Vintage Cameras.

c. Dena Rosko 2003.

Photographic history involves a combination of chemical, mechanical, optical, and artistic discoveries coupled with popular demands for images. Following are some photographic achievements in history:

• Chinese philosopher Mo-Ti records the first noted inverted image in the 5th Century BC.
• Many figures, like Aristotle, Alhazen of Basra, and Leonardo Da Vinci, use or describe a portable tent with a hole cut in it to create an inverted image from the light that passes through the hole.
• Johannes Kepler determines the physical and mathematical laws governing mirror reflections in 1604, and coins the term "camera obscura" for the portable tent observatories.
• First published photochemical invention by 18th Century German physician and professor Johann Heinrich Schulze, who discovers that light blackens silver salts.
• Joseph Nicéphore Niepce produces the first permanent image in 1826 from a camera obscura and invents an iris diaphragm to correct lens defects.
• Niepce and Louis-Jacques-Mandé Daguerre briefly collaborate to produce the first camera.
• Daguerre, though he is not said to invent photography, popularizes photography with his use of mercury to develop the image in 1837.
• Scientist Sir John F.W. Herschel coins the term "photography" in 1839.

The camera no longer illustrates. The camera tells... The camera shall take its place as the greatest and by all measurements the most convincing reporter of contemporary life.

~Pullitzer Prize winning Poet Archibald MacLeish telegram to Henry Luce

Henry Luce. Photo Spartacus Educational.

"American photojournalism was a public and by and large a public-spirited undertaking," and was marked by an optimism for the betterment of the nation and humankind (Vicki Goldberg 363).

Still photography shone in this era during the 1930s and 1940s as photojournalistic magazines birthed a new way for readers to view their world.

Life Magazine was the premiere big picture magazine from its inception in 1936 until its end in 1972. Before Life, no other American periodical told the news chiefly and exclusively in photographs.

Life began when Time Inc. created the book Four Hours a Year, which housed a collection of newsreels from Time Inc.'s The March of Time. The March of Time started in 1931 as a radio show where it recreated current events with actors impersonating major figures. In early 1935, The March of Time played in movie theatres where it combined active footage with its reenactments. Time Inc. wanted to use Four Hours a Year to show advertisers photojournalism's potential (Goldberg 172-173, 360).

Henry Luce, Life's founder, captured this era's pictorial fervor in his own words: "We have got to educate people to take pictures seriously, and to respect pictures as they do not now do... While people love pictures, they do not respect them" (Goldberg 174).

This sentiment illustrates the "call to action" behind much of American photojournalism. Photographs weren't meant to simply be, they were meant to be respected and regarded. Photographs existed to persuade the reader to take note of events and persons in their world.

T.V. Reflection.

c. Dena Rosko 2004.

After World War II, the television came on the scene. Still photography lost its place with the new moving picture in a box.

Social discourse changed from communally listening to the radio and watching theatre newsreels to individually watching television reclined with T.V. dinners. With these changes, photojournalism's fervor and "call to action" faded to black.

35 mm photographers also entered the scene, whose 35 mm cameras produced color, convenience, and popular appeal. Professional photographers used 35 mm cameras instead of the larger and heavier previous equipment. Novice photographers who just happened to be at the "right place at the right time" captured images. The field of photography became more competitive.

Robert Frank. Photo The-artists.org.

In the '50s and '60s, photography and press changed from optimism to pessimism, notable with the occurrence of McCarthyism and the advent of the Beat generation. Life Magazine's patriotic appeal began to be out shouted by new photographers who sought to sing the angst of the outsider rather than praise progress. Cynicism of romance, progress, and patriotism were more trusted than the previous era's faith in such things (Goldberg 363).

Swiss photographer Robert Frank's 1959 book The Americans demonstrates this cynicism. His 35 mm candid photography was extreme: grainy and cropped, highlighting sad and uncertain faces. Margaret Bourke-White's photography, on the other hand, was well-thought out, composed, suggesting that "a sense of order ruled the world, or at least that photographers could divine enough order to explain it" (Goldberg 364).

Rugs. c. Dena Rosko 2004.

In recent years, photography's role has moved from photojournalistic to the visual arts. Critics have called Bourke-White's work "'overly emotional and... ultimately superficial'" and "'lacking subtlety or ambiguity'" (Goldberg 364).

Photography, at least academic photography, expects that good photographs must be ambiguous, vague, and always suspect and suspicious of its subjects and the world at large.

This expectation carries with it the prejudice that past eras aren't reliable or valid in their photographic storytelling simply because they aren't modern--that they don't operate under today's standards for art or photography--that they're outdated--old.

Such criticism of the "before now" biases itself to the present and so lacks appreciation and vision for past photographic achievements and news values. These academic judgments tend to be cynical because they distrust anything but their own opinion. If photography, by their standards, is to be ambiguous and without meaning or purpose, then how can they make such a distinction?

These modern criticisms stem from the prevailing assumption that art must be separate from politics or other worldly institutions whose intent is suspect because it is other than artistic (David Barber). Further, these criticisms attest that art must have no meaning at all. It must not be or even do.

Such assessments reveal a change in social and academic attitudes in photography's history: photographs are to no longer serve a national or communal purpose; photographs are to cater to the individual's experience.

Yellow Phone. c. Dena Rosko 2003.

It can be difficult to filter all the images and messages in our present day 24-hour news cycles. Take a deep breath and embark on the self-proclaimed "Information Age."

35 mm cameras and photographs aren't new to us anymore. We are hard-wired: cable T.V., cable modems, and cell phones accompany us through our day. T.V. cards, streamlined audio, and mp3s sing to us through our computers. We are attached at the hip so to speak, perhaps even taking our gadgets along on our much needed vacations--just in case. We have easy and immediate access to people, places and things, and the news just does not surprise us anymore.

