Digital Humanities and Its Implications for Photography, Essay Example

As the reach of the Internet and digital technology expands around the globe, fundamental changes are taking place to the way human communicate, work, play, and live. The repository of information available at the fingertips of billions of people is reshaping our collective consciousness, and this has far-reaching implications for the entire human race. Even those who are not directly connected to the Internet or who do not have access to computers and cell phones are still having their lives transformed by technology. The Internet and other digital technologies are making the world a smaller place, allowing new connections and new understanding about the world in which we all live. The intersection of the physical world and the virtual, digital world requires the development of new approaches to cataloging, exploring, and understanding the very nature of the human experience. At this intersection sits the concept of digital humanities, where the traditional humanities studies meet the opportunities afforded by technology. Traditional forms of capturing and contextualizing history in writing, photography, and other forms of art and literature are being redefined by the capacity for technology to offer new perspectives and open up new frontiers of exploration, research, and understanding.

In the technological age, the art and science of photography have undergone a paradigm shift. Digital photography, digital editing, and the ability to store and transmit digital images have supplanted much of the role that was long played by the medium of traditional film photography. Photographers are no longer bound by the limitations of film cameras and film development, and it is now possible for millions, or even billions, of people to capture quality images with digital cameras. It is also within the grasp of many of these same people to manipulate and edit these images in ways that are often unexpected and just as often undetectable. The old saying that the camera doesn’t lie is no longer applicable in the digital age. Not only can the camera lie, it can also lie without being caught.

These changes to the process of photography mean that photographs are no longer static, unchanging images. A photograph taken by one person can be manipulated by another, often changing its entire meaning. Photography has often been seen as either a mirror or a window; the mirror reflects the intention or purpose of the photographer, while the windowshows the presumed essence or reality of the subject. In the age of digital photography, it is possible for photographs to be both mirrors and lenses at the same time. As Fred Ritchlin describes it, photographs can now serve as mosaics, bringing together images and other content in new ways. Ritchlin provides an example of the famous photograph of the Viet Cong soldier being shot and killed. This photograph had a profound effect on the way many people viewed the war, yet the photographer notes that it was devoid of much of its actual context. What the viewer does not see in the picture –such as the events leading up to the execution or the state of mind of the shooter or the victim- might profoundly alter the perception of the image if such context were available.

It is within this framework that photography finds its place in the realm of digital humanities. The static images of the past are no longer bound and restricted by the same limitations. Photographs can be embedded with links that provide viewers with historical details or other information about the context in which the photograph was taken. It is not only the photographer that can embed such information or link photographs to wider information networks; depending on the forum or platform, viewers may be able to contribute  their own ideas and understanding about the photograph. In the context of digital humanities, photographs are not limited to functioning as windows or lenses to the past; they can now reflect and highlight the present and the future as well.