duckrabbit - we produce photofilms » journalism

Photography and dirty propaganda?

duckrabbit — Fri, 30 Jul 2010 01:48:45 +0000

Tonight I have followed Rabbit’s link to Jodi Bieber’s powerful and dignified photos of women in Afghanistan. I then went to look at the Editor of TIME, RICHARD STENGE’s, explanation of why he put the following photograph on the front cover:

‘Our cover image this week is powerful, shocking and disturbing. It is a portrait of Aisha, a shy 18-year-old Afghan woman who was sentenced by a Taliban commander to have her nose and ears cut off for fleeing her abusive in-laws. Aisha posed for the picture and says she wants the world to see the effect a Taliban resurgence would have on the women of Afghanistan, many of whom have flourished in the past few years. Her picture is accompanied by a powerful story by our own Aryn Baker on how Afghan women have embraced the freedoms that have come from the defeat of the Taliban — and how they fear a Taliban revival.’

The problem is that this editorial reads as if Aisha’s ears and nose were cut off before the American/UK invasion and therefore is a justification for the war. Infact the barbaric act took place last year. Despite this the cover states that the girl’s face is representative of ‘What Happens If We Leave Afghanistan’. But this is what is happening in Afghanistan now, after all the billions we’ve spent bombing the place. Some might say it’s dirty propaganda.

Much of my work in Ethiopia was related to women’s rights and the record in that country is as bad, if not worse than Afghanistan. Strangely the US and the UK take a different approach to Ethiopia. Instead of bombing the country every year they donate a couple of hundred million dollars in aid. It’s not always money well spent, but it sure beats bombing people as a way of changing barbaric cultural practices.

TIME’S editorial certainly makes for a great t-shirt ‘Bomb Afghanistan for women’s rights’, but I can’t see many behavioral change experts recommending it as a way to stop women being raped, mutilated or forced into early marriage.

Infact if you took all the billions we’ve spent on bombing Afghanistan and offered the money as payments to not abuse women’s rights (the aid way) then I’m pretty sure you would see change happening a lot swifter. The only problem is all those in the US and UK who profit from war would be a hell of a lot poorer and in this world their right to make money is the most important right of all.

I feel sorry for Bieber, she’s done a great job and cannot be faulted, but I feel this photo has been misused. Just as guns did not solve the problems of racism in South Africa, they will not solve the problems of women’s rights in Afghanistan.

Two Contrasting Responses:

Christine Nesbitt Hills

Jodi worked hard to create portraits that represent the women with dignity (see her audio interview on time.com). I believe she succeeded. I feel that the headline that ran on Time’s cover served to change the meaning of her photo on the cover. The text didn’t anchor the meaning of the image, it shifted the meaning, resulting in Aisha being represented as a victim. This is clearly not what Jodi intended or the message delivered through her photo. The meaning of the cover photo is now contested. Time’s editorial spin undermines the integrity of the relationship between photographer and subject. I also feel the photo has been abused, and along with it the subject and the photographer.

Tobie Openshaw

While I’m no apologist for war I think the point that the article makes is that under a resurgent Taliban, this sort of thing will happen MORE – that the US presence is (or was) at least keeping this kind of thing in check, that many “women of Afghanistan, … have flourished in the past few years.”

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‘I thought that I was in the belly of the beast’

duckrabbit — Mon, 12 Jul 2010 11:25:45 +0000

This is a powerful photofilm by Eric Johnson. Some strong photographs and perfectly recorded audio, proving once more that a simple approach is often best.

‘The 30th Street Men´s Shelter, otherwise known as Bellevue, is New York City’s largest homeless shelter. A combination of mentally ill, parolees, substance abusers and people simply down on their luck are all housed together in this shelter.’

I was a bit bothered by the music being the same throughout, but listen right through to the end, because there is a magical moment when it all shifts.

There’s also a good lesson in how to record audio here. Listen how clear Carl Foye’s voice is. There is so much history in that voice, history that you just can’t pick up on unless the microphone is very close.

Thanks to @bobsacha for pointing the way on twitter.

UPDATE:

Eric has left the following comment:

‘I was first attracted to the project because of the building itself. The homeless shelter is located in what used to be a psychiatric hospital. Its very interesting visually but what became clear after checking myself in and staying there a few nights is that its all about the people and survival. I always shoot the same, dictated by light, but in this case the photographs were really my reaction to staying there a few nights… David commented “striving to the light” and he is totally right. I think most photographers shoot how they feel in the situation.
Anyway, thanks for looking at the piece.’

THANK YOU ERIC … duckrabbit will be watching out for your work.

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‘Obsession, commitment, love’

duckrabbit — Sat, 10 Jul 2010 22:49:03 +0000

‘Obsession, commitment, love‘, that’s how Anna Carter describes her relationship with Carter’s Steam Fair, the largest original touring vintage fairground anywhere in the world.

And that’s exactly what’s on show at a new duckrabbit exhibition at Reading Museum. Our photofilm ‘Fairground Attraction’, is being projected alongside fifty of Rabbit’s wonderful photos that capture the magic of Carter’s Steam Fair.

If you’re anywhere near Reading please do drop into the museum (see poster at the bottom of the page) and let us know what you think. And if, like the majority of people, you are nowhere near Reading, take three minutes out of your day to watch our photofilm Fairground Attraction below (or embed it to your facebook page or blog from here):

(click on the image below to bring up the photofilm, and click again to play)

duckrabbit would like to thank Damien Drohan for assisting with the audio editing.

