George Mitchell

George Mitchell is a photographer who grew up in Florida. He was drawn to documenting blues music,  and it was on one of these shoots that he met a streetwalker named Rhonda. He was drawn to her story and consequently conducted a two year long documentary, photographing aspects of both her personal and work life. George Mitchell then went on to teach photography to students in schools, producing photography books such as Sweet Auburn: the Many Faces of Atlanta's Most Historic Avenue alongside the students. 

This image shows a young woman standing in front of a white brick wall. She has blonde hair that contrasts with her black fur coat and black trousers. The image is black and white creating a large amount of contrast between the figure and the wall behind as there are a lot of bright whites and dark colours.  

I think this image is a simple but powerful one. The figure is simply standing in front of a plain wall and yet her facial expression and body language exude contrasting feelings of vulnerability and confidence. Whereas her body language suggests the young woman is confident in front of both a camera and people, her facial expression suggests a vulnerability in her eyes, hinting at a troubled life. The black and white adds to the isolation of the image. Even though this image was taken as part of a documentary series, following the life of the woman named Rhonda, when viewing this image now, a modern audience may view the picture in a different way. Without knowing the context behind the image, it may be re-appropriated from a documentary image to that of a fashion one, focusing on the fashion at the time it was taken. 

This image portrays a woman who is injecting drugs into her arm. The image is black and white creating a high contrast within the image. The woman's head is down, hiding her identity from the camera. 

I think this image is a good one that focuses in on something personal in the subjects life. The fact that the woman is taking drugs in front of the camera suggests she isn't worried about revealing what she does to the world, however, with her head down, there is both a sense of vulnerability and intense concentration coming from the picture. The image is quite shocking as it is revealing an act which can be considered both a taboo and forbidden in society. George Mitchell has created a juxtaposition between his use of natural lighting and framing and the stark reality of what is actually happening in the image. He has created a beautiful image from an act which is deemed to be not so beautiful. 

This image shows the back of young girls head and body and the reflection of the front of her face in a mirror. Even though the image is black and white, there is minimal contrast in the image. 

Personally I think this image is extremely powerful as it shows raw emotions on the subjects face. The use of the mirror suggests the viewer is viewing something personal, something that we wouldn't usually see on the woman's face. There is a large feeling of vulnerability on the woman's face, something that is assumed she usually tries to hide away from the world. The use of grain in the image reflects the raw beauty and grittiness of her life and her past experiences. The shot has been taken naturally, creating a feeling of truth and sincerity in the image that may not be found in an image that is more posed and thought out. 

Responses

For my response to George Mitchell I took photos focusing on one particular subject. I tried to recreate particular images of George Mitchell's, creating carbon copies of his work, allowing me to respond to him accordingly. I have put my images in black and white subsequently creating a high contrast within the pictures, as this is a device George Mitchell uses in his shoots. I think this shoot has been successful in recreating George Mitchell;s images, as I have used both similar backgrounds and locations, as well as adopting the same kind of angles in which Mitchell uses when taking his pictures. 

This image shows a young girl positioned in front of a white brick wall directly facing the camera. There is a high contrast within the image as a result of the use of black and white. The white background contrasts with both the figure standing in front and the black dirt which is evident on the white wall. 

I think this image has been successful as it looks similar to George Mitchell's version of a young woman standing in front of a white brick wall.  I have shot the image from a direct front angle, just as Mitchell did for his image. However, my subject has adopted a straight simple pose in the image, whereas George Mitchell's subject has a more relaxed pose, with her hands in her pockets and her body slightly angled to the side. My image has a high contrast just as George Mitchell's does, evident through the grubbiness of the white wall in both images. 

This image shows a young girl sat on a step looking up at the camera. The background is dark, leaving the location ambiguous in the image. The image is black and white and has a large amount of contrast between the figure and the background. 

I think this image has been successful in responding to George Mitchell's work, as I have created a similar kind of scenario and a similar image. I have used the same angle Mitchell does, shooting the image from above my subject, therefore prompting the subject to look up at the camera rather than directly in front to the camera. Furthermore, there is a large amount of contrast as a result of the use of black and white. However, whereas George Mitchell's image was clearly shot in the day time, mine was taken at night, therefore allowing me to both respond to my chosen question Night, as well as responding to George Mitchell.