David Campany wrote an essay entitled “Safety in numbness”. In it he talks about Hot and Cold images. Hot images are the images captured recording the event and cold images are images that capture the aftermath of the event. Comparing the moving image to the still image Campany states “It is not that a still image naturally say a thousand words, rather that a thousand words can be said about it”.

He says that the moving image when accomapanied by a freeze frame has more power. Cinema uses this to emphasize the power of a memory. He warns us that documentary photography shys away from this type of “Cold” photography as it hints at stillness whereas the “Hot” photo of an event shows the event and its movement and emotion.

Campany discusses three stages of photography 1. Good reportage photographers followed the action in the 1920s to the 1960s. 2. 1960s and 1970s portable video cameras the images were still caught at the point of action but could be punctuated with still images perhaps of the aftermath. 3. 1970s onward changes in media have led to Journalists showing the aftermath more than the event.

In the early days the event was photographed and then censored later so control was in the hands of officials. Then in the second period Photojournalist had more freedom to show the event. Finally in the 3rd period media technology primarily the internet allowed so much freedom that the censors restricted access to the event encouraging this aftermath photography further. “Today it rare that a still image breaks the news”.

The Vietnam War is quoted as the last photographic war being messy and chaotic both making for interesting photographic situations. Journalists were allowed in to the thick of the fighting and although censored they got many images out that told the story of the war. The Gulf War on the other hand was different the images shown were from satelites Journalists were excluded. Showing the aftermath of battle such as “Shell shocked Iraqi troops” or burnt out vehicles on the Basra road. The former allowed the photographer in on the action the latter kept them on the outside.

He claims that a third of photos are video stills so the role of the photographer has become blurred in the arena of news. This all influenced how Joel Meyetoritz approached his work with 9/11 he had started influenced by Henri Cartier Bresson and his “Decisive Moment”. For this project he went back to a camera made in 1942 which demanded a slower approach with more thought.

Part of the appeal of slowing down is the depiction of detail, recording with a patience not allowed in the heat of the action. They are a new kind of Pure in which we are shown how the events have effected people. Using large scenes, closer details and portraits the mood of the aftermath of the event is recorded and shown to the viewer. This gives the photo longevity where the “Hot” photo is emotional but its effect is fleeting.

We are then warned of the danger of this “Late” photography, it can make us just see the beauty of the images and make us reject the original meaning of the image Campany likens it to “A Vampire rejecting Garlic”.

I read this and thought of all the images I have seen in my life there is a clear line in the late 70s when the still image became trapped on the coffee table in the supplements of newspapers and the books we glance through. It must be my aim to elevate my photography to new levels to tell the stories I see.

Part Two.

In this second part of the exercise I have looked at Joel Meyerowitzs work Aftermath. I will discuss how the images make me feel and how they compare to my memories of the news images of the day.

What do I see? I see three types of photography the big scene, the detail and the portraits of people. They have one thing in common they are all considered and you can see time has been spent recording these images.

The photographer must have spent time walking around the scene planning his shots and getting to know the people working on this tragic site. The big scenes are well lit and look almost like film sets when compared to the on the day newshots which were mainly moving images captured on poor quality video cameras so the quality of the image is very different.

The details have been considered to almost punctuate the story. To take us back to the images burnt into our memories no matter what you felt about this day.

The portraits are mainly shot showing the care they took on the site whilst shot from below to give each image power. This shows the care and thought that was taken to record the work going on on the site.

The lighting is perfect and whilst it isn’t studio lighting it is considered and adds to the feeling of the shot shown to us the viewer. They are a different approach to showing us the “Late photograph of an event”.