Please Answer this Discussion Question for Thursday April 2nd
Please write a short paragraph on the following question in preparation for your discussion in class on Thursday:
Now that you have had some experience recording your own image-enhanced podcast, how does Cristina Grasseni’s article on “Video and Ethnographic Knowledge” offer you some new ways of thinking about the use of images and video as means of media-enhanced storytelling?
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Cristina Grasseni’s article highlights the importance of not sharing your perspective with the viewer. She discusses how important it is to incorporate not only your own take on what you are trying to portray but help the viewer see your perspective. But at the same time, you have to remember that not all viewers have the same knowledge as the person making the video on the subject. What a good video comes down to is a matter of “‘see[ing] the world through the eyes of the native'” and finding some way to make what is being portrayed universal. What I mean by that is a good video-maker would capture the essence of their video’s subject so that it is relevant to the watcher, so that the viewer would be interested in the topic, even if it’s their first time watching it.
Another lesson I took away from reading that active participation in capturing media is key to good storytelling. There is the saying that “A picture tells a thousand word.” This only pertains to a good picture, but not all photographers capture their thousand words in their photo. Just by looking at something and wanting to capture the “moment” is not enough. For photography, other factors such as lighting comes into play. In media, it is important to consider the different angles and the implication one angle may offer over another. Grasseni did a lot of anthropology work to understand the beauty and practice of breeding. Without that, she would not be able to understand the breeders’ perspective and show that to the viewers. Without doing anthropology work and seeing what the breeders see, and the view that judges evaluate the cattle from, she would not know which angle to use or what to focus her video on so that viewers can also see the beauty of breeding cattle.
At first look, the topic of the book- cattle, surprised me. Video cameras, animation, and all sorts of interactive visual media are usually associated with action-packed and exciting footage. Cows are subject matter that hardly fit the above expectation. However, through the exerpts from Cristina Grasseni’s book, I garnered that it did not matter exactly what the subject matter was, but rather the way in which it was presented. In her case, she was dealing with the selection and breeding of prize cattle. From almost any other person’s standpoint, this apprenticeship and situation would be very tedious and annoying. Yet, Grasseni explains that while the world of cattle breeding was very foreign and did not come easily to her, it was a craft that was easily picked up by those in the industry- even young children.
From this, we can see that the use of video and pictures is not to show a general idea of what a particular subject might represent, but rather to get as specific as possible. In this case, it would mean that instead of focusing on the entire herd, it would be even more practical and rewarding to concentrate on the selection of one cow. This specific instance of experience helps to convey universal understanding and appreciation of common values and goals.
Cristina Grasseni’s article on video and ethnographic knowledge evoked many thoughts in me. For one, I was reminded that when people observe something with our own senses, they tend to pay too much mind to other forces aside from the central focus. Through the use of video, Grasseni explains, a much more focused view on certain agendas can be created. In her case, she was observing the breeding of cattle.
What struck me most was the comparison she gave between the lens of the video camera and the eye of the experienced cattle breeder. With a camera, one can focus in on the details that a professional breeder would, such as the size of the shoulders and abdomen.
It is almost the same idea as a movie, when people see life on a screen, they tend to realize certain things that once seemed unapparent or perhaps even obsolete. I have video recordings of several occasions and certain details that the camera was able to record, my eyes had missed. This article presents a similar idea.
Grasseni refers to the camera as “a tool and an aid to heighten awareness,” meaning that the bare senses alone can not seem to grasp certain angles of viewing something. For example, the average person might not notice certain details on a cow that an experienced breeder might, but with the use of the camera, those details become more clear and visible. In a way, the camera can be considered as a third eye.
Grasseni does a great job of showing how modern technology can be used to amplify the fields of social research, in her case, anthropology.
This article provided a bit of insight into the use of images and video as means of media-enhanced storytelling, namely in the way technology can help frame, direct, and/or position the way in which the story is told and the viewpoint and reactions of the viewers. The article explains that “a camera can help us especially to think about how others see the world, and about how the world is framed for us through the skilled practices that we have been trained into.” The use of images and video helps us understand the diversity of viewpoints that exists, and can help us to see a given reality in a new light. It directs and disciplines the vision of the person creating the story, and helps the viewer share in that vision. The article also mentions how such things can be tools and aids “to heighten awareness, while serving as a testimony.”
