Photojournalism: Haneena Riyaz K

It’s impact on Architecture S9 A | 12 | RLASEBC028

Introduction
The topic "Photojournalism: Its impact on Architecture" could examine how photojournalism has influenced the way that
architecture is perceived and represented. It could explore how photographers have documented and reported on the
built environment, and how their images have shaped public understanding and appreciation of architecture. This
research could be conducted through a variety of methods, including analysis of historical and contemporary
photojournalistic images and interviews with photojournalists and architects.

Aim
To generate new insights and perspectives on architectural photojournalism and its role in shaping the future of
architecture.

Research Questions
1. The influence of photojournalism and its expression on contemporary architectural trends.

2. How do architecture and photojournalism influence public perception?

Objectives
1. To identify the potential benefits, challenges, and risks of architectural photojournalism and its role in shaping the
future of architecture and how they can be mitigated or addressed.

2. To identify and analyze the specific ways in which photojournalism has influenced the field of architecture.

3. To examine the role that photojournalism has played in shaping public perceptions of architecture.

4. Analyzing how the digital medium plays an important role in the representation of the visual medium in architecture.

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Relevance of the study
The research on the topic "Photojournalism: Its impact on Architecture" is relevant for a variety of audiences, as it helps
to deepen our understanding of how media influences our perceptions and understanding of the built environment. This
is particularly relevant in today's society, where media plays a central role in how we consume and interpret
information.

The study of photojournalism's role in shaping our understanding and appreciation of architecture is relevant for a
number of different reasons, from the perspectives of professionals to the wider public. It can help architects and other
professionals understand how their work is portrayed and perceived by the public, as well as promote and advance the
field.

Scope and limitations

1. This study will focus on the role that photojournalists have played in representing and communicating the stories
and histories of architecture.

2. The study will explore how photojournalism has influenced the design and construction of architecture, with
particular emphasis on the visual impact of architectural photography.

3. The scope of the study is limited to the role of photojournalism in architecture and does not consider other forms of
visual media.

4. The study does not consider the role of technology in photography.

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 METHODOLOGY
DATA
COLLECTION

SECONDARY PRIMARY DATA

DATA

UNDERSTANDING PHOTOJOURNALISM- DEFINITION, CASE STUDIES ON FAMOUS INTERVIEWS AND SURVEY WITH ARCHITECTS AND
EVOLUTION, PURPOSE PHOTOGRAPHS NON-ARCHITECTS

Objective 1
TO IDENTIFY THE POTENTIAL BENEFITS, CHALLENGES,
Objective 2
AND RISKS OF ARCHITECTURAL PHOTOJOURNALISM
AND ITS ROLE IN SHAPING THE FUTURE OF TO IDENTIFY AND ANALYZE THE SPECIFIC WAYS IN PHOTOJOURNALISM HAS PLAYED A SIGNIFICANT ROLE
ARCHITECTURE AND HOW THEY CAN BE MITIGATED OR WHICH PHOTOJOURNALISM HAS INFLUENCED THE IN SHAPING THE WAY WE PERCEIVE AND UNDERSTAND
ADDRESSED. FIELD OF ARCHITECTURE. ARCHITECTURE. (CONCLUSION)

Objective 4 Objective 3
ANALYZING HOW THE DIGITAL MEDIUM PLAYS AN TO EXAMINE THE ROLE THAT PHOTOJOURNALISM HAS
IMPORTANT ROLE IN THE REPRESENTATION OF THE PLAYED IN SHAPING PUBLIC PERCEPTIONS OF
VISUAL MEDIUM IN ARCHITECTURE. ARCHITECTURE.

