American photographers Dorothea Lange, Gordon Parks, and Latoya Ruby Frazier turned their cameras on individuals and communities whose stories were less known to expose their daily trials, struggles, and celebrations.
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Dorothea Lange (American, 1895 – 1965), One of the Homeless Wandering Boys, Before the C.C.C., 1933, Gelatin Silver Print, 9 ½ x 7 1/8 in., Gift of H. Russell Albright, MD, 95.971
Dorothea Lange was a photographer and photojournalist, best known for her Depression-era work for the Farm Security Administration. Lange’s photographs influenced the development of documentary photography and humanized the consequences of the Great Depression.
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Gordon Parks (American, 1912–2006)Untitled, Harlem, New York, 1948, Gelatin silver print, Courtesy of the Gordon Parks Foundation
Gordon Parks was a photographer, writer, and filmmaker who worked with Life magazine for twenty-two years. His work particularly focused on issues of civil rights, poverty and African-Americans—and in glamour photography.
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LaToya Ruby Frazier (American, b. 1982), Campaign for Braddock Hospital (Save Our Community Hospital), 2011, Portfolio of 12 prints, photolithographs and silkscreen, wooden frames, 20 x 17 inches (framed), Museum Purchase, Joel Weinstock Fund, 2016.55.1-12
Latoya Ruby Frazier is a visual artist and professor of photography from Braddock, Pennsylvania. She works in photography, video, and performance to build visual archives that address industrialism, communal history, and healthcare inequality.
TELL A STORY WITH A PHOTO ESSAY
Think about the structure of a photo essay. It is a narrative and must tell a story as clearly and compellingly as possible.
WHAT YOU WILL NEED
All you need is access to a digital camera and editing tools!
WHAT YOU WILL DO
- Tell a story that is unique to your life or your family using the photo essay format.
- Take a series of 3 – 6 photos from around your house or neighborhood. (Remember to follow safe social distancing practices!)
- Look for details that help tell your story. You may want to include objects as well as people!
- Use an app or photo folder to group your pictures together.
- Explore techniques like cropping and enlarging to help focus the story you want to tell.
- Share your photo essay with a family member.
Documentary photography has traditionally been presented as a primary source, a truthful documentation of reality. Can you tell more than one story with the same images? Give it a try! How can different viewpoints be derived from the same image?