The science of semiotics is the study of subjective meaning making on the basis of signs and symbols, and the semiotics of photography is the observation of those signs and symbols used within photography, or "reading the picture".
People communicate through the use of symbols all the time, both consciously and subconsciously. A symbol is anything that stands for something else. Usually, a symbol is a simplified image that, because of certain associations in the viewer’s mind, represents a more complex idea. Symbolism can be a powerful aid in photography; symbols are tools for sorting information and drawing inferences that can permit the communication of complex ideas with just a few simple elements.
Symbols keep the viewer’s mind busy; they seduce the viewer to complete the picture, to improve the picture, to add meaning to the picture, to emotionalize the picture, and to fantasize about the picture. According to Alfred Eisenstaedt, all the photographer has to do, is find and catch the story-telling moment; all signs and symbols are powerful triggers for that.
People communicate through the use of symbols all the time, both consciously and subconsciously. A symbol is anything that stands for something else. Usually, a symbol is a simplified image that, because of certain associations in the viewer’s mind, represents a more complex idea. Symbolism can be a powerful aid in photography; symbols are tools for sorting information and drawing inferences that can permit the communication of complex ideas with just a few simple elements.
Symbols keep the viewer’s mind busy; they seduce the viewer to complete the picture, to improve the picture, to add meaning to the picture, to emotionalize the picture, and to fantasize about the picture. According to Alfred Eisenstaedt, all the photographer has to do, is find and catch the story-telling moment; all signs and symbols are powerful triggers for that.
Robert Hirsch's distinctive categories of symbols, such as (i) colours, (ii) commercial, cosmic and cultural symbols, or (iii) magic, psychological and sexual symbols can be applied in portrait photography in order to get the viewer thinking about what they could represent. All these symbols are not absolute terms; they have multiple readings based on factors such as the viewer's cultural background, individual beliefs, economic status, gender identification, psychological state, political attitudes, religious convictions, and sexual preferences. Based on their set of experiences, different people give different readings and interpretations...
"However expressive, symbols can never be the things they stand for."
(Aldous Huxley)
High-res portrait photographs with full exif data, precise geotags and technical details in Matt Hahnewald's
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