Photography is an art form worthy of critical attention, so it’s no surprise that many Arts and Culture students choose to write a photography dissertation. In particular, the technological innovation of photography coupled with its varying sociocultural impacts has encouraged many students to want to write a dissertation on photography. But how you should you go about choosing a topic for your photography dissertation? The following sub-sections provide suggestions on the most recent trends and innovations in photography, particularly concerning technological developments, ethics, and the evolution of photography trends.
Contents
- Digital Photography
- Photojournalism and Communications
- Photography, Ethical, Cultural, and Societal Perspectives
- The evolution of photography
- Photography and Global Politics
- Photojournalism during the Covid-19 Pandemic
Digital Photography
Digital photography emerged as a technological innovation during the 1990s, and since then, it has developed into a computer mediated approach to photography. The old methods of taking pictures have, therefore, been improved and enhanced by digital technologies. Also, it has not only replaced the silicon chips and old photography methods, but it has also introduced more advanced methods, as photography has now adopted the use of information technology. This could be an interesting subject area to examine if searching for topics related to technological trends and developments in photography. Examples of topics in this area are listed below:
- How has digitalisation modified the position of photography in society?
- The evolution to Digital Photography and its impact on photography methods.
- A review of the current technologies, cultural methods, and the social practices of snapshot photography.
- How has visual reporting transformed the landscape of news reporting and journalism?
- An analysis of Visual Storytelling during the current era of Post-Industrialist Journalism.
Photojournalism and Communications
Photojournalism refers to the process of reporting using either still or changing images. The development of photojournalism has been closely aligned with evolving technological trends, and photojournalists have adopted more enhanced approaches for reporting events. Nonetheless, the major core value of photojournalism remains significant, as photojournalists continuously search for the opportunity to witness significant events and share the evidence of such events. Photojournalism also focuses on highlighting important social topics and encourages discussions about public response. Therefore, this is an interesting research area if you are fascinated with journalism and photography. Some relevant topics in this area are listed below:
- The impact of Mobile Technology on the significance and role of Photojournalism in the Society.
- The challenges of Photojournalism: Realism, the nature of news and the philanthropic narrative.
- How has the current era of network media and social media websites impacted on the Photojournalism?
- Is Digitalisation destroying Photojournalism?
- Exploring the relationship between the professional values of photojournalism and the process of digital photo editing and the generation of online news videos.
- Reconsidering Photojournalism: Investigating the constantly shifting work routines and professionalism of Photojournalists in the Digital Era.
Photography, Ethical, Cultural, and Societal Perspectives
Since its early days, photography has prompted several debates with regards to its ethical application and misappropriation in society. Nonetheless, the creation of images has aided in the creation and communication of cultural identity and history. The current ethical, cultural, and societal perspectives about photography would be an interesting research area. Below are some suggestions of topics related to this area of photography:
- Digital age and mass surveillance: The ethical perspective of visual photography.
- The Integrity of digital images: The current principles and practices of image manipulation in document photography and photojournalism.
- A study on visual photography, particularly the relationship between images, objects, and general photographic representations within the cultural and social contexts.
- A critique of Visual Ethnography and Cultural Representation in Photography.
- Compassion, integrity, and the media: Examining current issues in cultural photography.
- Image ethics: The ethical privileges of the subjects in pictures, movies, and television.
- Truth or Fiction? The impact of ethical and societal perspectives on media imagery during the digital era.
- Professional photography and privacy: Are the personal ethics of a professional photographer adequate?
The evolution of photography
The field of photography has evolved over the past decade, with vast technical and theoretical developments to the standards of photography since it was created in 1839. Therefore, this is an interesting research area, as it gives you the opportunity to investigate the source of a specific innovation or method and examine any historical implications. The suggested research topics in this area are listed below:
- The evolution from camera obscura photography and the era of photographic illusions to the current use of modern, digital, cameras for photography.
- The effect of photography on historical events, including the Civil War.
- The transformation of photography: How has the development of photography impacted Law and Culture?
- An examination of the realism of Landscape Photography.
- How has the use of modern photographic trends transformed news reports and the recording of significant social events?
- What is the impact of photography on the evolution of social media websites and communication systems?
- Closing the gap between Research and Practice: The Interrelationship between Photography and Hyper-realistic Art
Photography and Global Politics
Considering the current visual and digital era, it is apparent that images shape worldwide events and the society’s perspectives about them. Also, factors such as television programs and photographs impact on global politics as different phenomena are viewed, including wars, economic downturns, election advertisements, and humanitarian catastrophes. Therefore, visual politics have become the norm, with the use of digital platforms across the political spectrum, from extremist recruitment campaigns to social justice movements. Thus, this is an interesting research area, with a wide range of topics. Some of these topics are listed below:
- A discourse analysis of how photography can be used to support political propaganda in the United Kingdom.
- How does images and photographic representations of political activities impact global politics?
- An exploratory review of the discourse and subjectivity of photographs within the political landscape.
- What are the political functions of images and visual artefacts?
- Photography and Politics: The impact of photography in the Political world.
Photojournalism during the Covid-19 Pandemic
The current Covid-19 pandemic has become one of the most severe pandemics of this era, with significant economic, societal, and political impacts. Therefore, this would be an interesting area of research, with a wide range of topics that can be investigated. Some of these topics are suggested below:
- How are leading Photojournalists worldwide documenting the resulting impact of Covid-19 on societies?
- Photojournalism: What are the ethical issues of reporting the impact of Covid-19?
- What are the roles and responsibilities of photojournalists during the current pandemic?
- A review of the approach to news reporting by photojournalists during Covid-19 pandemic.
