A picture essay, unlike a picture story, does not have to follow a logical order, have continuity, or be objective. A picture essay allows a photojournalist to present a subject from a personal point of view, For example, how does the flight deck of an aircraft carrier affect you emotionally? Does the vast size of it overwhelm you? If so, you may photograph it abstractly with a fisheye or extremely wide-angle lens to emphasize this feeling. Similarly, you may be aroused by the hard and dangerous work on a flight deck, and your approach to the story may be from this direction.

A picture essay differs from a picture story. In the picture essay, it is the photographer's viewpoint on a given subject that is important. A picture essay is interpretive, not factual. It is an organization of pictures around a central theme; it does not have a plot, and it does not have a well-defined beginning, middle, or ending. It is not objective; the requirement for a photographer to remain unbiased and factual is eliminated from the coverage. It is actually through the photographer's point of view that the reader sees the subject.

To create a picture essay, you must organize several pictures on a single theme to give a deeper, fuller, more rounded, more intense view of the subject than a single picture could. It does not matter what method you use to bind the photographs to the theme. This is the point where your creative talents can be used to explore people, events, and nature.

As with any photo assignment, research is necessary. It is through research that you will decide just how subjective you can be. Will a broad interpretation say the same thing as a tightly knit, artistic portrayal? What should be the main technique? Is more than one subjective approach required? Here again, you must research your subject, and then plan your shooting and portrayal of the subject.

Because a picture essay is subjective, you may choose to use subjective photographs to make your point. Subjective photographs, as a rule, show the subjects in a form that makes them more interesting and stimulating than usual. This is because they present the subject in a new light. Refer to figure 16 located at the end of this chapter, for an example of a picture essay.

You can use various pictorial interpretation techniques to produce different interpretations of an event. A few that you may want to consider are as follows:

1. MULTIPLE IMAGES. There are occasions when a single image is not adequate for showing an imaginative theme, mixed mental impressions of the busy world of today, or combinations of a certain background with the framing of the foreground. The technique of sandwiching two or more negatives together, double printing, double exposures, and montages is used to this creative end.

2. INFRARED. Black-and-white infrared film can transform the landscape from a dull photograph to an image of beauty. The amount of infrared radiation absorbed or reflected by the subject renders the subject in unnatural tones (foliage and grass appear lighter than normal because they strongly reflect infrared radiation).

3. MOTION. In still pictures, motion suggests action. Motion can be suggested by using a slow-shutter speed or by panning with the subject. The

Figure 1-5.-Picture stories

Figure 1-5.-Picture stories-Continued.

end result is a sharp subject with a fuzzy background and foreground or a fuzzy subject with a sharp background and foreground.

4. HIGH CONTRAST. An excellent way of changing an otherwise dull picture into a piece of art. High contrast is used for symbolization. The result is

a stark black-and-white print with little or no detail. Middle-gray tones are eliminated. Naturally, a strong graphic image with leading patterns and strong highlights works best.

5. GRAIN. Although considered objectionable, grain is very effective for certain subjects. A grainy rendition is highly effective when it is used to emphasize war, violence, prison, and so forth. Grain helps to express the mood of such subjects. It is achieved through the use of texture screens, reticulation, or extreme enlargements.