Women photographers : Beyond The War Zone
‘Women push boundaries and bend rules more than men’: Extraordinary pictures by female war photographers on the world’s deadliest front lines
An exhibition in Turin, Italy was showcased pictures by 14 female war photojournalists
The extraordinary pictures were taken in some of the worst war zones in the world, including Aleppo, Syria
The exhibition was dedicated to the memory of Camille Lepage, a French photojournalist who was killed during the conflict in the Central African Republic in 2014
The women recall being shot at, robbed, accused of spying and sexually harassed
Maysun, a Spanish-Palestinian freelance photojournalist based in Kenya, who doesn’t use her surname in her professional life
An exhibition of war photographs taken by 14 young women photojournalists from around the world was displayed at Palazzo Madama in Turin on 7 October 2016 – 13 November 2016.
Visitors were overwhelmed of a total of 70 images by photographers working for leading international media outlets, including Diana Zeyneb al-Hindawi, Matilde Gattoni, Capucine Granier-Deferre, Camille Lepage, and ANSA stringer Shelly Kittleson, among others. The photographs were in colour and black and white and some have been taken using film.
Shelly Kittleson, an American photojournalist
Matilde Gattoni, an award-winning French-Italian photographer based in Milan
Laurece Geai, French photojournalist
Jodi Hilton, an American photojournalist covering Turkey and The Balkans
South Kivu province, Democratic Republic of the Congo
South Kivu province, Democratic Republic of the Congo
Camille Lepage, a French photojournalist who was killed during the conflict in the Central African Republic in 2014
Annabell Van den Berghe, a fluent Arabic speaker, who has been working as a freelance journalist since 2009
Alison Baskerville, 41, a British photojournalist and RAF veteran
The Italian photojournalist Andreja Restek, founder and director of the APR news website, at work in Aleppo, Syria
The exhibition, which continued through November 13, was being promoted by freelance women journalists’ association Gi.U.Li.A and local humanitarian group l’Ambulanza dal Cuore Forte (The Strong-Hearted Ambulance) with support from regional cultural authorities.
Sprinting for her life as the Taliban sprayed bullets at her in open ground, Alison Baskerville had to rely on the covering fire of British soldiers to ensure she didn’t die in Afghanistan. Caught in an ambush, she was forced to dive for cover, only pausing when coalition air support arrived to scare the enemy away.
The Italian photojournalist Andreja Restek, left, sprints across a road while under fire in Aleppo, Syria
Zeyneb Alhindawi’s picture shows a woman suffering from malaria in Bahr el Ghazai, South Sudan, in 2015
One of Virginie Nguyen Hoang’s pictures showing Ukrainian soldiers firing an anti-tank grenade at separatists in 2015
Shelly Kittleson’s picture showing a woman from Deir Al-Zor, Syria, showing a picture of her son killed in the fighting
PH © Andreja restek / APR NEWS, Aleppo, Syria
One of Monique Jacques’ pictures shows a female paramilitary ranger protecting wildlife in Democratic Republic of Congo.
One of Maysun’s pictures showed the mother of a boy killed by the Egyptian army in Port Said by the police academy, 2012
A 35-year-old refugee from Al-Zahraa, Syria, after fleeing to Lebanon. Photo : Matilde Gattoni
A Seleka soldier relaxing at his base in Bambari, Central African Republic, in 2014. Photo : Laurece Geai
Pro-Russian forces recovering supplies in Ukraine in 2015. Photo : Capucine Granier Deferre
A couple walking through their devastated village in Kauda, Sudan. Photo : Camille Lepage
A man on a motorcycle beside burning oil drums in Syria. Photo : Annabelle Van den Berghe
Iraqi refugees trying in vain to cross the border between Hungary and Serbia. Photo : Andreja Restek
But Baskerville is not a soldier. She is one of a growing number of female photographers putting themselves on the front line of conflicts across the world, to capture at times what their male counterparts can’t. ‘From the streets of Paris to the outposts of Iraq, women are now fighting alongside men and now photographing alongside them also,’ the 41-year-old respected war photographer and former sergeant in the RAF told Mail Online.‘Times are changing, and some of the women I have seen in this industry are brave and confident. They put themselves in danger and challenge the stereotype of women and war.’ Baskerville was accompanying the British Army in Helmand when they came under fire inside a compound: ‘I just remember everyone running.