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What is photojournalism?
Photojournalism is a form of documentary
photography that tells a story
pictures. It is often used to document events
or to tell a news story. But it can also be used
to show the beauty of a place or to show how
people live in that place.
History
Joseph Nicéphore Niepce was
inventor who was born in 1765 and was
interested in Leonardo Da Vinci's teachings on
the camera obscura. He was able to produce
the first recorded image on paper using this
technique. He was able to print the image of
his backyard on a sheet of chemically treated
paper at the beginning of the 19th century,
which is considered the first photograph in
history.
When prints were first made on photographic paper
and the technology of the devices also developed,
through
the method improved throughout the 19th and 20th
centuries. Print photography went out of style in
the 21st century, and digital cameras and cell
phones brought us to the digital age.
As a means of perpetuating the banal, everyday life and context,
photography has become a tool that has become almost an investigative
a French object of the past, as the history of architecture also demonstrates. With its
popularity, photography has become a tool for recording iconic family
moments as well as great historical scenes. Photography was able to capture
not only the magnificent structures as objects and works of art to be
admired, but also their construction processes. There were illustrations that
depicted specific historical events prior to the emergence of the first
photographs, which were the precursor to the early form of photojournalism.
Although photojournalism isn't the first type of journalism that focuses on
pictures, it made sense to use pictures instead of complicated illustrations
as a result of camera technology.

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2 PHOTOJOURNALISM: ITS IMPACT ON ARCHITECTURE 5
 • By showcasing the design and construction of these projects, photojournalism can
help to educate the public about architecture and the ways in which it shapes our
built environment.
• Shaping public perceptions of architecture: Photojournalism can influence the way
that the public perceives and understands architecture.
• By showcasing certain buildings or architectural styles, photojournalism can shape
public opinion and influence the popularity of certain types of architecture.
'Ba r r ic a des on r ue S a in t - Ma ur ' (184 8), th e
f ir s t pho to us e d t o i l lus t r a t e a n e ws pa pe r INFLUENCE OF DIGITAL MEDIA
s t or y v ia wik ipedia

PHOTOJOURNALISM • Social media has grown to be a well-liked resource among individuals in today's

IN ARCHITECTURE society as it is a platform that runs on the internet that is free, simple to use, and

• Documenting architectural gives the user a worldwide audience while sitting at home.

projects: Photojournalism • Image sharing has become incredibly simple all around the world thanks to many

can play a role in apps and websites like Instagram, Facebook, WhatsApp, Pinterest, and others.

documenting and bringing • Additionally, architects are able to share and present their designs online, which

attention to new facilitates easier collaboration with stakeholders thanks to digital technologies.

architectural projects and • One of the main benefits of digital mediums is that they allow photographers to

buildings. share their work with a larger audience almost instantly.

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2 PHOTOJOURNALISM: ITS IMPACT ON ARCHITECTURE 6
• Photos can be uploaded to websites and social media platforms, where they can be viewed by millions of people within
minutes.
• This has made it easier for architectural photojournalists to get their work seen and has helped to increase the reach of
their reporting.

These factors have contributed in some way to the development and evolution of architects and photographers in the
sense that the new age factors help them reach the masses, but at the same time, the layer they create is sometimes
questioned in light of its truthfulness and the world it depicts.
The architect and the photographer are both working on fine-tuning the design's selling point, which is both positive and
negative in some ways. It's good because it's now simple to get an idea and look it up on the internet. Bad because
projects that are being built or given a brief tend to follow and reproduce what they see online, making copies of their
inspirations.

CASE STUDY
In this dissertation, I conduct a more in-depth investigation of the architectural photographs taken by Ezra Stoller (1915–
2004) and Julius Shulman (1910–2009). They witnessed and influenced the rise and fall of architecture in America in the
middle of the 20th century, when the radical ideas and practices of the American and foreign avant-garde of the early 20th
century were reorganized and institutionalized.

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CASE STUDY
The Ruins of Detroit: This case study examines the impact of photojournalism on the perception of Detroit's architecture
and urban landscape. Through the work of photographers such as Yves Marchand and Romain Meffre, the ruins of Detroit's
once-thriving industrial buildings have been documented and brought to the attention of a global audience.

