by Lesley Rigg

Created on: March 02, 2009

Photography can inform, record, shock, tease, advertise and delight. At its most fundamental level photography makes a difference to us because it has given us over 100 years of social history demonstrating the way people dress, how they behave, their social norms, etc so photography forms a very important part of our social being.

From the earliest photo-journalism portraiture recording the events of The Crimean War to the stark horrors of the Vietnam war and beyond, photographs have accentuated and rammed home the words sent back to the people in the countries who had sent soldier to foreign lands, informing opinion and sometimes skewing views. As well as the propaganda of the second world war there are also stories of war photographers moving dead bodies around to increase the horror by aesthetics.

From a social point of view, as well as giving "small" people's history a great deal more richness photographs taken in studios that became popular at the turn of the 20th century to the box brownies that allowed everyone the democracy of recording images, photographs also allowed people to see more social history. Photographs gave a more intimate understanding of dress, etiquette, hobbies and social activities throughout the past 100 years. Additionally, we will always have the world famous American depression photography of Dorothea Lange and others taken to demonstrate the hardships taking place in the dust-bowl in the US during the 1930s.

You only have to take a look at any search of popular photographic images of all time and you will see both the ubiquitous flower, and landscapes a plenty. The art we choose to put on our walls even in the 21st century does not differ wildly from the paintings and photographs of our grand-parents. Ansel Adams for example is an American photographer whose wild mountainous landscapes have become iconic.

As well as these we also recognise photography that is actually used to sell to us. Advertising photography at its best is universally recognised, big perfume houses like Dior, Jean Paul Gautier and Calvin Klein used fabulous looking people in dramatic settings to sell their scents. Other organisations such as Benetton, British Airways, Adidas, Guinness, Coca-cola, etc are also often recognised outside of its own purpose, as art in its own right rather than just selling stuff.

Photography has highlighted, accentuated, prodded and informed us and the difference photography makes to our social and cultural life is incalcuable. Our lives and our understanding of other cultures and people would have been far less full, colorful or accurate than without it as a cultural and social medium. There is a concern now that with the onset of the digital age, people are not printing their photographs and that some of this social recording is being lost. Hopefully, enough will survive to keep photography making a difference for another 100 plus years.

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