Presentation Week 5: From Roger Fenton's combat photographs to Robert Capa's war photography

Similarities and differences

The similarity between all the photographers is that they are war photographers. They capture images of armed conflict and life in war-torn areas. Roger Fenton took photographs of Crimean war in 1855, Alexander Gardner and Mathew Brady took photographs of American Civil war and Robert Capa took photography of Spanish Civil war.

 Roger Fenton. Col. Doherty, Officers and  Men, 13th Light Dragoons

Roger Fenton was one of the great photographers in the mid of 1800 for works of art on Crimean war. Due to the size and cumbersome nature of his photographic equipment he was only able to produce pictures of unmoving objects, mostly posed pictures. But he also photographed the landscape. Fenton avoided making pictures of dead, injured or mutilated soldiers[1].

A sharpshooter's last sleep, Gettysburg

Home of a Rebel Sharpshooter

Alexander Gardner and Mathew Brady’s photographs have some similarities in style, due to Gardner worked for Brady for several years. When they began photographing Civil war, they frequently rearranged scenes. Gardner was known to place a rifle beside a body to improve a photo’s composition[2]. At Gettyburg, one of his subjects even performed double duty:  In A Sharpshooter's Last Sleep, he was a Union soldier, in Home of a Rebel Sharpshooter, a Southerner. Gardner, unphased by the death and destruction around him, dragged the body 40 yards on a blanket and cocked the corpse's head toward the camera for the second shot. Brady, for his part, once inserted the image of an absentee officer into a group portrait and then reshot the picture. 

Soldier guarding arsenal Washington DC, 1862

Most famous photography of Capa is “Falling soldier” Looking at Capa’s photography during the war, it shows a lot of peoples actions and expressions. All shots were taken up close to capture the action or expression[3]. 

 Loyalist Militiaman at the Moment of Death, Cerro Muriano, September 5, 1936.

Gardner, Fenton and Brady took more optimistic outlook when shooting their photographs. Fenton, Gardner, and Brady were all known to shoot more landscape style photos, which failed to prove the true pain and agony which war entails. Though it can be argued that Brady shared more similarities in style with Capa because he took many photographs of dead soldiers, Capa's were more action styled which set him apart. The photo of the Falling Solider was the one photo that was not meant to shock people, but gave viewers a image of the realities of war.

Juyung Bae - 100662916
Michael Wong - 100664311
Jasmine Wu - 100666507

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[1] History of art: history of photography. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://www.all-art.org/history658_photography4-2.html

[2] Kulman, Linda. (2001). Dodging bullets and editors. Retrieved from http://www.usnews.com/usnews/doubleissue/photography/war.html

[3] Whelan, Richard. (2002). Robert capa - in love and war. Retrieved from http://www.pbs.org/wnet/americanmasters/episodes/robert-capa/in-love-and-war/47/