Birth
The most important photographic award in the world has been given to images of drama.
The WPP winner is a picture representing the death of two children in Gaza. Death, like pain, misery and disease is something private. People don’t like to see their drama in the newspapers or on TV screens, let alone a photographic award given to the images of their own pain.
What about leaving tragedies to respectful memory and finding joyful subjects to share through our shots? People will be happy to be the subject of an international prize, to see themselves in the black and white production of a famous photographer.
There are plenty of subjects: nature, animals, children, sports, political and religious events. A creative photographer gets ideas from every corner, from every occasion. How many lost occasions did we regret, since we didn’t have a camera at hand?
A birth is a special event. A new individual comes to life and becomes a very important member of a family or usually should be, except for many unlucky kids…..
Mother and father and their emotions are reported in black and white. A whole family is involved in the event. Friends gather around, all with their phones to take pictures of the newborn, certainly disturbing the quiet area of the nursery, but only for a short while and afterwards everybody gets back to work with the picture to look at and to show to the others.
The photographer has taken part tiptoeing around, without invading the private space, waiting for permission. Silently he has taken single faces of the event: at first anxious faces. Then the hustle, the pushing and breathing, doctors, nurses, infusions and injections and here she is. Push, push, push and Gaia appears: her whole body to be cared for, cleaned, weighted, checked outside and inside, back and tummy, hands and feet. She has got new clothes, her first ones, ready to go to mummy to be kissed. And daddy, where is he? He has been at a distance, not to disturb, waiting, but now he can approach the two ladies. He is very proud: Gaia resembles her father. They all agree, oh yes she looks like you, the mother says.
Finally at rest on Mother’s breast. Friends are gone. Today a new family is born.
Through the language of black and white emotions are conveyed. The image loses the information provided by saturation and leaves the world of reality to get into an imaginative dimension. Only light and shadow: no skin colour, not even the hue of blood.
Black and white communicate to the viewer only the power of light.