摄影史论文

Portrait Photography

ARTH 345Dr. Jillian LernerApril 8, 2016

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The Charm Of Mrs. Cameron’s

Portrait Photography

Portrait photography has brought us unique visual attraction for few reasons. First of all, it is regarded with inherent charm, which could well demonstrate both humans’ personality and essence. Eminent artists of all ages have had insightful and profound views about portrait photography, and the artworks of many portrait photographers have had similar enchantment as well, which applied portrait photography a sort of historical tones. Secondly, it involves subtle elements that everyone could establish some connections between, being both in the position of photographing and being photographed. Each person in this society can be aware of the universality of portrait photography, and be attracted by its glamour. Thirdly, we need to use different lights and prop arrangements to achieve different tones, sensitivities, shutters and so on, for the sake of finishing shooting different pictures. The scenes could be as small as a head portrait, or as huge as an entire figure portrait. What portrait photography requires are the combination of skill and inspiration, as well as the integration of subjectivities and objectivities. This kind of photography filled with spirituality can always impel people from all walks of life hold special preference to it, and make them try to enjoy the happiness it brings. As a result, this career owns infinitive development potential. There is a saying that, let us use lens to explain the meaning of life. Indeed, the shots of

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portrait photography not only print live people on photo paper, but also explain the thriving vitality of life.

America and France were the two countries in the west that well developed in portrait photography field in the early period. While the early-stage British portrait photographer — Mrs. Cameron was the first one who advocated expressing the figure’s character throughout the history of portrait photography. Because of that, she then became a great feminine portrait photographer to precisely model figure’s soul in the nineteenth century.1 Back in 1863, when Mrs. Cameron was forty-eight years old, her daughter sent her a camera, which entirely changed her rest of life. At this time photography had only been in existence for twenty years. Among her nearly twenty-year photographic creations, Mrs. Cameron ingeniously created an style that she shot the “God” or “human” acted by characters wearing make-up in Greek Mythology. For instance, her young son was dressed up as a Cupid by her, and her nephew was as a devil. She also shot a lot of pictures for a famous book named < King Arthur’s Life-Story > by Mr. Johnson.2 However, a more significant photography kind Mrs. Cameron has left in the history is celebrity portrait. We can even say that, as an amateur photographer, Mrs. Cameron can be written into the annals of the world photographers, completely due to her great contribution in the field of portrait photography.

1 Ford, Colin, Julia Margaret Cameron: A Critical Biography, The J. Paul Getty Museum, ISBN:

0-89236-707-5 (London: National Portrait Gallery Publications, 2003), 5.

2 Rosenblum, Naomi, A History of Women Photographers, Third ed. (New York: Abbeville Press

Publishers, 2010), 47.

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Mrs. Cameron owns such an acute observation on the figure’s characteristic. Her artworks are not only able to catch the appearance feature of the characters, but also show the inner personality, which means they grasp the so-called essence of the character. Her exploration, no matter from the appearance to the mind in-depth, or from the exterior to the interior, could be regarded as a natural talent. Talent could be said being inherent, but the more valuable is the photographer's soul and her way and attitude towards the artworks. She is the pathfinder of using the “Close-up” to show the figure’s personality. Mrs. Cameron wrote in her that, “All I concerned is how to honestly record the interior and appearance of the figure being photographed, when there is such a person standing in front of my camera … The achieved photo seems like the incarnation of a prayer.”3 During the shooting, she was absorbed in her observation, understanding and feeling to the subject, and penetrating into the deep heart of the character. Besides, Mrs. Cameron’s works are not stick to only one pattern. Sometimes she deliberately chose the low-quality lens in order to achieve the fuzzy outline of figure. She even reduced the exposure to create a sort of theatrical effect on the celebrity’s face.

Mrs. Cameron's another well known artwork possesses a close-up composition. Although the character is getting old, he surprisingly still owns gleaming eyes, tightened lips, flying white hair, highly distinctive eyebrows and deep wrinkles on his forehead … All these features illustrate that Sir John Herschel must be a quite

3 Cox, Julian; Ford, Colin, Julia Margaret Cameron, the complete photographs (Los Angeles: Getty

Publications, 2002), 175.

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thoughtful and personalized man. In fact, the key of photographing people is just to grasp the characteristic of character. Mrs. Cameron utilized strong lighting contrast and dense shade to highlight and strengthen Herschel's personality, although the techniques of photography were so backward during that time period. For the technical aspect, however, the focus of this wonderful portrait is not clear enough, which definitely cannot be compared with what modern digital cameras do, no matter from the quality or the aesthetics of the photo. Whereas this does not affect the artistic expression towards Herschel — a grand astronomer, inventor and also photographer at all. In short, a fundamental and important point for portrait photography is that it should be the product of the subject’s soul. A photographer has a deep connection with his or her works, which can be explained as the performance and communication of the soul. Some people said that her work is such a \"technical failure\how to use the camera first\". But Mrs. Cameron replied: “When focusing, I will not adjust to a more clear focus if the image is already very beautiful in my eyes.”4 Obviously, she is a creator who pays attention to her intuition and uses it as the starting point, especially her focus on the emerging mind from the character's face, and this is the only thing she wants to shoot. No matter under that period’s condition that pictorial photography was quite prevailing, or even in today's view, this is always a perfect portrait which is vivid and impressive.

