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Wednesday, May 7th, 2008
American Photography: A Century of Images
My current Netflix pick is really awesome. It's a PBS documentary from 1999 called "American Photography: A Century of Images."
If you haven't seen it, I totally recommend it. Especially for all the Humzoo photography buffs out there.
The doc is in three parts, and I got through the first two last night. Basically it breaks down the 20th Century into three sections, and talks about famous photographs and the technology of photography and how it influenced the American Public and changed media forever.
It is SO interesting. They show all sorts of images that I remember seeing through the years, but never knew the story behind them. Here are a few examples of the photos they tell stories about:
Dorthea Lange's photo of the Great Depression
Gordon Parks American Gothic: Mrs Ella Watson, Washington, DC, 1942
Auschwitz Survivors
Photo by Al Chang from the Korean War - included in the book "Family of Man" by Edward Steichen, published in 1955.
Betty Grable - Pin Up Girl
An American soldier landing on Omaha Beach, D-day, June 1944 - Robert Capa
The story about this D-Day photo literally made me cry. Several war photographers were embedded in military units in the D-Day attack, including Robert Capa, who was one of the best. As he came off the ship onto the beach with the soldiers, he shot four whole rolls of film of the soldiers in combat. He was on a strict deadline to have the photos developed and sent back to the U.S. Newspapers, so he sent the film to the closest military base to be developed. The kid who was in the darkroom was under such pressure to get the film developed quickly, he finished developing the negs, and put them in the drying cabinet, but set the heat way too high. The first three rolls of film were completely destroyed, and the fourth roll of film only produced eleven salvageable photographs, and this was one of them. It became one of Robert Capa’s most famous photos.
I totally recommend this DVD to anyone who's looking for an interesting and uplifting movie to watch. It's a nice break from lawyer movies and shoot-em-ups.
Plus, they interview Leonard Nimoy. That's a WINNER in my book for any movie.
American Photography: A Century of Images
My current Netflix pick is really awesome. It's a PBS documentary from 1999 called "American Photography: A Century of Images."
If you haven't seen it, I totally recommend it. Especially for all the Humzoo photography buffs out there.
The doc is in three parts, and I got through the first two last night. Basically it breaks down the 20th Century into three sections, and talks about famous photographs and the technology of photography and how it influenced the American Public and changed media forever.
It is SO interesting. They show all sorts of images that I remember seeing through the years, but never knew the story behind them. Here are a few examples of the photos they tell stories about:
Dorthea Lange's photo of the Great Depression
Gordon Parks American Gothic: Mrs Ella Watson, Washington, DC, 1942
Auschwitz Survivors
Photo by Al Chang from the Korean War - included in the book "Family of Man" by Edward Steichen, published in 1955.
Betty Grable - Pin Up Girl
An American soldier landing on Omaha Beach, D-day, June 1944 - Robert Capa
The story about this D-Day photo literally made me cry. Several war photographers were embedded in military units in the D-Day attack, including Robert Capa, who was one of the best. As he came off the ship onto the beach with the soldiers, he shot four whole rolls of film of the soldiers in combat. He was on a strict deadline to have the photos developed and sent back to the U.S. Newspapers, so he sent the film to the closest military base to be developed. The kid who was in the darkroom was under such pressure to get the film developed quickly, he finished developing the negs, and put them in the drying cabinet, but set the heat way too high. The first three rolls of film were completely destroyed, and the fourth roll of film only produced eleven salvageable photographs, and this was one of them. It became one of Robert Capa’s most famous photos.
I totally recommend this DVD to anyone who's looking for an interesting and uplifting movie to watch. It's a nice break from lawyer movies and shoot-em-ups.
Plus, they interview Leonard Nimoy. That's a WINNER in my book for any movie.
Great sample photos, Betsy! I think we'll definitely look this one up.