Martin Parr is a British documentary photographer and photojournalist. He focuses on aspects on modern life and in particular social classes. His work creates mixed reactions in viewers as many of his shots display members of the public in a negative light, photographing from unflattering angles, with incorrect exposure, and catching people off guard. A lot of his photography focuses on British values, for example the activity of going to the beach. Below is a typical example of his photography.
The overflowing rubbish bin in this image straight away establishes a negative feel, as we associate rubbish with being unhygienic and odorous. In the centre of the image, this is what we focus on first. Many chip bowls are visible on the floor by this bin as they significantly contrast against the concrete. Again we make negative correlations as we view fast food as being cheap and unhealthy. We then focus on the people. There appears to be a family sitting on a bench next to this bin, and the natural nature of this shot is emphasised by the casual positions of each person. None of the family appear to be smiling, and the small child’s expression standing in front of the man certainly reinforces this negative feel. The child looks to be restrained by the man and appears distressed. This action gives the impression that the child may have been misbehaving and is therefore being punished by his parent or guardian. I feel that Martin Parr had wanted to capture an accurate representation of the British value of a family day out, and to draw attention to the negative aspects of this as we commonly glorify the positives. The image is slightly overexposed which adds to the discomfort the image creates.
This image importantly draws attention to the reality behind the photo, and demonstrates the power of perspective. I feel that this could relate to social media in the way that people may choose represent themselves in a certain way, which may not be a realistic presentation of their life. This image possesses a sense of humor and draws our attention to the strange actions and traditions we have as humans. A sense of repetition is created in this photo as multiple individuals adopt the same position. Depth is also a clear feature in this photo as the people in the frame are standing different differences from the lense. We can identify whether they are further or nearer to the camera as the smaller they appear, the further away they are. It seems that parr has used a high angle to capture a clear display of multiple people, which make have appeared to overlap if a lower angle had been used. We are drawn to the leaning tower first as its tall and unique structure stands tall and contrasts against the sky. The people also significantly contrast against the bright green grass, allowing us to identify their outlines clearly so that we can focus on their body position. The rule of thirds is present in this photography due the the placement of the tower in the composition. If the photograph was split into thirds with vertical lines, the tower would lie one of these lines. At the same time in a way a rule of halves is also introduced as the horizontal row of smaller buildings marks the separation of the ground and the sky.
This image is a good example of that way that Martin Parr presents over exposed images in order to create a negative feel of discomfort. As the woman in the foreground is facing the sun the light is shining down on her face, creating a highlight. This is the area we are drawn to first as this over exposure stands out from the lighting in the rest of the image. This harsh light on the women’s face causes her to appear bright and pale, while also making us aware of sweat and red patches. The toning of her face compared to that of her chest, which in comparison appears very red and sunburnt, displays the women in a not so flattering light, which was Martin Parr’s intention. Another negative feature in this photograph that I noticed is the dull concrete and stony beach. Together these create a lack of colour in the image, and the harsh contrast created by the concrete being partially wet is unappealing. This reinforces the negative feel introduced initially by the over exposure in the bottom left corner. I believe Martin is representing realistic features of going to a beach in Britain, such as getting sunburt, dull scenery, and the reality that many beaches in Britain are stony rather than sand, which is commonly preferred.
Something I like about the work of Martin Parr is the unique concepts. Rather than trying to create an artistically appealing image with a positive feel to please the viewer, Parr does the exact opposite and presents scenes to us in a more realistic way. Certain techniques he has used such as composition and exposure work to sometimes present things in a negative or uncomfortable perspective. Catching people off guard and just at the right time also contributes to making his work effective and distinctive as we as viewers have an insight into the peoples lives, and they are captured as themselves as they are unaware of the camera. I definitely feel inspired to attempt capturing strangers off guard in my own photography as it can create effective photograph. I have attempted a few times in the past but I would take the images from quite far away which effected their quality. I want to work up my confidence and once again attempt this in an image based solution. As for my FMP final images, I do not believe that using techniques to give my images a negative feel will benefit my final piece as it is all about favourite places and individuality, which has positive correlations. Although I want to include a clear display of each persons face in my work, creating life photography images where the subjects appear to be unaware of the camera could tie in with my idea. For the photos of the locations I am taking, I could include a long shot of that person in this place so that it appears as a snapshot into their life as they spend time there. This is something I will think about.
Image Based Solution
For this image based solution I wanted to purely attempt the technique used by Martin Parr of capturing strangers off guard. I was a bit apprehensive as I sometimes lack in confidence, however I was looking forward to the results. I decided to shoot in a town centre as I figured that as it was busy, it wouldn’t be uncommon for people to be taking photos and I wouldn’t be as noticed. As I wanted to capture people as they went about their life, I did not want them to spot the camera. At first I found this quite difficult as people were mostly moving around a lot of my images appeared blurred. To overcome this I knew I had to use a higher shutter speed to that the individual appears frozen in the frame. As this gives less time for light to enter the lens I had to increase my ISO, as pictures would come out dark. I realised that in order for Martin Parr to capture moving people in a still photograph, he too must use high shutter speeds when photographing people. At first I tried to take pictures from quite far away however this effected the quality and the detail visible in the person. As my confidence grew I took pictures closer and closer, however still used my zoom which definitely assisted me throughout the shoot. Below are the results of my image based solution, I have analysed a few of them.
In order to frame this image the way I wanted I walked along side the subject but slightly behind them, moving at the same pace. I took a burst of images in the hope that this would give me more chance of taking a successful photograph. It was my decision to frame the image in this way and demonstrate the rule of thirds with the composition. Although the woman doesnt take up much of the frame we still focus on here as her bright white shirt significantly contrasts against the dark tones in the background. This image strongly includes the formal element of line as the structure of the building in the background is made up of glass panels and beams. Something I like about this image is the way we can see right through the glass building to the shops on the other side, which gives us more to focus on in the image and offers an unusual and unfamiliar perspective.
I really like the contrast and composition of this image. The vivid red attracts our eye and we then focus on the lady. A sense of mystery is created, as because we cannot see her face we the viewer cannot identify her features or connect with her. She significantly stands out from the background as due to her white outfit, and although she only takes up a small amount of the frame she is still the focus of the image due to this contrast. A red and white colour theme is created as the woman’s hair, top, and bag are white. We can get the idea that this is a natural image and the lady is unaware of the camera as the bright red edges of the shop door are in shot, so we can see the camera is from outside looking in. Originally, this image was slightly underexposed due to me increasing shutter speed, so the contents of the shop was barely visible. In Photoshop I altered the exposure as I wanted the elements of pattern and line from the rows of products to be present.
This is my favourite image from the Martin Parr inspired shoot. It shoes some shoppers browsing a stall that was placed in the middle of town. The obvious unique feature of this image is the texture created by this plastic sheet used to contain the stall. The image creates a feeling of spying or surveillance, as it appears the people are being watched or stalked. I really like the way the plastic creates a sort of effect or filter over image, which I enhanced by introducing blue and pink tones in Photoshop. This image is now on my website.
This shoot has allowed me to practice shooting using a high shutter speed, in order to create a freeze frame of a moving subject, which I hadn’t much experience in. I have also experienced the difficulty of composing and framing an image containing moving subjects as you have to be quick and alert. As well as this, I have been working on my confidence in order to be able to photograph strangers in a public area. As I am a fan of both street photography and portraiture, I believe this shoot was beneficial for me as I will be able to use these skills in future work.
scarlettchristou 