‘We were in open ground and had been ambushed. There was nowhere to take cover and the infantry had to lay down covering fire so we could escape. ‘Adrenalin took over, and it was the fastest 500 metres I’ve done in body armour. ‘My military background has helped me with my credibility, and somehow does get me a little bit of respect,’ she said. ‘I’m used to dealing in what can be perceived as a man’s world, but I would like that perception to change.
Next month, a museum in Turin, Italy, was also celebrated the role of the female war photographers with an exhibition of works by 14 of them, including Baskerville.
‘Being an an excellent photographer should have nothing to do with your gender,’ Baskerville said. ‘It should be about capability and the images you produce.’ It is impossible to tell from a picture whether it was taken by a man or a woman, she added. Other photojournalists featured in the exhibition said that being female can provide distinct advantages when working in the field, as well as disadvantages.
Diana Zeyneb Alhindawi, 37, a Brooklyn-based photographer of Romanian-Iraqi heritage, said that while working in hostile environments she has been physically attacked, robbed at knifepoint, and accused of being an American spy. Nevertheless, she said, the mere fact that she is female has enabled her to be a more effective photographer.
‘Women get intimate access easier than men do,’ she said. ‘We’re less of a threat and can better convince people to let their guard down around us. ‘I think people relax easier around a female, they say “no” less often if the photographer is a female, and they forget about our presence quicker, which allows us to get candid shots faster.
Lance Corporal Jamie Thorne of the British Army after combat in Helmand, 2011. Photo : Alison Baskerville
A British Medical Emergency Response Team helicopter in Afghanistan, 2011. Photo : Alison Baskerville
‘We can push boundaries and bend rules a bit more than men can before we’re reprimanded. And even then, because they don’t take me as seriously as they would a male photographer, we’re not kicked out or heavily reprimanded.’
Annabell Van den Berghe, a Brussels-based journalist who is fluent in Arabic and has worked extensively in Iraq, said that unwanted male attention can make her job difficult in the field. ‘Unfortunately, as a woman, male colleagues – whether fixers, translators or other journalists – do not always treat you with respect,’ she said. ‘Finding myself in a war zone with somebody who acts dishonourably and crosses the professional line is the dodgiest thing that has ever happened to me. ‘Often these men see me as their possession, and they believe that they have the right to decide what I do, with who and when – including dishonourable behaviour.’
Van den Berghe has encountered other problems, too. While interviewing a jihadist from the notorious Syrian Jabhat al-Nusra, now rebranded as the Jabhat Fatah al-Sham, she wasn’t allowed to speak to him directly even though there was no language barrier. ‘I needed a translator to translate from woman to man,’ she said, wryly.
Women war photographers have paid the ultimate price for their work. The exhibition is dedicated to the memory of Camille Lepage, who was killed while photographing the conflict in the Central African Republic in 2014.
Lepage, 26, spent 18 months in South Sudan before moving to the Central African Republic a few months before she died. Her final entries on social media said she was travelling with the Christian Anti-balaka militia on motorbike to cover the ongoing fighting in the south west of the country. Her body was discovered in May 2014 by French peacekeeping troops in the west of the country, near the border of Cameroon. The French government described her death as ‘murder’.
The original post can be read here.
Overrated Sharpness in photography
Few of my photographer friends often discuss about sharpness of others’ photographs in tea and coffee shops. I listen, and give my opinions, if any, whenever possible. But the issue is very common and age old, Is sharpness of Photography really matters? Is it the only criteria of images that have life year after year? In the meantime I was reading an article of Eric Kim, an international Street Photographer recently. He writes:
Eric Kim
“Sharpness is a bourgeois (rich person) concept.” – Henri Cartier-Bresson
1. Softer lenses often have more soul
I remember when I started digital photography; the sharper the photo, the better. In reality, a sharper photo is not a better photo. Often, a softer photograph gives you a more pleasing, soft, warm, and emotional aesthetic.
For example, I love the photos of Junku Nishimura, who shoots with a 35mm-film camera, with an old 50mm f/2.8 lens. The photos are softer; and evoke a more dreamy, nostalgic feel. His photos would not feel the same if he shot with a high-end digital camera, with a very sharp lens.
Also, the softer aesthetic of film looks aesthetically nicer, than overly sharp digital photos. This is why I see a lot of digital photographers flocking to film. Often digital photos feel too perfect. Too sharp. Too clinical, too much like a surgeon.
