Unknown vs. Familiar Space: When photography was invented, it became a way to document and reveal the specific aspects of both familiar and faraway places. Imagine a familiar place. Imagine a faraway place. How would you use photographs to convey the difference? Can you imagine any places that have been “touched” very little by humans? How might you photograph them?
Familiar places are sometimes harder to photograph than unknown places for me in certain ways. I am so used to always seeing the overall picture sometimes that I get caught up in trying to photograph small details or strange views on it and miss the overall essence. That being said, a familiar place would probably have closer pictures that show being more at ease and knowledgeable about the location, while a faraway place might have more sweeping wide photos showing the place as a whole, establishing shots as the photographer creates a frame of reference on the area he or she is visiting. They might gradually pull in to details as the photographer gets acclimated to the area.
When I imagine a place that has remained outside of human influence, I think of deep within the rain forest or being at the bottom of the ocean. If I were photographing a place untouched by humans, I would try to capture the wild beauty of the place without imposing my presence in the photos- try to keep them as natural and untamed as I could. Perhaps photographing strange creatures or plants that I found in a way that would make them appear even more bizarre and contrasting with familiar plants and animals. Personally, I don’t think editing the photos would be a good choice here either, because that would be adding human influence and decisions into a photograph that was meant to exclude them. Show the world as it is, not as you wish it were.
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