Documentary photography tells real stories through photographs. It aims to provide a factual record or report of events. Some key points: - Documentary photography has various subgenres like photojournalism, social documentary, street photography, and documentary landscapes. - Different types of images like establishing shots, detailed shots, main shots, and concluding shots can be used to create a narrative or tell a story. - A good documentary project chooses an interesting subject, uses composition and various shot types to effectively convey a story, and provides insight into the topic. Key skills include photo composition and using different shot types to craft a narrative. Famous documentary photographers mentioned are Cartier-Bresson, Martin Parr

2. On the post it notes write down what you think
documentary photography is
• What are the key skills that it uses?
• Name as many photographers you know of that
you think fit into this genre
• When you’re done, stick it onto the end of your
table

3. • Explain what documentary photography is and
what makes a good documentary project
• You will identify the various types of sub
genres
• You will identify the types of images used to
create a narrative

5. • What is it?
Documentary Photography is a narrative or
story being told through photographs that
involves real events to provide a factual
record or report (and sometimes this is
complimented with text).

7. Sub Genres Task
• On your table is a series of photographs.
• Around the room is different headings for sub genre’s.
• In your groups use the blu tack provided to put one
image into each category
• In your groups select an image to discuss looking at the
technical, lighting, compositional and contextual
information behind the image.

8. Key Points
• ‘Document’ means evidence = official, to be
trusted, not to be questioned…
• Documentary as signifier of truth but what of
re-presentation??
• Documentary is intimate – it assumes a bond
between viewer and image and it is charged
with showing the world as it really is

9. Documentary photography has always had the power to shock,
to inform, to change opinion and to persuade yet the very term
can be ambiguous and the photographer always chooses a
particular frame and moment in time

10. Early documentary was often for identification –
documenting criminals

11. Or racial types

12. Henri Cartier-Bresson like
Doisneau is seen as a father
of photojournalism and also
street photography. His style
is often decisive and always
candid

13. Martin Parr: Part of the British new wave
whose focus was on the everyday from a
critical perspective

14. Simon Norfolk’s work crosses the line between fine
art and photo journalism, often shooting locations
that are war torn or where atrocities were commited

15. Documentary Landscape

16. Annie Leibovitz - Pilgrimage
•
http://www.nytimes.com/2011/10/30/opinion/sunday/annie-leibovitzs-pilgrimage.html?pagewanted=all

17. Richard Billingham - Zoo

18. Photojournalism

19. Robert Capa

20. Anastasia Taylor-Lind
English/Swedish photographer

21. Street Photography

22. Beat Strueli - Bangkok 02

23. Kate Hooper – night

24. Social Documentary

25. Nan Goldin
Photographs her friends and family. A lot of her work is about gender
politics. Insiders view – as she knows who she photographs

26. Rineke Djikstra – Mothers & Bullfighters
Julie, Netherlands, 1994. One hour after giving birth.
Bullfighter, Portugal. 1994
Video: http://www.tate.org.uk/modern/exhibitions/cruelandtender/interviews.htm

27. James Russell Cant - Family
Brother
Alone

28. Identification

29. Marc Garanger – Femmes Algeriennes
1960

30. What makes a Good documentary
project?
2 minutes task:
• Think – individually of one thing you think
makes a good documentary project
• Pair - up with person next to you and list
more ideas.
• Share – with the rest of the group.
Countdown clock: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i9MytO0O_q0

31. What makes a Good documentary
project?

32. TYPES OF IMAGES
• narratives :
– a story or an account of a sequence of events in the order
in which they happened.
– the art or process of telling a story or giving an account of
something.
Compositionally you can use the following types of shots to
create a story:
•
•
•
•
Establishing
Detailed,
Main and
Concluding shots.

33. Establishing
• Is the beginning of a narrative – sets the
scene.
And’Art, 2009.
All images
© Jaskirt
Dhaliwal.
For more info
go to:
http://www.jas
kirtdhaliwal.co
.uk/gallery_29
6587.html

34. Detailed
• Looks at specific detail of an item that is part of the
narrative. Close up, detailed.

35. Main
Shows the main part of the story. Could be portraits of people involved or a
shot of the main part of the event.

36. Main

37. Concluding
Completes the story

38. Tell a story

39. College Poster –
your narrative
student example
using different
types of images

40. Establishing

42. Main shots

43. Detailed

45. Back to Learning Objective
• Explain what documentary photography is.
• List the different types of sub genre’s of
documentary photography
• You will identify the various types of sub genres
• You will identify the types of images used to
create a narrative

46. • On your new post it note write down the following:
• What is documentary and what makes a good
documentary project?
• List the various sub genres
• Identify the types of images used to create a narrative
• Any photographers you could name
• Once complete - stick it next to your original post it
note onto the wall

47. Practical Task – Birmingham Trip
You have to document a short story, your narrative, on
Birmingham using one of the following styles of documentary:
•
•
•
•
Portraits of people at work
Street photography
Street portraits
Documentary landscape
RESEARCH a photographer that shoots in one of these styles
of documentary photography for your artist comparison.