera exposure. The version seen here is taken very much closer to the window than earlier takes to de-emphasise the window, and focus more on the torn curtain.
The ‘mirror’ is not actually a mirror at all, but one of a number of versions of framing that direct the viewer’s eye. In other versions the small black frame was positioned to focus on the escarpment on the left that was positioned so that the top converging lines of the curtain led the eye to the frame. It seems this was because the cabin where she stayed was one used by officials and visitors who might be more interested in the only ‘landscape feature’, rather than the stone desert. Placing the frame so that it frames part of the washed out sky is the ‘Portrait of Space’.
But the viewer can choose where they look in the frame and let their gaze wander through different spaces, including examination of the torn curtain that now provides another frame, rather than a device to direct the eye to the horizon.
So this is an image that is a choice of different windows, but actually revealing very little of what ‘objectively’ exists. The mirror being I think less a reflection of the photographer, than of what the viewer chooses to look at. And how far they choose to see past what the photographer has hidden through the device of the curtain.
My own work
In my own work I range across a whole continuum from windows to mirrors, and the various barriers between. Some of my projects have been research-based more documentary images eg in preparing a Blurb photobook Anywhere Road I consciously question a range of different perspectives and photographic interpretations to become more aware of my subjectivity – and discovered a lot of new things in the process. Others projects are much more obviously my own interpretation of what I see. I have also been very interested in photographic textures eg in wood and stone that suggest fiction narratives but inspired by the particular location.
Through the Window Pane
One project ‘Through the Window Pane’ was shot in Shingle Street on the Suffolk Coast, referencing Alice Through the Looking Glass and clouded mirrors that distort and put things back to front.. I had unfortunately hurt my ankle just a day before the trip, so could not go out. And I was imprisoned watching Liz Truss’ budget and ware in Ukraine on the TV, just looking through the window. So I decided to make the most of it through a photoseries of the changing light, weather and views on my iPhone. This does I think indicate a lot about myself, what I choose to shoot and also select, how I interprete and then also manipulate what I have shot to further communicate my mood and sometimes a message.
Through the Window
Reflecting the Photographer
What is on the ‘window lens’ distorting my view?
Through the Window Pane Blurb Photobook with poetry and text (Links to my SMUGMUG external website.)
Cracks in the Edge
