Enhancing visual literacy through interpretation of photo-genres: toward a genre typology of journalistic photographs

ABSTRACT

Although genre is one of the most extensively employed concepts in various disciplines, only a few attempts have been made to classify images in the press, providing either a palette of thematic categories similar to those of photography competitions or theory-based classifications, which often ignore certain types of photographs. In addition, no studies have suggested the genre typology as a tool for the interpretation of journalistic photographs. Based on a literature review and visual material analysis from the Polish daily Gazeta Wyborcza, this study compiles a typology that sets out four photo-genres: news photography, reportage photography, portrait photography and illustrative photography, with related photo-types. The criteria used to distinguish certain photo-types are based on differences in the visual content of photographs, their context, layout of display, number of images, and their fulfillment of informative, expressive, impressive, esthetic, illustrative or marketing functions. As a result, the study describes each genre and type separately, illustrated by visual samples. The conclusion is that although genres have a tendency to merge and create hybrids, and thus, any attempt at classifying them leads to certain generalizations, the typology can be applied as a tool in visual literacy education to facilitate students’ interpretation of journalistic photographs.

KEYWORDS:

• Genre
• interpretation
• journalistic photograph
• press photography
• typology
• visual literacy

Acknowledgments

I thank Merja Koskela and Mari Pienimäki for comments that greatly improved the earlier versions of this article.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author.

Notes on contributor

Joanna Kędra is postgraduate researcher in the Department of Communication at the University of Jyväskylä, Finland. The aim of her research is to develop approaches to journalistic photography interpretation, which can be applied for visual literacy education.

Notes

1. >This division into realistic and performative portraits links to the recently renewed categories of the World Press Photo (from the year 2014 onwards), where the category People was divided into observed and staged portraits (WPP 2014).

2. >Based on the assumption that journalism originates in literature, Wolny-Zmorzyński, Kaliszewski, and Furman (2006) formulate the typology of journalistic genres, which derives from Aristotle's classical division into types and genres in literature studies. The authors propose four types of journalism, that is, press, radio, television and the Internet, which are then divided into information, publicist and information-publicist journalistic genres.

3. >Freeman (2011) uses two terms with reference to what is called photo reportage here. He discusses photo essays, which may be a counterpart to photo reportage, and photojournalism, the characteristics of which fit partly to photo reportage and partly to news photographs.

4. >See, for instance, Dorothea Lange's Migrant Mother (1936), which was initially a part of a series, or a more recent example of the World Press Photo of the Year 2009 by Pietro Masturzo, selected from the longer photo story.

Additional information

Funding

This study was conducted in the Institute of Journalism, University of Warsaw, Poland, and supported by the Science Council's Mobility Grant from the University of Jyväskylä, Finland.