4 Gernsheim, H. Julia Margaret Cameron; her life and photographic work (London: Fountain Press;

distributed in the USA by Transatlantic Arts, 1948).

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It is such a piece of work which does not own the bright colour and also the complicated facial modification, but can still deeply attract the audience. The audience will feel immersed when seeing the work with a pure vision. In the artwork, such an old man stands in front of the audience, making people think of his story. Looking at the side of his face, his deep eyes seem like seeking something or thinking about something. There is a saying that more pure the picture is, more imagination will emerge in people's mind. The audience seems to be able to capture the moment when the picture was taken. The photographer is also thinking about something, thinking to describe a story through the old man's face and eyes. With the emotional heart to see it, you can feel the real moment. People could become intoxicated with this realistic moment that fills people's mind with a myriad of thoughts and ideas, due to the fact that it can dig out the inner world of the character being photographed.5 Indeed, the key of this piece of work is not about how superior the technical level of the photographer since the focus is not clear, and it only reveals the intense contrast with strong lights and heavy shadows. Nonetheless, when the viewer is watching it, they will have the sensation that all these things are not important. All these factors cannot influence the artistic expression of Herschel — an astronomer, inventor and photographer. The core of its attraction is that, the artwork should be the product of the soul of the photographer and the subject being photographed, which is the most fundamental and important thing.

5 Cheng Xiang, The Most Powerful Portrait Photographers In the 20th Century (Jiangsu: Wenyi Press

Publishers, Jun 1, 2005), 180.

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In that era, portrait photography is not a so-called emerging art. The portrait of a person is a kind of art which draws lessons from the traditional painting art, since photography was born. People in the past always held the view that photography and the traditional art of painting could not be mentioned in the same breath, and portrait photography was criticized by a number of people. However, portrait photographers’ great creation and contribution have gradually broke n this long-time prejudice. Mrs. Cameron and her portrait with manifestation of spirit, make the bias that portrait cannot surpass the painting become the past. Mrs. Cameron is quite clear about her purpose in the photography career, for instance, how to enter the spirit world of the object through the portrait photography, meanwhile ensuring the status of photography as art. Comparing her portrait with Hill, Adamson and Nadal's portrait, the viewer can confirm that the portrait photography of Mrs. Cameron has gradually returned to the identity of photography itself. She was acutely aware that photography should be back in itself, rather than blindly following the painting. Actually, Her representative artwork — can prove that portrait photography has already reached or even passed the portrait painting.

On the other hand, the famous American female photographer Cunningham is also similar with Mrs. Cameron. The common exploration from the appearance of characters into the bottom of their heart, is the soul of the photographers in that era. Not relying on the artistic decoration and the delicate composition, but to seize the soul, the artist made the portrait under a thick layer of mysterious veil, as well as owning the inimitable

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charm.6 Indeed, a good work is not about how exquisite it is, or how much visual sense of beauty it gives to the viewer. To sum up, the charm of a work is that it can resonate with us. From Sir Herschel’s attitude, we can feel his inner world, and we can even grasp the idea of Mrs. Cameron, which is trying to show the meaning of the picture. It is the audience’s spiritual resonance that an outstanding work can take people into the artistic conception of the work, to feel the soul of the character in that time period.

The charm of portrait photography can also be credit to the charm of the portrait photographer, since they are the propaganda of the beauty, and the artists who create the soul. Their understanding of a photo, is also the interpretation of life. From unvarnished portrait photography of portrait photographers at the end of the 19th century and early 20th century, to contemporary colourful and brilliant portrait photography of the new generation of photographers, they all give off a sort of unique charm. Their particular insights of human nature and life are influencing the people from generation to generation. Capturing the moment of truth, seizing the fading light, and recording the eternal life are those photographers’ pursuit of their entire life.

6 Zhongan Yu, Guide of Portrait Photography — The Lecture of Photography Celebrities. (China: Renmin

Press Publishers, Jan 1, 2007), 12.

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Bibliography:

[1] Ford, Colin, Julia Margaret Cameron: A Critical Biography, The J. Paul Getty Museum, ISBN: 0-89236-707-5 (London: National Portrait Gallery Publications, 2003), 5.

[2] Rosenblum, Naomi, A History of Women Photographers, Third ed. (New York: Abbeville Press Publishers, 2010), 47.

[3] Cox, Julian; Ford, Colin, Julia Margaret Cameron, the complete photographs (Los Angeles: Getty Publications, 2002), 175.

[4] Gernsheim, H. Julia Margaret Cameron; her life and photographic work (London: Fountain Press; distributed in the USA by Transatlantic Arts, 1948).

[5] Cheng Xiang, The Most Powerful Portrait Photographers In the 20th Century (Jiangsu: Wenyi Press Publishers, Jun 1, 2005), 180.

[6] Zhongan Yu, Guide of Portrait Photography — The Lecture of Photography Celebrities. (China: Renmin Press Publishers, Jan 1, 2007), 12.

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