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Good news for audio editors with Macs…

Adam Westbrook — Sat, 26 Jun 2010 11:51:58 +0000

For some time, Apple’s computers have dominated the creative industry’s workspace; their reliability, fast processing speed and ownership of some of the industry standard software (Final Cut Pro in particular) makes them the must-have for any journalist, writer, film maker, photographer.

Oh and they also look nice.

But Macs have one big flaw which myself and duckrabbit feel more than most: it sucks for audio editing.

Those of you who came to the Photography Still Moving event earlier this month will remember Benjamin editing his audio interviews on a PC and then transferring the file over to his Mac to combine with photographs in Soundslides.

Because when it comes to editing audio it’s almost impossible to compete with Adobe Audition (without spending £2000 on SADIE, or going to PRO TOOLS). And that hasn’t been part of Adobe’s Creative Suite for Macs at all…until now.

Yes, we’ve got wind that Adobe Audtion will be available for Macs in the near future – although probably not until next year. Adobe Labs have announced they’ll be a public beta version, possibly by the winter (according to The Unofficial Apple Weblog).

So soon, we’ll be able to do all our multimedia on one computer – hoorah!

Thanks to @ProducerJoe for pointing it out.

ADAM WESTBROOK

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Charlie Beckett, ‘The Value of Networked Journalism’

duckrabbit — Sun, 13 Jun 2010 21:38:16 +0000

We are in the middle of sustained crisis for journalism. The global recession has accentuated the business problems for journalism in the UK, much of Europe and America. Of course, the news industry is booming in many parts of the world such as India and China and even Africa. However, underpinning the financial problems for journalism is the transformation wrought by digital technologies and the Internet.

These will effect the news media everywhere eventually. They provide unprecedented opportunities to create and reach new markets and to enhance production. However, these same technologies have created destructive competition and drastically reduced certain revenue streams.

This report does not deal directly with the business model. It does not seek to revisit the well-worn debates such as the ‘Future of Newspapers’. Instead of asking how we preserve journalism or sustain the journalism business it will ask what the product is and who wants it? Then we can ask what is the best way to produce it. If we know how the new journalism is valued then we can persuade people to fund it.

Technological and other deep social shifts mean there is no way that journalism can avoid radical change. They are deeply threatening. Much of what was there will disappear. Emily Bell’s prediction of ‘carnage’ is being realised. The opportunities, however, are much greater.

Charlie Beckett is the Director of the media think tank POLIS

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Kicking Off – my kind of awesome

duckrabbit — Thu, 10 Jun 2010 08:26:00 +0000

One of the great things of being an occasional teacher on LCC’s photojournalism masters is the talented students you get to meet. Much of the work is very inspiring.

This ninety second (that’s all they were allowed) photofilm or Eyecue, by Huiying Hu is one of my favorites and is perfectly timed for the world cup. It also shows that a good story is never far away.

Please do watch and take the time to comment. It means a lot to people when you make the effort to give something back. Really.

(If you too would like to learn how to start making photofilms join us for a day workshop in London on the 19th of June, at ‘Photography Still Moving’)

Kicking Off from Huiying Hu on Vimeo.

In the course of shooting for my assignments during the previous term, I literally stumbled upon a team of young football players training in a park near my house. That was the beginning of a delightful relationship.

Over the last few months, I showed up almost every Saturdays, and documented their training sessions. Even after my assignments were fulfilled, I kept going back, sometimes returning with good photographs, sometimes none at all.

The team is mostly made up of second-generation immigrants. Despite their cultural differences, the universal appeal of football proves incredible in uniting this group of children. Governed by the same rules on the field, the boys learn about sportsmanship, fair play and discipline from the coach and also each other.

As a football player myself, I am familiar with the emotions- anticipation, exhilaration, passion to name a few, related to the game. However, I am unaccustomed to seeing such seriousness from children at tender ages of four to ten. At times the boys seem to mimic the reactions of adult football players, while other times they break down and cry like boys their age.

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The Green Book Materials

duckrabbit — Sat, 22 May 2010 14:06:42 +0000

This is a masterclass in documentary production. Nothing is out of place. Watch for the ending. It just crushed me.

The Green Book Materials from phos pictures on Vimeo.

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No other journalist in the UK is using multimedia on a project in such a sustained and important way as Ciara Leeming

duckrabbit — Wed, 19 May 2010 13:02:53 +0000

This is essential work that deserves widespread recognition. It’s not sexy because the people in the stories are mainly working class white people but it’s a template for in depth reportage on an important subject.

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In Silence

duckrabbit — Wed, 19 May 2010 10:32:33 +0000

“What happened to us should not happen to anyone.”

Photographer Susan Meiselas and reporter Dumeetha Luthra traveled to India for Human Rights Watch to retrace the steps of one woman who died after giving birth to a son.

Powerful and respectful work.

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The truth isn’t out there

duckrabbit — Mon, 17 May 2010 08:19:30 +0000

Look at the first photo. What do you see?

How does your reading of the first photo change when you see the second?

The two photos are taken at the same place and within seconds of each other and yet the meaning of the first photograph is only revealed when you see the second photograph.

How often do you think we are only shown the first photo and accept it as truth?

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