Photography should develop people’s capacity to see from all sides

As the party faithful gather for the 52nd national conference of the ANC in Polokwane, South Africans will face a ceaseless barrage of stereotypical political photos in the media.

“We are obliged to experiment,” proposed Alexander Rodchenko. It was 1928 and the multi-talented Russian artist was involved in a heated public debate over the daring verticality of his photographs.

Not only was he accused of plagiarising visual experiments common in Europe, he was also denounced as a proponent of “bourgeois formalism”, this in an era when Russian ideologues railed against “fake setups that obstruct the meaning of photography and cheapen reality”.

Rodchenko defended himself bravely: “Photography — the new, rapid, concrete reflector of the world — should surely undertake to show the world from all vantage points, and to develop people’s capacity to see from all sides.”

Thoroughly immersed in the possibilities of what it meant to be progressive and modern, he rejected the horizontal view — “of man standing on Earth, looking straight ahead” — in favour of pictures that jolted the senses.

This photo, part of a series depicting “New Moscow”, showcases his preferred oblique style, of seeing things “from above down” and “from below up”. Unfortunately, Rodchenko’s particular way of looking didn’t win him many friends. Three years after joining the influential October circle of artists, he was expelled in 1932.

Years later, the distinction of Rodchenko’s vision has been retrieved. Earlier this month a private European collector paid R628000 at a Christie’s auction in London for a vintage print of this photo — a duplicate also appears in a collection in New York’s Museum of Modern Art.

Although small change compared with the R19.2million paid for a rare photo by Edward Steichen last year, and not without irony given Rodchenko’s strong Leninist views, it is a vindication of a life committed to showing more than the plainly factual. — Sean O’Toole

Tips on photography

By Paul F. Moloney.


There are times when I desire to do photography but the outdoor weather and light are not cooperative, so I turn to indoor documentary or still life photography.

The common term for this type of photography is "tabletop."

I set up a table to avoid working from my knees. I arrange the elements I want in the pictures, then exploit my creative notions.

I still employ my basic compositional and lighting practices. I compose the elements for eyes traveling from left to right to the primary subject. I prefer positioning the light at a 45-degree angle to my subject. These, however, must not be construed as rules. They simply are my personal choices, recommendations.

I do encourage everyone to keep these types of pictures quite simple and close-up. Often, we cannot see the trees within the forest. Universality comes with simplicity. Simplicity makes the photographs easily read and understood.

However, our way and viewpoint of life today is quite complex. We've speeded up everything, sometimes losing control of ourselves.

So I suggest if you are wanting to do tabletop photography that you start out with few elements, simple composition and carefully placed light, either electronic or ambient.

The more intense the light you use, the smaller aperture and greater depth of field you can achieve. The closer the light, the more contrast it gives. The farther it is from your subject, the more diffused, less contrast you will see in your photograph.

Depth-of-field also is an important tool in this type of photography. The closer you are to the subject, the less the depth of field. Distance from your subject increases the depth-of-field.

After understanding the basics, you can integrate more elements into your photos. Multi-element photographs can be very rewarding and exciting for the viewers.

Paul F. Moloney's monthly series of Photo Tips offers ideas to improve the quality of your photographs.

Moloney has always "wondered" about life, marveled at and admired the beauty God has granted the world -- and "wandered," roamed, roved with his cameras. All photos © Paul F. Moloney.