Final paper proposal

                                                                                 Condon, Katie

                                                                                                Junior Theory

                                                                                                Lazarus, Jason

                                                                                                November 7, 2012

Final paper proposal

Thesis: The element of chance is inherent in photography. When this necessary component is eliminated, the product is no longer a photograph.

In photography, the camera serves as the extension of one’s body. But we can only guide the camera so far until it acquires a body and mind of its own. Because of this, it is clear from the point of a photograph’s creation that the concept of control does not fully belong to the photographer.

We can think of each photograph as an experiment in which independent variables such as the function of the camera, the action of what is in front of the frame, and the movement of light, help determine the outcome of a photograph. This applies to both analog and digital photography.

Chance conditions are rooted in the origins of the medium, as the chemical processes were anything but stable upon inception. With the normalization of a process, a new one sprouts, and this continues to occur today.

Photography is acknowledged for its gift of chance through the term “the decisive moment.” This is a contributing factor to allowing photographs to be historicized in an iconic manner. This alone separates photography from other media.

Certain artists have embraced chance in art and have engaged in chance operations, (the term coined by John Cage). This is true with artists working with materials including film and photographic paper such as Walead Beshty and with artists working with content such as Ray Metzker. On the other hand, photographers like Gregory Crewdson exercise the greatest amount of control one can achieve on set. However, as established previously, independent variables make it impossible to control the entirety of a photograph.

The second that chance conditions are completely lost, the product is no longer a photograph. We are now in an age where this is possible. For example, if one was to appropriate imagery and alter it through an interface such as Adobe Photoshop, this is no longer a photograph. This is not to say that appropriation is not photography (ie. Richard Prince, Cowboy, valid photograph). However, this is to say that with the use of the Internet, one can exercise full control over which image to choose, and further, one can appropriate it without distorting the original image. Historically, appropriation usually has a significant deal in altering an image. If this is done through a program such as Adobe Photoshop, each move can be decisively planned and executed. Although there is room for human error, there is a full power to eliminate it, unlike hand made changes to appropriated images.