"The New American Ghetto" by Camilo José Vergara uses photojournalism to document and explore the changes that have
occurred in inner-city neighbourhoods over the past several decades, and to highlight the impact of poverty, race, and class
on these areas.

JULIUS SHULMAN
In this , I closely examine some of Shulman's photographs of Neutra’s Maslon House in Rancho Mirage, California
(photographed in 1963, building completed in 1962). Shulman photographed Maslon House on two separate occasions. His
first shoot of the building was with Neutra on site, under the architect’s guidance. Shulman re-shot the building a few
weeks later, this time not informing nor accompanying the architect. Shulman has explained the reason for this specific
reshoot on several occasions. For example, in his interview with Joseph Rosa in 1992, Shulman expresses his strong
disapproval of Neutra’s approach to photographing the house:

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He was interested in the image of pure architecture, and in presenting that image to other architects, but not in reaching
the public –not showing how people really live in good architecture. According to architects, image prefers “pure
architecture,” and his idea of a house is an “empty one.” Neutra, in otthe trueds, speaks to “other architects.” In contrast,
Shulman claims that his interest is in showing the public “how people really live in good architecture.” Shulman seems to
think that the architect’s image of the domestic space deprives it of any traces of living, thus failing to portray the true
value of that space.
The two sets of the the Maslon House photographs are intriguing, as their comparison may offer us a rare opportunity to
identify and understand their different ways of seeing.

Julius Shulman, Maslon House, Rancho

Mirage, 1963 (architect: Richard Neutra;
building completed in 1962). The first
photograph is from the first shoot; the
second is from the second.

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The difference between the two photographs is in how the movable objects spatialize and what spatial effect such
spatialization brings. The clusters in Figure 1 create spatial hierarchies of depth; and thus cover less floor space, drawing
our attention to the negative space. The photographic content, therefore, is the space or the depth itself, notice-able
through the distinct clusters. Figure 2, on the other hand, creates a space of scattered objects. The photographic content
is an aggregation of such figural objects, positively filling up the space. The only negative space in Figure 2, interestingly,
is where the coffee table has occupied in Figure 1. The two photographs, in this way, are spatial negations of the other.

Shulman's way of looking at things is based on the things that make up the real people who live in the space.
According to Shulman, his goal is to create a "picture of a mood." “The inquiry into what these photographs convey and
what we experience from them necessitates some elaboration and interpretation

EZRA STOLLER
An intriguing debate about how we perceive time develops throughout the conversation, which includes Stoller's specific
reference to the "sense of time" in the Salk Institute photograph. Naegele seems to be thinking about a particular concept
of time—what we see when we observe apparent changes in time. So, the argument goes, architecture shows how light
and shadow change over time, which shows that time has passed or changed.

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 Figure 1 Figure 2

EZRA STOLLER
However, as opposed to the views shown in Figure 2, the Salk Institute image that Stoller chooses to present and explain
features a view from the plaza's flanking side. The photographs in Figure 2 depict familiar perspectival perspectives along
the plaza's longitudinal axis, most likely registering the visual progression of time from a holistic perspective: those that
show water flowing along the channel or that suggest the sun's gradual approach to the Pacific In contrast, a diagonal
view of the plaza, study towers, and projecting cubicles can be seen in Figure 1 from across one of the lightwells that
separate the study towers from the laboratory wings. Figure 1's depiction of light and shadows seems to have no bearing
on any kind of linear progression.

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The photograph and Stoller's comment are not so much about the time that the viewer is seeing as much as they are about
the visible changes that can be captured by necessary extension in the spatiotemporal frame.

Take note of Stoller's remarks: "in about two seconds you may have seen all of the six vistas that are involved in that
picture, but that time is something else from this kind of time," and "it takes your eye a while to get around to all of these
things.“ The effect contrast serves to reveal and emphasize certain formal aspects, like the subtle textural patterns of the
exposed concrete and the teak, or to give edge lines, incisions, and form-tie marks more detail and definition. In general,
when we look at Stoller's photographs of buildings, how do we feel like time has passed?

