Rain at 8th and Hill, Los Angeles, November 14, 1952
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In this image is a vehicle speeding through the rain, as shown by the splashes and waves in the shallow layer of water over the street.
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2020-11-24T19:35:16-08:00
This image shows a vehicle speeding through the rain, as evidenced by the splashes and waves in the shallow layer of water over the street. The rain is heavy, as seen by the traces of the droplets as they reach the street’s surface. There is an interesting balance between black and white, and positive and negative space in this image because there are few areas of extreme contrast, and the negative spaces do not seem obviously unfilled because of the rain. Something unique to this image is how its features—the composition, the subjects, the lighting—highlight the image’s sharpness; the amount of detail is extremely high and visually engaging. Amidst rising attention to photo “quality” in photojournalism, this image fits interestingly in discussions of new objectivity and photography as art. It captures the essence of a moment and focuses on the scene, the rain, and the vehicle, and for these reasons, it hints at the characteristics of new objectivity, a movement that focused upon capturing the essence rather than demonstrating strong photographic creativity. However, it differs in that the image is not as simple as so—it still possesses the artistic beauty of capturing a specific moment in time. Additionally, the ability of the image to capture so many details in a scene that is packed with motion highlights the technological capabilities of the time. Photography had evolved to a point where moments of mid-motion could be captured. This ability mirrors popular uses of high shutter speeds in photojournalism to capture short-lasting moments and specific scenes that are invisible to the human eye. The image is capable of visually communicating motion to viewers despite being a still photograph and highlights the various possibilities of photojournalism and visual expression with not only advancing technology but expanding uses of such technology that are being adopted by society.
