Ambiguous photographs

Breaking news: Brilliant German scientist invents time machine - Returns with tales of savagery

In this essay I examine Askew’s (2002) Statement “Technology, so it was believed could capture the truth”. I argue that this statement is false and that even though photographs are able to realistically convey the physical ‘facts’ of a specific time and location, that these are facts without context and thus without meaning. To prove this point I rely on a practical example as well as drawing on the works of Askew (2002); Barrett (1986); Berger (1982); Jacknis (1988); Maingaurd (1995); Papstein (1990); Weineberger (1995).


And He has the Pictures to Prove it


“Proof of savage Zulu warrior attacking youth
while tribe watches passively in the background”

I use an approach similar to that of Berger (1982) in order to illustrate my argument that technology is not in fact able to capture the truth. The caption over this photograph is obviously a fake and even if it were theoretically possible to travel in time, I doubt that the “German scientist” would indeed be able to get close enough to take a picture such as this without causing considerable comment. Although this is a rather extreme example of a photograph being used out of context to proof a rather dubious point it is by no means the only available one. Photographs do contain certain facts, but they are facts without context and this lack of context is exactly where their ambiguous nature lies.
The actual caption to this photograph reads “Zulu Dancing at Isibindi Zulu Lodge“. I wasn’t there when the picture was taken and I do not know any of the people in the photograph, nor do I know the person who took the picture. I assume that the people depicted in this picture are indeed Zulu’s doing a dance, because the photograph seems to support this fact. Experience takes me a step further, that this dance was performed purely for the entertainment of the tourists’ entertainment pandering to the Westerners’ interpretation of what it means to be a Zulu. I have no way of proving that all the individuals involved in this dance are even really

Time machine hoax shocks scientific community

Technology cannot capture the truth. Even when both the photographer and the interpreter have the purest intentions their interpretation of the events before and after the photograph remains subjective. This innate ambiguity of photographs does not completely discredit them as a rich source of information, but is merely a reminder that caution should be taken both when interpreting photographs and when forming an opinion based on someone else’s interpretation.

References

• Jacknis, I. 1988 ‘Margaret Mead and Gregory Bateson in Bali: Their Use of Photography and Film’ in Cultural Anthropology, Volume 3, No. 2, (May, 1988), pp. 160-177
• Barrett, T 1986 ‘A Theoretical Construct for Interpreting Photographs’ in Studies in Art Education, Vol.27, No.2 (Winter 1986), pp. 52-60
• Papstein, R. 1990 ‘Creating and Using Photographs as Historical Evidence’ in History in Africa, Vol.17. (1990), pp. 247-265
• Weinberger, E. 1992 ‘The Camera People’ in Transition, No.55. (1992), pp.24-54
• Maingard, J. 1995 ‘Trends in South African Documentary Film and Video: Questions of Identity and Subjectivity’ in Journal of Southern African Studies, Vol. 21, No. 4, Special Issue on South African Literature: Paradigms Forming and Reinformed. (Dec., 1995), pp. 657-667
• Berger, J. 1982 ‘The Ambiguity of the Photograph’ in Berger, J. & Mohr, J. (eds) Another Way of Telling New York: Pantheon Books
• Image of Zulu dancers at http://www.bookinafrica.com/isibindi-zulu-lodge
Original caption “Isibindi Zulu Lodge - Zulu Dancing at Isibindi Zulu Lodge “ on Book in Africa’s website advertising Isibindi Zulu lodge