tension
Recently I read 'Life Magazine Classic' a collection of photos curated by John Loengard.
He was the picture editor for Life Magazine for 15 years and the book covers a selection of the more than 2100 issues ranging from the mid 1930s up to late 1990s (book was published in 1996). I picked it up for a few dollars at a used local bookstore. A bargain for a slice of world history.
One thing I've been noticing in photography surrounds intention and the message conveyed by the image. And just how much more effective those photos are. The editor conveys this idea as a tension,
As in speech, where what is said may be less important than how it is said, in photography this blend of graphic forms creates tension. Highlighting this tension a skilled photographer can evoke feelings we might not otherwise have had even if we sat beside them while the photo was taken.
These kind of images tell a story which can be intentional or not.
An example of an intentional message
American Girl in Italy, Ruth Orkin, 1951
The message is obvious and intentional: women are objectified. But the tone and how this message is conveyed adds tension and makes it more powerful: the ogling is so pervasive that it's casual.
An example of an unintentional message
Yangzte, Dmitri Kessel, 1955
This photo of the Yangzte River in China is a beautiful landscape image. But it is more powerful now after the Three Gorges Dam was completed in 1994 and more than 1.2 million people were forced to move and abandon their homes. The dichotomy of natural beauty and human tragedy creates tension and elevates it to something above a benign landscape image.
The cost of progress.
My own message
I've realized that I gravitate towards photography of scenes with juxtaposition, elements that contrast each other in interesting ways (to me).
One common theme within this style I've been doing unintentionally is noting humanity's footprint on our world. The Yangtze image really resonates with me in this way.
Entrance to Yosemite, California, 2024
There is a gas station off the entrance to Yosemite national park. Just a few miles from one of the most serene places on earth there's a pay-at-the-pump gas station open 24/7. You can pay 3.75 a gallon to burn fossil fuels and make CO2 just a stone's throw from the most idyllic scenery of the American west.
There's a necessary evil, even in visiting the purest of places.
Overgrown Truck, Virginia, 2024
A work truck is a tool, they allow us to do work. And yet we often neglect or even abuse them. Here this truck is left sitting waiting to be driven as it is slowly overtaken by the growth around it. The field around it is mowed and kept low, yet the truck itself is casually left to be overgrown by the brush that is too bothersome to trim back.
The message is that of laziness and neglect on the part of humans. But also of nature's resilience. Humans presence may be strong, but nature will always be ready to take things over.
Turbine Blade, Western Illinois, 2024
I've driven past this site for years. A 100 ft long blade once destined to capture clean energy for us is now left to rot in the grasses. Up close the edges of the blade are fraying, and the fiberglass strands are being strewn amongst the field.
Humanity abandons things. Even our well intentioned endeavours. Our good intentions fill farm fields with detritus.
My overall intentional message has been that of contrasts, of interesting things that stick out or feel out of place in their setting.
Unintentionally this has manifested most under scenes of industrial intrusion: power lines cutting through the forest, a wind turbine left abandoned, a truck overgrown by weeds.
Humanity's footprints are mechanical in nature. In nature. As in, humanity's footprints in nature are mechanical. There is a tension between the two.
The tension creates a stronger message than simply 'don't pollute'. It tells of the cost and impacts of our progress, presence, and our intentions.