Barrett, Criticizing Photographs, Ch 8: Writing and Talking About Photographs, 3rd ed, 2000

Chinese version of the text

The book ends with a chapter of practical advice for the author’s students, the kind of guidelines you’d read in any introductory academic writing text:  read widely, take extensive notes, consider your audience, use a style guide, find a hook, provide examples to back up your assertions, be succinct.  Included are sample essays from some of Barrett’s previous students, as well as a list of suggestions for conducting a discussion of photographs:

• Describe what you see
• Consider subject matter
• Relate form to subject
• Create group interpretations
• Ask questions of the photograph
• Consider presentational environment
• Consider assumptions
• Be slow to judge
• Be honest

This wasn't the most inspirational text, but it did a good job delivering on its intention to introduce some of the basic concepts and approaches to critiquing photographic images. The writing style is simple yet not condescending and Barrett provides plenty of useful examples.  The books is suitable for a general audience with little background in photography or art criticism and is a good place for a beginner to start.

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