Roland Barthes talks about an intriguing aspect of photography in chapter 5 of the publication Camera Lucida.
The chapter entitled symbolically, He Who Is Photographed analyses the difference between not knowing one is being photographed and being aware of the photographer pointing the camera directly towards you.
"It can happen that I am observed without knowing it, and again I cannot
speak of this experience, since I have determined to be guided by the
consciousness of my feelings. But very often (too often, to my taste) I
have been photographed and knew it. Now, once I feel myself observed by
the lens, everything changes: I constitute myself in the process of
‘posing’, I instantaneously make another body for myself, I transform
myself in advance into an image. This transforamtion is an active one: I
feel that the Photograph creates my body or mortifies it, according to
its caprice."
"The portrait photograph is a closed field of forces. Four image repertoires intersect here, oppose and distort each other. In the front of the lens, I am at the same time: the one I think I am , the one I want others to think I am, the one the photographer thinks I am, and the one he makes use of to exhibit his art. in other words, a strange action: I do not stop immitating myself, and because of this, each time I am ( or let myself be) photographed, I invariably suffer from a sensation of inauthenticity, sometimes of imposture ( comparable to certain nightmares)."
Barthe's words have given me something to ponder upon because I have ended up asking myself how I wish to capture the subjects I am going to photograph, whilst attending various shows including concerts, operas and maybe even theater shows. Do I want the people to know they are being photographed, should I choose the other option and go incognito if possible, trying to work "undercover". Another way of doing it would be not caring if the person is aware that his portait is being taken or not. The question is: How would that affect the final outcome of my project?
If my aim is to document the process of being absorbed into a performance then I should do my best to capture the model's expression without making him/her aware of that. I might be able to do that if I manage to find the best location to position myself during the show, so that I can see the audience but they wouldn't be able to spot me. I am likely to use a telephoto lens as it enables me to get a close up of the subject without having to go too close. My intention is to shoot digitally because it provides me with instant access to the images and the ability to produce a larger number of photographs per show.
Due to reduced amounts of light, wide aperture should be used ( I am thinking f/2.8) high ISO (1600-2000) and perhaps taking a tripod with me at the shows wouldn't be a bad idea either. I might require longer exposures and that would help me maintain the stability of the camera and lens.
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