What's On?.

c. Dena Rosko 2004.

Also, people have changed how they digest information. Web site research indicates that Web users scan sites instead of read them to filter information. "How Users Read on the Web" reads Jakob Nielsen's article of the same title. "They don't," Nielsen writes.

And so the question begs to be asked: amidst this steady stream of information, are we really more informed than before?

The unanswered question above hints at the belief that less is more, and the concern that current trends of quantity and speed boot quality and composition out the door. This belief and concern may be more apt than it is nostalgic.

Labtop. c. Dena Rosko 2004.

One current technology I enjoy: my digital camera. Many a persons have asked me, "Do you have a digital camera?" while they whip out theirs, no larger than a couple matchboxes, from their pocket. "Check out mine!" and they show me an audio movie of their cats or pictures of their vacation.

The benefit of owning a digital camera for me is that I can

• enjoy different compositions and lighting techniques;
• immediately see results on-site to make adjustments when needed;
• efficient and prompt turn-around for my clients;
• restore and enhance images;
• provide greater quality and quantity of images for my clients;

With these benefits, one concern to consider regards archival quality. With the ease of deleting images from a flashcard or hard drive, and with technology changing frequently, how will we preserve images for future generations?

Still, I feel it's important to grow with the times. Businesses expect and need digital images as part of their marketing needs. People use digital images personally and professionally for slide shows, presentations, trade show displays, pamphlets, brochures, catalogs, manuals, Web sites, and e-mail. With these new digital innovations, we can more quickly and easily record and share images of our world.

Vintage Camera.

c. Dena Rosko 2003.

This kind of Commercial, or Marketing, photography isn't new. Margaret Bourke-White took photographs for Fortune magazine and Life Magazine that were commercial in nature.

One of Bourke-White's most profitable advertising accounts was with Goodyear. She shot scenes showing "the distance between screeching halt and sure disaster... showing 'the Goodyear margin of safety'" (Sean Callahan, ed. 46). Goodyear wanted her to vividly capture the message of the safety and quality of their tires.

One such picture I like is of a woman screaming on her steed as it rears up in front of a car. The car is stopped, but the horse is in motion, probably more relaxed than the lady on its back.

"Commercial Photography" seems somewhat of an outdated term. Not-for-profit organizations and government also need images for marketing purposes. For this reason, I prefer to call this kind of photography "Marketing Photography."

Changes in photography, like many technological or industrial advancements, often occurs in sync with historical events and changing social attitudes.

Due to this trend, "the Information Age" benefits Marketing Photography as businesses and individuals wish to purchase images from photographers and stock photography companies for their diverse multi-media needs.

When I service businesses and organizations, I aim

• to be mindful of the need to communicate a message,
• to record a subject accurately in its essence and intent,
• and to capture the real people behind the message.

Father Holding Son.

c. Dena Rosko 2006.

On my wedding day, a family member - smiling from ear to ear - said to me, "It's these kind of moments that make life worth living - the work, the stress - these kind of moments make it all worthwhile."

I've since reflected on his words - it is true that life is a flourish, and life has its seasons. The joyfilled seasons tend to redeem the sour ones, and remind us that the happy days ahead will indeed overcome the hard ones - just around the corner.

It is my pleasure and privilege to record the beauty and reality of those special moments for clients to enjoy for years to come. I offer wedding photography, private special events, and portrait services to give my clients a tangible way to revisit those meaningful moments in life.

As my tagline says:

Life's a flourish. Be vigorous. Be dramatic. Succeed. Grow. Work hard, live well, love true, and enjoy life. And while you're living life, let Dena Rosko Photography capture the flourish of it all.

This page is only a starting point, and is peppered with opinion. It would behoove the avid history buff to further research these topics by way of these sources, which aided me in developing this page:

Barber, David. Archibald MacLeish's Life and Career. University of Illinois: Department of English.http://www.english.uiuc.edu/maps/poets/m_r/macleish/life.htm. Prepared and Compiled by Cary Nelson. Accessed: March 14, 2006.

Bellis, Mary. Your Guide to Inventors. http://inventors.about.com/library/inventors/blphotography.htm. Accessed: March 14, 2006.

Bourke-White, Margaret. Portrait of Myself. New York: Simon and Schuster, Inc. c. 1963.

Callahan, Sean, Ed. The Photographs of Margaret Bourke-White. Greenwich, Connecticut: New York Graphic Society Ltd. c. 1972 Estate of Margaret Bourke-White. c. 1972 Time Inc.

Goldberg, Vicki. Margaret Bourke-White: A Biography. New York: Harper & Row, Publishers, Inc. c. 1986.

Nielsen, Jakob. How Users Read on the Web. http://www.useit.com/alertbox/9710a.html. Created: October 1, 1997. Accessed: March 14, 2006.

Pollack, Peter, Milton S. Fox, Ed. The Picture History of Photography: From the Earliest Beginnings to the Present Day. New York: Harry N. Abrams, Inc., Publishers. Revised and enlarged edition c. 1969.

Spartacus Educational Web site. http://www.spartacus.schoolnet.co.uk/USAluce.htm. Accessed: March 14, 2006.

The-artists.org. Robert Frank Bio. http://www.the-artists.org/ Accessed: March 14, 2006.

Wilgus, Jack and Beverly. The Magic Mirror of Life: An Appreciation of the Camera Obscura. http://brightbytes.com/cosite/what.html. Accessed: March 14, 2006.

Yale University. American Studies Program. Route 66: Cruising the American Dream - Robert Frank. http://www.cis.yale.edu/amstud/r66/fr1.html. c. 2004. Accessed: March 14, 2006.