Photo Story By: W.EUGENE SMITH (for week 5)

(Please complete all readings and viewings by Week 5, Day 3; no immediate additional work is required other than to enjoy the information below.  Please note that I will regularly refer back to this post throughout the term and expect you to be familiar with the photographer's work.)

Hi PHOA113,

Our Week 5 module expands on the idea of creating a full piece for an exhibition.  Think of this process like a photo story.  How must a photographer go about finding a photo story?  Once the photographer has found his or her story, how must one develop a story?  What is needed to tell a visual story?  Similar to literature, the visual story needs a beginning, middle and an end.  In photographic terms, these works translate to “The Lead”, “The Transition” and “The Close”.  How does one work with a subject? 

This week we are looking at W. Eugene Smith, an American photojournalist from Wichita, Kansas.  He was born in 1918 and passed away in 1978. Smith worked for Newsweek magazine as well as for Life magazine.  Smith is most known for his brutal images taken during World War II, which were shot during his time with Life magazine.  

When I was a student photographer, I was very influenced by W. Eugene Smith’s photo essay titled Country Doctor from 1948.  Smith photographed Ernest Guy Ceriani, a doctor for 2,000 people within the Rocky Mountains in Colorado.  These images were also taken for Life magazine. The image below is what one would call the lead image in Smith’s photo story; it starts off the series of images taken for this photo story:


Click on the link below to learn more about W. Eugene Smith's life and his work:

http://firstyearsfocusandfire.blogspot.com/2013/06/photog-friday-w-eugene-smith.html

Due Week 5, Day 3