Some people think to look at an image is not a big deal. When friends send pictures to each other via twitter, facebook, or even Instagram, most would just view the image in its entirety. How many of you have taken the time to look at the smallest details in any photo? Today, I will be doing just that.
Here is a photo. At first glance, your eyes are drawn to a woman in the center. Her facial expression is dominating the photo. In fact, her face is the only one you can clearly see. If you look closely at the woman, you can see that she has lines on her forehead and her cheek. She is not wearing any make-up or jewelry. She is not wearing her hair in a stylish way. Her clothes are not fashionable. The sleeve of her shirt looks ripped.
As I look at the woman, I wonder about her. Her appearance and her facial expression tell me she is not a rich woman. She is someone who has worked her entire life. Her facial expression, the way she holds her hand to her face, and how her lips are tightly pressed together suggests she is worried. It is possible that she is concerned about where they would sleep or if she will have enough food to feed her children.
Talking about children, if we look closely at the picture, we can see she is holding a baby in her arms. While the baby is barely visible, we can see the child's chubby cheeks are dirty. The blanket the child is wrapped in is dirty as well. The baby appears to be sleeping peacefully in the woman's arm. Even though the child is dirty, it does look as if it is well fed.
Let's turn our attention to the two children on both side of the woman. We cannot see their face because, unlike the woman who is facing the camera and staring aimlessly into the distance, the children's back is towards us. We can still see their clothes. Again, like the woman, the children's clothes do not appear to be fancy. They aren't wearing any jewelry. Their hair is messy, and the child's hand is dirty. They are leaning on the woman.
I feel as if the children are embarrassed about their appearance. They are poor, and someone wants to take a picture of them. They probably felt as if they were being made into some spectacle. The way they are leaning on the woman suggest that they are comfortable with her. They need protection, strength, and by leaning on the woman, they are getting this from her. Even the baby in her arms appears to be comfortable with the woman.
Now let's look at the picture in its entirety. What is missing? We can see there are a woman and three children. We cannot see the surroundings. The person who took the picture probably thought the surroundings were unimportant and wanted the viewers to focus on only the woman and children. Moreover, by focusing only on the woman and children, the photographer has eliminated the time. We do not know if it is night or day. We are not given any clues about if this photo is from today or if it was taken years ago. Again, the photographer is telling the viewer that time is unimportant. Furthermore, the photo is in black and white. It is as if the photographer wanted to make a point. As if to say, "Here are people who are down on their luck. Their world is not a happy one." On last thing that is missing, is that there is no man in the photo. Could the absent of a male figure be a deliberate move on the photographer part? It is possible.
When looking at a picture, try to look at the small details first. Many people fail to look at a picture closely, and they miss the small, yet important information. There are those who may not have ever noticed the woman's sleeve looks torn. Or that the woman is holding a baby. Once you have finished viewing the picture closely, you can then look at the entire picture. Everything, both big and small will tell a story.