On the one hand, a photograph is a product that takes time to capture as a single image things, events, and changes—
sometimes just for an instant or for a longer period of time. It makes it possible for us to think about the past, often by
making us remember things or by making us think about how things were different then from how they are now.
Interestingly, despite the fact that time influences what we see in a photograph in various ways, the photograph itself
remains a still image without any duration. Nevertheless, in a still photograph, the sense of time we get is frequently
instantaneous rather than the result of prolonged nostalgic reflection. Despite its stillness, such a photograph seems to
evoke a sense of time in the viewer; and it does so right away, without requiring the viewer to think about it or make any
particular reference to her previous memories.

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The Ruins of Detroit
The Ruins of Detroit is considered a powerful example of how photography can be used to document, understand and
convey the impact of social and economic changes on the built environment and its inhabitants. The Ruins of Detroit series
has been widely acclaimed for its powerful visual storytelling and its ability to convey the complexity and scale of Detroit's
urban crisis. It has been widely used as a reference for architects, urban planners, and policymakers to understand the
impact of social and economic changes on the built environment.

After World War II, rail traffic began to decline. The rise of automobiles,
the development of highways and later air transport, slowly extinguished
the need for railroads. The Michigan Central Station closed down in 1988.
Like many neoclassical and Renaissance buildings, the station was
inspired by the remains of the Baths of Caracalla. Ironically, just as the
former Roman public baths, the Michigan Central Station itself ended as a
ruin. It remains as the most iconic ruin of Detroit.

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"THE NEW AMERICAN GHETTO" BY CAMILO JOSÉ VERGARA
"The New American Ghetto" by Camilo José Vergara uses photojournalism to document and explore the changes that have
occurred in inner-city neighborhoods over the past several decades, and to highlight the impact of poverty, race, and class
on these areas.

The book provides a powerful visual record of these issues and serves as a powerful tool for raising awareness and
understanding of the complex issues that affect America's inner-city neighborhoods.

Dirt scattered by housing demolitions give Fern The surviving houses have fenced porches and their rough sides have
A section of Fern Street. seni
Street the look of an unpaved road. Interior walls been smoothed out with a covering of cement. Weeds grow on the
abandoned, yet with most of its row
are now exposed, showing the color of the side- walk in front of clusters of aban doned houses, and people and
houses still standing. North Camden,
former rooms. The ma- jority of the dwellings dogs walk in the middle of the street. This block of Fern Street, where
1979. Source: The new American ghetto
have been demolished and half of those re- less than 20 percent of the original houses remain occupied, exempli-
book
maining are abandoned. North Camden, 1988 fies the dismantling of the city. North Camden, 1994

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CONCLUSION
The first case study, Julius Shulman's photographs, examines how the photographer codified cues to convey the spatial
quality of a domestic space. In essence, Shulman's subtle changes between the first and second shoots of Maslon House
are changes in the availability and arrangement of such cues. The domestic space is depicted in the first set of Maslon
House photographs as an organized collection of distinct clusters.

On the other hand, the case study of Stoller's pictures is about the quality of architecture that we think of as primitivity or
monumentality, which comes from the apparent durations of secondary ephemeral subjects. In this instance, the
hypothesis that our seeing of a still photograph must consist of numerous segmented seeings and that the various cues
attributed to the secondary subjects that suggest change or motion encourage further segmentation and, as a result,
elongation of the seeing is the starting point is the starting point. Thus, when we look at Stoller's photographs, we are
presented with an imagined complex of various ephemeral moments that focus our attention on the one thing that never
changes: the structure.

I would like to add that, despite the fact that I have concentrated on specific instances of photographers and their works, I
do not intend to assert that the mediative techniques that highlight the important qualities are solely dependent on a
person's creative ability.

