HW1_A Father, A Son, A Disease, and A Camera

“A Father, A Son, A Disease, and A Camera” is the title of the series of images from the New York Times Lens Blog that I have decided to discuss. The title for this piece is a very powerful one. It very clearly and quickly sets the tone for the images that are about to be seen. It sets a tone of family, love, sadness, and passion. The photographs in this story revolve around one subject, the father, a man fighting through a tough disease that is taking over his mind and body. There are few long shots and more close ups, some are even portraits. The photographs follow the father throughout his journey, making his way through life as this disease takes a toll on him and his loved ones. The sequence for these photos is very important to it’s story. The first photo is one of the father with his son, the photographer of the series, this sets the tone for the emotional series of photos to come. Then the story really begins with a photo of the father in the water, and then with him in a local pools locker room, somewhere he might of been during his younger years of life. The series then goes on by showing the father going through some everyday struggles and then the painful days and events that lead up to the end of his disease. The last photos shows the family taking the fathers ashes to a place where he could over see their old family home and where he would be close to his mother’s burial. This series could not be in any other order, if it was the story would of been hard to follow and the suspense would have been gone. All the photos in this series were in black and white, but I found that the rule of thirds was a big part of its great composition. Figure to ground was also at great use in this series, which is part of the reason why the subject in these photos stands out so well. The use of Centering the dominant eye is also very captivating in a few of these photos, giving the face of the father that dramatic and intense look and feel. These things helped the photographer tell his story by giving him a way to get his subject to stand out from the background and in general. Photo number 14 is one that I love. In this photo the father is receiving his last shave by one of his caretakers who is also holding his head up. The rule of thirds draws your eye to the man being shaved. Figure to ground is utilized in a great way in this photo allowing both the subject and the caretaker to stand out from the background. This series displayed its emotion very clearly and was very well executed. I found this series to be a great tribute to the man who will live on through these photographs.