Barnardos Campaign:
How has the photographer made a very simple image very powerful?
I think that the photographer has made this image powerful by the way that due to the hard lighting of the image, the boy looks very pale and could look very ill to many people. The way that the hard lighting gives this impression is because the fact that hard lighting shows every imperfection very sharply within a portrait shot like this. Another way that the emotion has been captured from the boy and the reason why you can see this is because the boy is looking right into the camera lens , as if he can see you. This makes the viewer feel sympathetic towards the young boy because children are supposed to look happy when they are having their picture taken because they want to show off to the camera. However with the boy you can feel that something is stopping him from being himself and acting like a child his age.
How does the text effect the way that you read the image?
The way that text makes you read the image differently is by the way that they have made the most shocking part of the text bold, so that the viewer can easily get attracted towards it and read it. This can make them develop an idea on what the image about and understand why the boy looks and gives that feeling off. The text I think indicates that the boy has been through a lot due to the charity showing his case to the public through a campaign and by through text and not just an image. This shows that other people who don't know him are concerned and they want to raise the alarm that other children are suffering the same case and this shows that the charity would support any children who have a similar case. I find that from doing this campaign, they are trying to reduce these situations by making people more aware of what's happening behind closed doors.
What does the level position of the camera and the 'Square-on' composition do for the image?
I think that the composition of this image has been well planned, to make sure that the boy's eyes show off the pain and suffering within about how he has been feeling or has physically felt. This can be backed up by the way that the 'square-on' composition has been shown, and this can be seen by the way you are drawn in by the centre object's, which are his pin-point eyes. The way that the photographer has only photographed his head and a bit of his shoulders, makes the image more powerful by feeling the sense of innocence from his long distant gaze but also helplessness vibes from his face expression.
Is the boy treated with dignity?
I think that the boy is treated with dignity because even though the boy seems lifeless, the text shows that he is a strong believer in thinking that he is sticking up for himself through any situation, but really the image shows that the boy cannot do this task on his own and that he needs help. This campaign strongly shows that they can help children in the same way. I feel that if any more of the boys body was shown with an object, the purpose of
How does his direct gaze into the lens effect us?
His gaze shows us the pain and suffering that he is trying so hard to hide but realistically it is so obvious by the glare in his eyes to the naked eye. The dark shades under his eyes make us feel that he has put in soo much effort into whatever he is trying to tackle and fight that the strain and exhaustion has caught up with him and this has been made visible to the eye of the viewer.
How about if we could see more detail in the boy's surroundings? For example, if he was holding a sinister object in his hand. Would these additions change our view of the image?
I think that if the depth of field was a lot different, the image would have a different feel and it wouldn't have the same mysterious meaning that can be shown within the image. I feel that if any more of the boy's body was shown with an object, the purpose of the image, would be a lot different that the text and the photographer have tried to imply through using the hard lighting to show of the result of stress and tiredness of a young child. I think that the image wants people to realise the effect of this sort of stress on children and to show that they are not alone and that help and support will always be offered if wanted. Overall I feel that this image would be ruined if anything was changed or added to the image because the composition is the main focusing point in this image and the subject' eyes.
John Hillard - Cause of death 1974
Discuss how the framing of the photograph
encourages the viewer to 'read' the image?
I think that the framing encourages the viewer to 'read' the photograph is because the framing of the image is so unusual and unique compared to many pictures you would ever see today. I find that John Hillard has cleverly framed this image so that there is four split sections, because every section tells a different story. But really all four images create one image. I find this has been amazing planned and shot carefully so that all the image could be put into four separate images in the final stage. I think that people would be drawn into this image because of it's strange an individual format and meaning in each section.
Discuss how the image would present differently if it didn't have the captions?
I think that the image wouldn't be able to present it's meaning without the captions because the image is slightly strange any-ways, but I feel as if the text captions tell the story about what happens and even though they are single words, the story has been squashed into one effective word to describe every scenario. With images like this, they need a helping hand from text to be the storyteller.
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