Use of the camera can teach individuals how to understand the visual sense by focusing on how other people see. I think that, as human beings, we often misinterpret things that we see
or form conclusions based on perception or initial reaction. However, by recording something on
camera and re-watching it through the camera’s eyes, as was done by Grasseni, we can redirect
our attention and engage in more thoughtful analysis, thus gaining a better, broader, and more
accurate understanding of the subject matter at hand. This schooling of attention plays a valuable
role in illuminating certain aspects of human experience and lived practice as it unfolds; the
camera can capture things that are often difficult for the researcher to notice or record at the time
because life often happens faster than any note-taker can document and often quicker and with
greater complexity than a human observer can consciously perceive.
When I think of anthropology, or any other social science for that matter, I feel like
talk and text dominate social science theory and methodology. However, it is essential to be able
to capture, evoke or somehow convey social worlds beyond the linguistic, verbal and cognitive.
In my opinion, talk and text is more one-dimensional and often not very effective in gaining
insight in to a multi-dimensional, multi-sensory world. Furthermore, certain aspects of
experience become more ‘visible’ and can be seen in new ways through the use of the camera. I
commend Grasseni for taking such a creative, innovative approach for her anthropological
research.
Use of the camera can teach individuals how to understand the visual sense by focusing on how other people see. I think that, as human beings, we often misinterpret things that we see or form conclusions based on perception or initial reaction. However, by recording something on camera and re watching it through the camera’s eyes, as was done by Grasseni, we can redirect our attention and engage in more thoughtful analysis, thus gaining a better, broader, and more accurate understanding of the subject matter at hand. This schooling of attention plays a valuable role in illuminating certain aspects of human experience and lived practice as they unfold; the camera can capture things that are often difficult for the researcher to notice or record at the time because life often happens faster than any note-taker can document and often quicker and with greater complexity than a human observer can consciously perceive.
When I think of anthropology, or any other social science for that matter, I feel like talk and text dominate social science theory and methodology. However, it is essential to be able to capture, evoke or somehow convey social worlds beyond the linguistic, verbal and cognitive. In my opinion, talk and text is more one-dimensional and often not very effective in gaining
insight in to a multi-dimensional, multi-sensory world. Furthermore, certain aspects of experience become more ‘visible’ and can be seen in new ways through the use of the camera. I commend Grasseni for taking such a creative, innovative approach in her anthropological research.
No surprise to those that know me, I love cars and the automobile industry. I do not know why I like them so much, but for whatever reason – power, speed, technical advancement, design or other – my hobby is following new releases and models. One of the criticisms I hear is why is it a new model when it looks identical to the one it replaces? This is blasphemy to me because I see the nuances in every automotive design, noticing the changes even if they are so minute.
This thought process greatly resembles how photography is used to communicate media-enhanced storytelling. As the design of cars can be grouped together by some, and the look of a cow by others, photography techniques can and should be used to highlight the differences between objects, making them more interesting to look at. Automotive photographers attempt to do this by capturing the new vehicle they are taking a picture of in innovative ways and from interesting angles. This is exactly what Grasseni did with the cows – capturing something more than what was expected.
Photography is a fantastic artistic expression, one that goes beyond capturing a visual representation seen in nature. Photography, or at least good photography, tells a story by showing uniqueness and differentiating between the ordinary from the interesting. If we use photography like this, we have the tools to capture the attention of the viewer in a way a boring photography could never, and the message we are trying to get across comes through clearer, more relevantly, and with more passion.
Just as much as automotive photographers tell stories using pictures of their cars, and Grasseni captured a more interesting, less monotonous pictures of cows, we can also utilize new media and photography-enhanced presentations to make whatever the project may be more successful and more interesting.
Cristina Grasseni’s article demonstrated the importance of images and videos in developing a unique perspective. Not only do they incorporate the use of technology in ethnographic studies, but they also server a tool for studying a person’s own perspective. Before reading this article, I thought that a picture gives an objective representation of the world. Grasseni made me realize that it is, in fact, the photographer’s subjective perspective. This evoked several thoughts for me. For one, how do the pictures and videos that I take give insight on my perception of the world? In addition, could a photograph ever tell a completely objective perspective of the world? I feel that these realizations made me appreciate video and photography in a whole new way.