HELP PLEASE! Photography assignment on UNEMPLOYMENT

MiissTL

Hey guys,

I am looking for suggestions as to what you would photograph in relation to unemployment... I am talking that I need roughly 120 pictures of different things (10 pics to submit a week over 12 weeks or something like that!)

I am probably the most uncreative person I know and I am stumped when it comes to dreaming up things to photograph!

If there are to be people in these pics I have to get them to sign a release form and also have someone witness it (bother :mad:) so my only idea of photographing the DOLE QUEUE has most definitely gone out the window!

If anyone could suggest a few things I would appreciate it so much!



THANK YOU............

Mountainsandh

no offense OP, but how come you have a photography assignment if you're so uncreative ? Are there courses that have the photography bit on the side as an option or something ?

AnCatDubh

Some things to consider;

Non people stuff -

• A near empty purse or wallet
• Bills
• A google of a jobsite
• FAS office
• Social Welfare office
• Unemployment benefit form
• Bank ATM
• Newspaper jobs section - circled

People Stuff -

• Don't give up on the dole queue thing - it may/can make for a really interesting documentary. Explain what you are doing and ask in Social Welfare offices if you could put a notice on their noticeboard seeking out subjects. Like any person assignment (nothing in particular to do with social welfare office) - mind out for your personal safety should you get any contacts.
  
• How about when explaining to the social welfare people what you are at, seeing if you could go behind the scenes - all only with their agreement of course.
  
• There are many organisations helping out with unemployed people. Seek them out and see if they can help.
  
• Someone recently posted a project they were involved with which showed the unemployed person posed with tools of their trade. This might make something good to experiment with - do your own take on it.

gunny

You could always try a photogragh the dole que from behind with a long shot heading towards the office entrance. shots of closed up building sites , shops ewith either closing down signs, or for sale/lease signs. Small towns ie DunLaoghaire have blocks of shops in this condition at the mo. A photo of the lack of highrise cranes on the cities horizon is an indication of the slowdown in project that blighted the skylines throughout the country. I have to say Im surprised your doing a photography course with very little imagination. Photography is an art form, anyone can take photographs. you need to be able to tell stories or immerse the viewer in those shots. Thats the art

MiissTL

Hi guys,

Thanks so much for the reply! And I didn't even think of saying that - no I am in no way doing a course related to photography! In fact I am doing a Business/Computing course in an I.T. Don't ask me why we are doing photography, we had to do Creative Writing last year, I spent 6 months writing poetry! Ridiculous, but we must get on with it.

Thanks again for all your help.

Mountainsandh

Good luck with the course. Empty building sites, empty premises (you could even use premises that are in use but look deserted, like a Tesco at night), abandonned tools ... I would personnally do lots of abandonned/unused tools : an overall folded with a measuring tape and pencil neatly laid up on top for example. Make a series where the jobs can easily be identified, with different tools, including for example a laptop, files, stapler, family pic and mug all packed up in a cardboard box all ready to go (like you see in series when office people get fired). Watch out for traffic works where they leave some work bits on side of the road (pipes etc...) they could make a good picture at week-ends when no one's at work.
In my opinion your pics will have more impact if you manage to situate them in a deserted context, or in a little bubble. You could have activity all around, and your subject on its own, unused/idle somewhere in the pic.

You could take "cut off" pics of people, where you see their hands and lower bodies but not their heads. Or pics of them facing away.

CabanSail

I really fail to see the necessity to have releases in a project of this type. In what way would these images be used commercially? If they are being used for artistic expession or for editorial purposes then a release is not required.

Personally I would do a bit of research into the requirements of having a release and then question that aspect of the assignment. Either the person setting it was not aware of the law in this area and was being overly cautious or there is more going on than you've been told.

Mr Trade In

Stats on mass emigration related to the downturn in jobs market with added photos of Australia, New Zealand, Canada etc.

Photos of middle age fully qualified workers and websites advertising plc and third level courses for the unemployed.

Lots of photos of Anglo Irish Bank and American or European Banks,eg Northern Rock who have contributed to this whole fiasco.

Photos of Aldi and Lidl, if you can while the stores are packed to emphasis people are spending their money in low cost stores as most have less to spend.

MiissTL

Hello again,

Thanks for all the replies again, very very helpful!

In relation to the release forms, the project we are doing is in conjunction with KADE (Kerry Action for Development Education)... some development group, (I have no idea really!) and they will eventually pick, I think, 50 photos altogether and make a "photopack" which will distributed to schools (including primary schools) for something (again unclear).

So yeah, I suppose they are being used for some commercial use. However, KADE do not make a profit from it. :rolleyes:

Buceph

First off, if I was doing a course on IT and they had me doing photography I would object. Second off, if they had me taking pictures so a commercial operation (a limited company doing quasi-charitble work) could sell my photos, I would object. Thirdly, if they could convince me to offer my work to a charity, I sure as fuck wouldn't give my work to a body that's related to the Concern(chuggers,) Trocaire and the Catholic Church whose attitude to the prevention of AIDs is anti-condom.

I think ITT are screwing you here. Forcing you to do work for a third party. And that party may or may not align with your political or charitable beliefs.


Edit: Here's where your photos will end up. http://www.kade.ie/photopackorder

And you can see their connection to Trocaire and Concern (a bunch of chuggers) at the bottom of their website.

smash

Add some humour to your assignment, create scenes with lego figures etc. You could end up with some great fun shots.

MiissTL

:eek:

Buceph wrote: »

First off, if I was doing a course on IT and they had me doing photography I would object. Second off, if they had me taking pictures so a commercial operation (a limited company doing quasi-charitble work) could sell my photos, I would object. Thirdly, if they could convince me to offer my work to a charity, I sure as **** wouldn't give my work to a body that's related to the Concern(chuggers,) Trocaire and the Catholic Church whose attitude to the prevention of AIDs is anti-condom.

I think ITT are screwing you here. Forcing you to do work for a third party. And that party may or may not align with your political or charitable beliefs.


Edit: Here's where your photos will end up. http://www.kade.ie/photopackorder

And you can see their connection to Trocaire and Concern (a bunch of chuggers) at the bottom of their website.

OUCH... you said what most of us in the class are thinking. But it's like this, nothing is going to be changed at such a late stage so we just have to get on with it. Like I said already, we were writing poetry last year for a whole semester! Ridiculous or what?:eek:

CabanSail

This is outside the scope of this forum, but personally I would be questioning the ethics & professionalism of an educational body that forces you to undertake commercial projects on their behalf.