Photography

I thought that our lecture the other night with Mr. Oxton was extremely interesting. Prior to this class I really had no experience or knowledge concerning the issues surrounding gender specific photographs. The class focused on both the issues that come with being a male taking certain picture, and the issues that come with being a female in the photography business. It was clear to me after this lecture, that both genders have to deal with issues concerning the photographs that they publish. Usually the issues present themselves when a certain picture is misinterpreted by the viewer. It is a very complicated issue because every person that sees a picture has the ability to interpret it in their own way. It is almost impossible for the artist to present a picture that everybody views in the same light. This presents many conflicts for both males and females.

Before this lecture I always thought that the photography was a female dominated business. I think that the reason I thought this, was because on most of my social media accounts, it is mostly girls who post the artsy pictures. Also I have grown up with girls who simply care more about taking pictures than my guy friends. For some reason I have always connatated photography as almost a feminine hobby or activity. It was a total surprise to me when I learned the how many issues that females deal with in the business. One part of the lecture that stuck out to me was when Mr. Oxton showed that when Nikon released their brand new camera to a specific group of professional photographers, they were male. It absolutely mind boggling to me that there was not one female on the list. Something else that I thought was interesting was the specific types of photography that women are drawn to. It was surprising to me that not many women are drawn to landscaping photography.

It was interesting to learn about a business where men have to deal with issues similar to women. Before this lecture I never really thought about who took a certain picture. I would simply see a picture and interpret it without thinking about who took it. It was disturbing but not shocking that men cannot take the same sexual pictures that women can take. It was an interesting point when we talked about how it is okay for a girl at gov's to publish a picture of another girl half naked, but if a guy were to take than it would not be acceptable.

It is clear that both males and females have to deal with their own issues concerning interpretation. Lots of the problems do not exist within the business, but on the outside by the viewers. I think that our society has to make changes concerning media before people can start viewing photography as art instead of misinterpreting it.