Holocaust Boy

We were assigned a random iconic picture in photojournalism to research information about it, write an essay, and present it to class. The picture above represents Jewish families being arrested by Nazi soldiers in order to transport them to be placed in gas chambers because of the destruction of the Warsaw ghetto in Poland. Thousands of pictures from the Holocaust have surfaced through the decades epitomizing the hard times and suffrage present in the World War II era, yet this picture stands out because it successfully portrays the way Jewish men, women, and children were discriminated against and treated as criminals. This photo was taken from Jürgen Stroop's report to Heinrich Himmler from May 1943 and has been titled one of the best-known pictures of World War II. The original German caption reads: "Forcibly pulled out of dug-outs". The boy in the picture might be Tsvi Nussbaum, who survived the Holocaust. Nussbaum's mother and father were murdered before the Jews of the region were sent to various German Nazi concentration camps. Tsvi's brother disappeared, never to be seen again. Shortly thereafter Tsvi and his aunt moved to Warsaw and, posing as gentiles, lived there for over a year. When caught, they were deported to the concentration camp at Bergen-Belsen. After 1945, Tsvi moved to Palestine. After living in Israel for eight years, he moved to the United States. Initially, he did not speak English; but having a talent for science, he later studied medicine and became an otolaryngologist in New York City.

Composition Rule #10: Be a Picture Director

Nerd Day at School!!!

Take an extra minute and become a picture director, not just a passive picture-taker to take better group photos. You can add some props, rearrange your subjects, or try a different viewpoint. Make sure to bring your subjects together and let their personalities shine. Then watch your pictures dramatically improve!!!

Composition Rule #9: Watch the Light

Great light makes great pictures. Therefore you should study the effects of light in your pictures. For people pictures make sure to choose a soft lighting, and on cloudy days it is of upmost importance to use the flash. Try to avoid overhead sunlight that casts hard shadows across faces. For scenic pictures, use the long shadows and color of early and late daylight.

Composition Rule #8: Know Your Flash's Range

It is always great to know the range of your flash because pictures taken beyond the maximum flash range will appear too dark. For many cameras their flash ranges to about 10 feet (about 4 steps away). Therefore, you should check the information in your manual to be sure.

Composition #7: Move It From The Middle (Rule of Thirds)

This rule implies that you can bring your picture to life simply by placing the subject off-center. Imagine a tic-tac-toe grid in your view finder. Now place your subjects at one of the intersections of lines. Since most cameras focus on whatever is in the middle, remember to lock the focus on your subject before re-framing the shot. It helps to produce balanced images and keeps the subject away from the very edge of the frame.

Fallen Soldier

Today in Photojournalism class we discussed the controversial story of a marine named Joshua M. Bernard. The controversy revolves around the fact that photographer Julie Jacobson took a snapshot of the Corporal's last moments of life after he had been severely wounded  by a grenade. The Associated Press decided to publish this photo despite the family's wishes of privacy. The big question here is: was the Associated Press cruel in ignoring the family's request and releasing the photograph?


Although this is a very polemical subject, in my opinion, the AP was in a very difficult position. I believe this image should be published because it effectively shows the hardships soldiers have to face during periods of war. Every citizen should be aware about what the men and women of our country are experiencing in order to protect our country. On the contrary to the family's opinions, I see this photo as a sign of respect. This picture shows that individual's story and suffering. People should be aware of the way he died because this shows what actually happens during war time. If every single picture ever taken of people suffering had to have consent of their family's, there would hardly be any visuals to accompany history. For example, there are pictures from various disasters around the world that will always reman in our memory such as the images taken on September 11th. If we didn't have access to these images the world would have never known the real magnitude of the situation.




Man Plummeting to his Death from the Twin Towers



Composition #6: Lock the Focus

A neat technique that can be used while taking a picture is locking the cmaera's focus to create a sharp picture of off centered subjects.(In other words this is a way of making the subject stand at more by blurring the background.)

Guidelines:.

1. Center the subject.

2. Press the shutter button half way down

3. Re-frame your picture (while still holding the shutterbutton.)

4. Finish by pressing the shutter button all the way.