Rather, film photos feel imperfect — which feel more nostalgic, and reminiscent of our childhoods. I know that I prefer the nostalgic film photos that my mom shot of me as a kid; than any modern super-sharp photo I get today on my smartphone.
2. Art doesn’t care about sharpness
A lot of us photographers who get started in photography, are gadget-nerds or geeks. I myself have always been obsessed with technology. Photography was a perfect marriage between my interest in technology and art. So of course, we are going to get fascinated with the technology (gear) behind photography.
Image copyright : Eric Kim
First of all, I think the biggest misguidance from the internet is ‘sharpness tests.’ The problem is that a lot of us nerdy photographers come from sciences, engineering, or computer-programming. We think we can quantify the ‘quality’ or the ‘goodness’ of a photograph by the technical settings– the sharpness or resolution of an image.
3. Is painting ‘sharp’?
Good art is often un-sharp. Consider the impressionists. They didn’t seek to make picture-perfect images of reality. Rather, they used dreamy and imperfect brush-strokes to evoke a mood; to evoke a feeling. They realized that the importance of a picture or an image wasn’t whether it reflected reality or not. The more important thing: whether it reflected their personal mood, or view of the world.
Image copyright : Eric Kim
4. Blurry photos often have more emotion
Also, out-of-focus, and blurry photos often have more emotion and mood. We feel more movement in a blurry photograph, rather than a perfectly tack-sharp image. So often, blurry is good. It just depends on what kind of emotion you’re trying to evoke in an image.
5. Nobody can really tell a difference on the sharpness of your lenses on a screen
I’ve shot with all different cameras over the years. Canon Powershot SD 600, Canon Rebel XT (350D), Canon 5D (original), Leica M9, Ricoh GR II, film Leica, etc. Also, I’ve shot with expensive Leica Summicron f/2 ASPH lens ($3000 USD) and the integrated Ricoh GR II (28mm equivalent) lens. I cannot tell a difference between any of my photos, shot on what camera, with what lens.
Image copyright : Eric Kim
Only a nerd would look at all their photos at 100% resolution and ‘pixel peep.’ Or even worse– can you imagine someone going to a photographer’s exhibition, and commenting on how sharp (or unsharp) their photos are?
6. Are you shooting brick walls?
Please please please, avoid these websites where people do sharpness tests on brick walls. Do you plan on photographing brick walls for your entire life; or to photograph the soul of your subjects?
7. Is your viewer going to see your photo on a smartphone?
If you are printing your photos super-large; having sharper photos might be better.
But in reality, if you’re just uploading your photos to social media, or Instagram– 99% of people are going to see your photos from a 5-inch smartphone. You can’t even tell how sharp a photo is.
8. Buy books, not gear
Instead of dropping tons of money on lenses, use that money on inspirational photo books, traveling, attending workshops, or on something educational. Instead of spending $500 on that new lens, maybe use that money to attend a weekend workshop. Or use the money to travel locally. Or to buy 10 good $50 photo books. Instead of spending $1000 on that new lens, use that money to go on an international trip somewhere. Or buy (even more) photo books.
For me, education and books are always the best bang-for-the-buck. The experiences you have, and the education you learn will always stay with you. A lens is just a lens, and will not improve your photography. So when in doubt, buy books, not gear.
9. Buy a camera with a non-interchangeable lens
I am a huge fan of cameras with non-interchangeable lenses (like the Ricoh GR II, the Fujifilm X100T, or the Fujifilm x70). These non-interchangeable lenses are generally very compact, thin, light, and very sharp. And not only that, you don’t get stressed out about what lens to use (or not to use). You only have one lens, and you’re stuck with it. That is a ‘creative constraint‘ which forces you to be more creative.
10. Use whatever camera you have
To conclude; just use whatever camera you have. If your camera or lens is very soft, or not sharp– use it to your advantage. I generally find monochrome photos to be more aesthetically-pleasing than soft color photos. But then again, photographers like Todd Hido have used soft color photos and made them beautiful.
Avoid gear review sites, sharpness tests, and all those nerdy places. Be satisfied with the gear you (already have), and remember what photography is all about: making meaning in your life; not making photos.
Image copyright : Eric Kim
The Battle Between Candid and Creative Wedding Photography
Image copyright : Soumen Nath
Few months back I was reading an article in The Huffingtonpost ‘‘The Lie Of ‘Candid’ Wedding Photography In India” by Sanjukta Basu, a Writer, Photographer, Story Teller, Social Media Consultant and Feminist Scholar in which she has raised a question if so called ‘candid’ wedding photography is really candid.