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QUESSIONAIRE

Interview 1
Andre J Fanthome - photographer

1. What are your reasons theory for shooting architecture?

2. How do you approach a building through photography?
3. How do you feel has the impact of digital means/ the current trend revolutionized this?
4. Would you like to seek new and more expressive forms of photographic rendition through which to share with others
your own visions of the world, your feelings, ideas, and thoughts?
5. Your opinion from architectural photography magazines, instances where you've felt something has been overdone?
6. How do you think photojournalism has impacted the public?

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QUESSIONAIRE

Interview 2
PRASANTH MOHAN- ARCHITECT, PHOTOGRAPHER
1. How photography according to you is an effective mode of graphic communication/ documentation for your work?
Why?
2. Do you believe that photography has an expression of truth in revealing the story?How do you feel has the impact of
digital means/ the current trend revolutionized this?
3. Would you like it if the photographer attempts to seek new and more expressive forms of photographic rendition
through which to share with others their own visions of the world, their feelings, ideas, and thoughts? Your opinion
from architectural photography magazines, instances where you've felt something has been overdone?
4. What are the potential benefits, challenges, and risks of architectural photojournalism?
5. How do you feel has the impact of digital means/ the current trend affected?
6. How this helps in interpretation & representation ?

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SURVEY
What medium you prefer to share/ showcase the photos of your Has Photography Helped you on your growth What medium you Prefer to share/
project? showcase the photos of your projects?
plays a small part
Directly to client who asked for
Depends, I prefer to showcase personaly it has a great role on my growth
Own website
My computer and to explain them only least impacted
Facebook
ipad not influenced WhatsApp
Portfolio Instagram
Magazines Archdaily
all social media Buildofy
some of these All of the Above

What is the basic purpose of shooting of your projects?
to document and record
for analysis of a project
to share in social media / showcasing project
for memories
Do architecture photography has impact on public perception
Opinion on how the evolution of modern
Least
photography has impacted the way how
Most
Not at all the architecture is perceived today?

1. Yes
2. Great
How important is shooting photos of your completed projects? How effective is to showcase the photographs of your projects and 3. It has a great impact in today’s time.
design concepts?
All projects 4. It is considered to be part of our
Only good Projects Clients get Impressed
Rarely
profession today.
I need to explain
Just a formality 5. People comes to see and know about
Can't say
to be easily understood by the generalpublic different types of architecture styles
and designs around the globe

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CONCLUSION
Today's architects consider it an essential means of communicating architecture to the general public. As time has passed,
so has its place in architecture. Now, it is more than just a tool for documentation; it is also a way to show off one's work,
learn about architecture, spread architecture from one part of the world to another, and study how a built space changes
from the time it is built to how it is used. Today's architects are aware of the opportunities offered by architectural
photography to show their buildings as more than just a sterile structure. People are more attracted to the building's
appearance and are able to notice unusual things that they might not normally notice.

Another takeaway from this research is the undeniable significance of architectural photography in today's context.
Photography not only serves as a tool for documentation, but it also highlights and emphasizes the beauty of architecture,
which is often overlooked. This makes it easier to share a region's architecture around the world and compare it to other
regions' architecture. It is also very helpful for architecture students all over the world because it allows them to learn
about different building styles.

The ability of architectural photography to record time has also had a significant impact. capturing time in the sense that a
building can be seen not only in its current state but also at various points in its history. It also raised people's awareness
because they could now know what was in a particular location or its surroundings once the structure was demolished.

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CONCLUSION
Through photographs, it is possible to comprehend how the designs have changed over time, how changes in culture and
environment have affected the architecture of that location, and a variety of other aspects of this kind. The tools and
methods used in photography have evolved over time, but the methods themselves have largely remained unchanged. This
has not only contributed to highlighting the structure's beauty in front of the public, but it has also sparked a desire to
comprehend it beyond its built form and connect with it on a deeper level regarding its function.

Another way to put it is that capturing these three-dimensional structures in two dimensions opens up a plethora of
dimensions for viewers and architects worldwide.

In a way, photography and architecture are now so intertwined that photography can be thought of as architecture's soul.

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 THANK YOU.

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