Tell a Story Questions

1.  In the world that surrounds you what do you observe during the day that may tell a story? I think that really every person you see during the day tells a story. Everyone has things from their past and experiences that shape who they are. That is one of the reasons it is so important not to assume certain things about people and judge them because you don’t know what has caused them to do that.

2.  How would you prepare yourself as a photographer to create images that tell a story? Well taking images that tell a story was one of the things we had to photograph. The hardest part about that was working up the courage to ask people to take pictures of them. The best thing a photographer can do is just be nice and genuine when approaching someone they would like to photograph and actually talk to them instead of just taking their picture.

3.  Describe three memories that you wish had been photographed by a documentary photographer. Three memories that I wish were photographed by a documentary photographer are Jesus’ life and death, the origins of music and the earliest musicians, and life as a hunter and gatherer.

4.  Bring in an image from your childhood or family album that tells a story to share with the class.

Alison McCauley, Inspiring Street Photographer

http://www.amccauley.ch/

Vivian Maier

1. It takes a very strong-willed woman and strong-willed person to desire such a life. Most people flourish off of the attention they receive from others and cannot live without that attention. Vivian was not that type of person. I think this is because she had such strong opinions and such an open mind. She was willing to depart from common conceptions and society and simply pursue her own personal passions. She was able to keep in contact with society and community because of her job as a nanny and even through the photographs she took of random people that did not even know her. 
2. Documentary photography is an account of a person or event that had a significant contribution to society. In this case, that person is Vivian Maier. This documentary uses reporting from people that knew Vivian or people that have studied about Vivian to tell about her life and how she came to be the firm-spirited woman, photographer, and caring nanny she was. 
3. Once a person dies, I think that a person’s work should be available to people. Vivian Maier’s works are meaningless if they are not shared to the world once she has died. Her works were certainly a passion to her, but they should be shared after her death. This makes not only her photography last, but her as a person last. She must have had something to prove by being so secretive and not letting herself out into the world, and people wouldn’t even begin to wonder why she would do such a thing if her works were not revealed. 
4. For the most part, it seems as though people thought of Maier as a very good nanny. She was compared to Mary Poppins, as she was good to her children and would take them out to pick strawberries and do other things. However, one woman said that you had to watch out for her temper sometimes, because she would get emotional about certain things and act out. 
5. John Maloof
6. In the post above is one of the pictures I particularly like that Vivian Maier took. First off, like most of her other pictures, it is black and white, which I think enhances many photographs. Moreover, I think the picture conveys a lot of emotion. The wrinkles on the old man and his worn smile makes me think that the man has undergone a stressful life. He looks exhausted, yet serious. The picture makes me want to meet the old man and ask him about his life. I think that photographs that make viewers wonder more are the most successful photographs.