David Bey’s approach to using photography to using photography as a way of finding his voice is the use of photography to tell a story. He himself is hearing impaired so like most individuals who are impaired he made up for his disability by using another sense more. In his case this was his vision through his skill of photography.  He is one of those “A picture is worth a thousand words types”. One of his works is his Night Coming Tenderly, Black collection of 25 black and white photographs. They show no people and have a dream like look to them. The works are supposed to be from the perspective of a runaway slave who is attempting to make their way north through the network of escape routes known as the Underground Railroad. One image specifically from the project that is interesting is #25(Lake Eyrie and Sky). The photo shows a large view of the lake itself and the sky; the feeling of freedom is throughout the image, especially when you noticed the horizon.  

Carrie Mae uses photography to give a narrative as well. Her kitchen table project is a work that’s supposed to give a story about one of the centers of any household, the kitchen table. The basic understanding of most individuals is that a man is the king of his household, to rule like some kingdom which involves taking care of his subjects (Wife and children) protecting said kingdom and maintaining it (paying bills and repairing any damages). Looking at it like that I suppose one could imagine a woman as a lady/lord ruling over a set amount of land known as the kitchen and the table is her keep. I feel that the works really show the influence that woman has in her own household even if she may not be aware. One image I found interesting from the collection was Woman daughter and makeup. In the photo it depicts Ms. Mae with a child (most likely her daughter) sitting at the kitchen table and she is teaching her daughter how to apply makeup. It really brings out the importance of a mothers duty which isn’t just to her husband but also her children. It’s up to the viewer to figure out what happened prior to the photo; did the daughter approach the mother and was curious about makeup? Did the mother make time to teach her daughter this after a long day’s work? Did she notice her daughter getting older and felt it was time to teach her? Maybe she simply recalled her own mother teaching her at that age and decided it was time for her to do the same.

I find both Photographers approaches to be similar in the using photographs to tell a story; especially a series of them. Mae’s works or at least her kitchen table series seems to really focus in on family while Bey’s Night Coming Tenderly, Black collection and works seem to focus more on moments in black history and the community as a whole. I feel that the power of photography “to re-shape the world” as stated by Bey is using photography to get the viewer to see a specific narrative and the photographers intent when they see a photo. Depending on lighting, angle, and other factors the same photo can tell a very different story.