Dear class,

As media students, you will probably be asked to present your work in visual form. These may often include the use of photographs, photographs in text, visual design etc.  As all of you have the opportunities to make presentations on a daily basis, I will recommend that you seize these opportunities to learn about the usage of photographs. Usually, what is implied by the photographs is equally if not more important than the literal meaning interpreted by the viewer of the photographs directly. Yes, semiotics is equally important when it comes to the interpretation of photographs.

Now, let’s consider the following factors:

•  Semiotics: Semiotics is a rather abstract term and I will rather describe this field of study in simpler terms. Usually when a viewer looks at a photograph, his or her interpretation goes beyond what is shown. Just think of any movie poster that you have came across. How do you know- at a single glance- the type of movie that it is and the kind of content that you will expect? And more often than not, you will realise that you are right after watching the movie. How does this happen? This is because the photographs that you have seen previously have been somewhat stored in your memories as prior knowledge. When you view a new photograph, you will tend to associate what you know with what you have just seen.  Knowing this concept, we can – as presenters- put it to good use in the visual aspects of your presentations as well as any form of written communication that involves photographs. This is because your audience are like us, with their own prior knowledge. On the whole, some of our prior knowledge are somewhat similar. For example, all of us know that smiling indicates happiness and crying indicates sadness. Such  similar interpretations usually cut across different cultures.
• Humour: It can be observed that some of you are already applying humour in your presentations. So, do read this section for more insights. For those of you who have not, this section will give you some ideas on how to apply humour using photographs and in this case, images. Some common techniques that are commonly employed are the use of comic strips and captions below photographs, which is good. However, most of these images/photographs are usually retrieved from external sources. As presenters, using photographs that are taken by yourself and utilising your creativity to come up with insightful and thought-provoking captions can be refreshing and interesting as well. Try it and see.
• Factors that affect the mood of the photograph: In the process of using photographs in your presentation, it will be good to note that there are certain aspects of the photographs that can be changed to affect the mood of your presentation. For example, turning a colour photograph into black and white gives it a somewhat serious nature. Changing the colour of a photograph using sepia tone will give the photograph a somewhat nostalgic feel.

Another factor that you can change is the contrast of the photograph. When the contrast is increased, it will bring out the vibrant colours of the photograph. This is especially so for images where there are a wide variety of colours in the picture. Do note that contrast is different from the brightness of photographs. Increasing the brightness of photographs does not accentuate the colour differences in photographs, but changing the contrast does. However, both the brightness and contrast of photographs are often considered together when visual artists and designers made changes to their works.

Another aspect of enhancing the aesthetical value of pictures will be – as mentioned in my previous post - cropping. Try to crop the images in different shapes and angles to see if there’s a particular style that is appropriate for the presentation. The best way to do this is through trial-and-error.

Do note that when it comes to  journalistic writing (especially in the newsroom), no manipulation of photos is allowed as realism must be strictly adhered to. Do take note.

• Sequential photography shots: Sometimes, it might be useful to use photographs sequentially. For example, if you are presenting a topic that is somewhat instructional in nature, showing the sequence using photographs might be a good idea. Some flow charts can also be substituted with photographs but do leave the indicating arrows intact.  However, sequential photographic shots often have the drawback of overshadowing the texts on the same slide as well as consuming too much space. So, do ensure that this does not happen. Text and photographs/images are often vying for space, so it’s up to you as a presenter to strike a balance between the two.
• Photographs as backdrop of slides: Using photographs as a backdrop to your slides is also a good technique. This is especially so when you have a photograph that represents a specific thematic element of the presentation content. For example, if you are presenting a session on the school’s open house, it will be good to use the school’s logo as the backdrop. However, there are some areas that we need to steer away from, one of which is the fact that the colours cannot be too dark. This can be controlled by changing the “transparency/opacity” of the image. If the photograph is too dark, there might exists a possibility that the words blend in with the photographs, thus making the text unreadable. Do avoid this. As you practice this technique, you will gradually improve over time. Practice is key.

On the whole, whatever techniques that you use, do ensure that every photograph always reinforces the content that you are presenting. Do not include photographs that are irrelevant, no matter how much you want to put it in the presentation. It’s good to remember that aesthetical value is always secondary to the presenting content itself.

What you present and how you present is key.

Dear class, 

During one of our class discussions, some of you have brought up the concept of “Show, do not tell” when it comes to the reports by the media. I figure most of us will interpret this as a neutral, factual reporting of the media and not making any aspects of the report subjective.

Along the same vein, the concept of “Show, do not tell” can also be applied in the field of photography. Photographs often have a strong presence even in the absence of captions. They have the ability to evoke emotions while allowing every one of us to interpret the pictures independently of one another. This might be a bit constraining when it comes to the field of photojournalism (since the pictures are taken primarily to describe an event or a happening), but there’s still space left open for interpretation in this aspect as well. Once again – as mentioned in my previous post – composition is important since this is the most crucial factor when it comes to enabling the viewers to interpret the message of the photograph.

In a world where we are constantly being bombarded by noise, photography grants us that silence that enables us to have peace of mind. However, some advertisers are beginning to use photography as a form of visual attraction to engage our attention (when often we do not wish to). What begins as a form of art has now been turned into a device for consumerism, which is a very regretful development.

Nevertheless, it’s undeniable that the concept of “Show, do not tell” applies well when it comes to photography. If not, advertisers will not maximise the usage of such concept in recent years. Indeed, they are beginning to realise that a picture indeed speaks a thousand words.      

Photographs are most impactful when left alone. It is unbelievable how much we like to add information to photographs, Editors place captions below them, photojournalists adds an article alongside them and image editors edit them often to enhance the photo’s visual appeal.  It’s understandable that all of this is done to align the photographs to the reports that the media wish to make. However, at the same time, the impact of the photo is reduced since adding information in such ways reduces the number of possibilities of interpretations open to the viewers.

Hence, “Show, do not tell” should be the motto of every photographer.

Such is the essence of photography.