photographic evidence

assignment 1 C&D


Many people say that a picture can tell a thousand words. Through the analysis of photos this has proven very true. Our reaction when a camera is snapped in our faces can tell a lot about our personalities and values, even from a very young age.

From looking at Charles’ photos a lot can be learned about his personality, childhood, upbringing and hobbies. Through looking at the photos I would say that Charles has a very strong relationship with his brother, they both seem to be quite a similar age. His brother is someone he seems to look up to a lot – this is seen quite literally in a few of the photos. There has also been a feeling of mischievousness between the two brothers aswell. This continues through to when they are grown up and this turn into what seems to be a very close friendship but also a fun one. The photos show the two brothers together on a variety of sun and ski holidays, I think that this shows that they are happy to spend time together, proving that they get on well. A little sister then arrives in which Charles seems to take great pride in. Photos of him holding her hand when she is young, right up to a photo of them still looking very close as teenagers.

Charles also seems to take a strong interest in hobbies, his photos show him skiing, sailing and on scout camps. These photos all show him on his own, something that I believe shows his independence developing as he grows up through his teenage years. The scout camps would probably have helped this process in learning a lot about himself. A photo of him looking thoughtful resembles this idea where he is standing in a very assure way which I feel shows strength and assurance in himself. The variety of hobbies that he has would also give me the impression that he is well travelled and therefore possibly verging into upper class in society.

There are also photos of Charles along with some female friends. I think that this shows that it is an important part of his life. I think that he seems to be a gentleman, one of the photos shows him holding an umbrella over a girls head. He also has a very assured and strong pose in this photo which I feel shows he is a strong character. His masculinity and dominance in the relationship with a girl is shown again in another photo. This time fancy dress is used to make this even clearer. He is dressed as some form of army or warrior with facepaint, a headband etc while the girl is dressed as little bo peep. The choice of costume gives the idea that he wants to appear to be the stronger character of the two.

Through looking at the photos and then speaking to Charles about them I think that I came up with a pretty accurate idea of his personality. He likes to think that he is a gentleman and he does indeed have a strong bond with both his brother and sister. Family means a lot to him and although there are no photos with his parents he is close to them aswell. He is a very keen sailor and skier and often goes on holidays a couple of times a year. These are always family events although while there he said that he enjoys meeting new people.