She writes: I have always wanted to be a documentary photographer. By “always” I mean since I was in my mid-20s and owned my first point-and-shoot canon reel camera. By the time I got into DSLR photography I realized that being photographer is not easy. Documentary photography, in particular, is unknown and unpaid. In 2012, my sister’s wedding became my stepping stone into candid wedding photography, and since then it has paid me well. Yet, my heart was on documentary photography.
When a well-known ‘documentary’ photographer told her, ‘After all, what is wedding photography but documentary?’ She I didn’t agree, not in the Indian context anyway. The key aspect of documentary photography is authenticity and not prettiness. But people mostly want their wedding photographs to be pretty, even “candid” ones.
From Left : Sanjukta Basu, Soumen Nath, Aqueel Khan. Graphic : Sauvik Acharyya. Photo courtesy : Facebook & Blog
Soumen Nath, an experienced Delhi based wedding and Getty Images & iStock photographer explains, ‘However I say it differently. Its candid when it’s not posed. Being aware is alright, as long as it’s not posed. The subject would not know if the photographer is shoot him or the person beside him or the whole gathering. Candid photography is about capturing the moment, the expressions, the mood, emotions, the feelings… In a wedding scenario, the bride and groom and everyone else know that there is this photographer shooting pictures. However, the rituals, the guests, the pressures of the event, takes away attention from the camera. They get busy with the day and the Photographer keeps on clicking. Till how long can a subject keep posing for the camera. A Candid photographer will shoot anything between 1000 to 4000 pictures thru out the day. The bride and groom soon becomes bored and start to focus on the various activities of the day… And then Candid photography happens…’
Image copyright : Sanjukta Basu
In general, Taking photos of people when they have no idea that you’re doing it is called candid photography. One of the beauties of photography is being able to catch someone in the act. It adds life to your pictures.
Now, when we talk on candid wedding photography, the candid character of a photo is unrelated to the subject’s knowledge about or consent to the fact that photos are being taken, and unrelated to the subject’s permission for further usage and distribution. The crucial factor is the actual absence of posing. However, if the subject is absolutely unaware of being photographed and does not even expect it, then such photography is secret photography, which is a special case of candid photography.
Image copyright : Aqueel Khan
When interacting on this point, Aqueel Khan, an Engineer and MBA professional, who started photography about 10 years back leaving his corporate profile at Bhopal opted his choice as a ‘Candid wedding photographer’. He goes back into past, ‘Armed with Canon EOS series camera and bunch of lenses I am in a constant endeavor to bring the best and creative part of you.’ He shares his experience, ‘A wedding photography contains various kind of photography like portraits, planned, traditional and candid. Candid is the part of wedding photography (10-50% depend on client’s involvement and photographers timing and energy) …in last few years wedding photography has improved a lot. But portraits pics are dominating entire wedding photography session. Like pre-wedding, bridal portraits, couple portraits are major parts of wedding photography, even post mehandi pictures are also a kind of portraits photography.’
Though candid images have major scope in wedding rituals like haldi, mandap, varmala, baraat, bidai, still he thinks, ‘Candid word has taken over wedding photography today which is not actually correct! Candid shots require lots if energy, timing and creativity which is done by highly creative photographers whereas portrait is much easier.
And lastly, he believes that, ‘in short wedding photography should be called creative wedding photography instead of candid wedding photography.’
But Sanjukta Basu firmly believes that bridal make-up, are not actually candid; and few photographs which are claimed as ‘candid shots’ are actually taken after the make-up was already complete; the touch of the brush is only for effect. She shared few bridal make-up shots for comparison to establish that ‘they are not always “pretty”, because the bride is still half-dressed, the skin is not yet perfect and so on.’
Image copyright : Sanjukta Basu
Image copyright : Sanjukta Basu
Image copyright : Sanjukta Basu
Time has changed, so technology, social life and demand of people. 20 years back there was least demand of candid wedding photography. People used to find a good wedding photographs around. Now, a word ‘candid’ has been a must-have add-on in that activity. But this word merely justified this expensive event, and it is actually a presentation of creative aspect of people.
Whatever, we shall wait for new thing for future. Let time speak the creative future of candid images!