essay by Brian Winston - chapter 4

Brian Winston's discussion on the complexity of the photographic image is really excellent. He deconstructs the 'authenticity' of photos such as Robert Doisneau's 'The Kiss', the W. Eugene Smith photo of Albert Schwitzer and Robert Capa's 'Death in Spain' to show the naivety of Arago and Gay-Lussac's claims of the 'scientific evidence' that photographs can produce.

His discussion on The Ax Fight (1975) is thought provoking and in some ways articulates what I have been thinking about the use of images - namely that intepretations rely on inferences made by the photographer. As Winston says, 'in short, we are relying on Chagnon far more than would seem to be the case at first sight. Moreover it is his interpretation which tells us how to read the incident...The problem with The Ax Fight is not Chagnon's commentary but the fact that he is relying on the scientific heritage of the camera to make a strong claim that he is presenting evidence of the real world. However, the claim is built on the sands of inference rather than the rock of objectivity'.

I think his weak realist position is perhaps far more plausible because it invites the reader to examine the issue of authenticity with each image and therefore become a far more discerning viewer, ultimately helping the discipline of image based research.

Cheers

Clare