War Photography

“To take a picture of the war is to be against the war.”

Personally, I do not think that I could agree wholeheartedly either for or against this statement. However, for the purposes of this post, I would lean more towards agreement. I would more likely agree with the above statement because, most often, pictures of war depict death, destruction, torture, etc., and these images tend to sway the public opinion against the war. Even if a war photographer holds neutral viewpoints, the images of combat and war that he/she captures might still inspire negative feelings toward war in its entirety.

            During class discussion, my group talked about how perspective is everything, and about how photographers should be objective in the images that they capture, but will also inevitably display some form of subjectivity within their subject matter of choice. Thus, along these lines, war photographers will most likely be unable to avoid at least some degree of bias within their work. Moreover, as most war photographs (at least in recent times) feature the dark side of war, and highlight such images within the public eye, most war photographs (whether intentionally or unintentionally) will probably inspire more negative than positive feelings toward the war.

            However, there are always exceptions to the rule. There are some images, captured by war photographers that depict bravery and courage, and inspire patriotism within the eyes of the public. A good example of this is the “Flag Raising at Iwo Jima,” (1945) by Joe Rosenthal. This image has come to be widely recognized throughout this country, and serves as a symbol of American pride still today. Nevertheless, although there are certainly some exceptions, for the most part, “to take a picture of the war is to be against the war” carries true with regard to the feelings about the war that these images inspire within the eyes of the viewing public.