I am still amazed by the simple truths of Freeman Patterson in his book Photography and the Art of Seeing. One thing that strikes me as relevant to photojournalism in this context is the idea that whatever we decide to focus our lenses on must be placed there with an emphasis on expressive content.
"Thinking of subject matter as being expressive is in its own right is more important in photography than in any other visual medium, because every time a photographer picks up a camera, he [or she] is confronting already-existing shapes, hues, and textures" (68).
In photojournalism, the best images -- those that have immediacy, intensity and intimacy -- have a high level of expressive content in them. This makes sense, as well when thinking about decisive moment photography and how expressive it is in news photography.
Freeman Patterson goes on to list some of the things relevant to understanding how "subject matter expresses, rather than thinking about what you can can express" in an image. I will comment on the ideas as they appear in the book.
- Seeing expressive content "puts the emphasis on seeing things outside of yourself."
I have noticed in my teaching that many students seem to organize themselves around presumptions, preconceptions, and pre-visualized expectations of what instructors, other photographers and editors expect to see from them in terms of visual content. This is only natural, because in order to learn effective visual storytelling me must rely on what has worked in the past. The issue many students and developing photojournalists struggle with is in the are of developing a sense of personal style.
The problem with this approach to photojournalism is that it can become formulaic and produce cliche images. Putting the emphasis on seeing outside of self means that the photojournalist allows themselves to let go of preconcieved notions of what something should look like.
- Seeing expressive content enriches "sensory experience and stimulates the imagination."
This idea gets at the heart of what "expressive content" is all about. It means that we must intuitively observe the world in away that recognizes and anticipates the moods, tones, textures, gestures, and other compositional elements that best reveal the complexity and integrity of the subject matter.
- Seeing expressive content means that you are seeing first and responding second.
I have found that digital photography encourages many photographers to be more inclined to shoot first and "see" later. There is this assumption that if you shoot a lot of images your chances of getting the perfect image increases. In some ways, this attitude is like trying to game the process of seeing and thinking about expressive content. We need to enpower ourselves with this new technology by slowing down the tendency to grab frames rather than think about what the subject matter expresses to us in a meaningful and rich way.
I think one of the keys to understanding expressive content in photojournalism is the ability to recognize the potential emotional power images hold over us. Ultimately, as we dedicate ourselves to making images with expressive content not only will more of the essence of the subject matter emerge but also a great deal about our own unique identities become revealed.