The Photographers Eye Essay -- Photography

In Szarkowski’s essay ‘The Photographer’s Eye’, he discusses how photography has taught us to see from the unexpected vantage point, as well as how ‘photography’s ability to challenge and reject our schematized notions of reality is still fresh’ (Szarkowski. 1966. Page 11). When thinking about vantage point myself, two very different ideas of this characteristic of photography came to mind, which I will discuss and compare in this essay. Firstly, perhaps the more obvious, was the concept of where a photograph is taken from, for example looking at a subject or scene from a position that allows the photographer a favourable view. A very literal approach. Therefore I decided to think more about how Szarkowski said photography teaches us to see from the unexpected vantage point, and on a visit to the V&A Museum I found Fred Zinnemann’s photograph ‘Empire State Building from the Subway’ (1950) which I think begins to address this idea; the photograph certainly shows an unexpected position for the artist to have photographed the subject from. With the title of the image being ‘Empire State Building’, this surely suggests that Zinnemann intended this to be the main subject and focus point for the viewer, making the position that the artist chose to photograph from very interesting. The empire state building itself is actually set in the background of the image, allowing the viewer to take in the maybe unconventional framing of it, notably the blacked out railings of the subway that are so prominent. Whether Zinnemann intended this or not, I think the vantage point in this image allows for the viewer to re late to the scene more, as it is from a perspective that they could see everyday, when at the same time I feel it also directs the v... ...Brooklyn Family going for a Sunday Outing. [photograph] (Tate Modern Collection) Zinnemann, F., 1950. Empire State Building from the Subway [image online]. Available at: http://www.mutualart.com/Artwork/Empire-State-Building-from-the-Subway--c/AD8E090F77375033 [Accessed January 2012]. Calle, S., 1981. The Hotel, Room 47 [image online]. Available at: http://www.tate.org.uk/servlet/ViewWork?cgroupid=999999961&workid=26559&searchid=10437&tabview=image [Accessed January 2012]. Arbus, D., 1970. Jewish Giant at Home with His Parents in the Bronx [image online]. Available at: http://masters-of-photography.com/A/arbus/arbus_jewish_giant_full.html [Accessed January 2012]. Arbus, D., 1966. A Young Brooklyn Family going for a Sunday Outing [image online]. Available at: http://www.studio-international.co.uk/studio-images/arbus/82364761_b.asp [Accessed January 2012].