Thomas Hoepker

Analysis of the image 

Thomas Hoepker is a German photographer, he is well known for the picture above which was taken on September the 9^th 2001. The image was taken a few hours after the incident. The image shows a group of new Yorkers sitting on a sunny day by the Brooklyn Park. Behind them is the explosion of the Twin towers. The group of people seem to be slightly calm and relaxed. The image captures a very unique moment as you would not expect to see these people relaxed. It wasn’t until 5years later this image was recognised. He didn’t want the picture published because he thought it was disrespectful because of the response.

Thomas Hoepker a German photographer was born on 10th June 1936. He started taking pictures when he was 16.He received a glass plated camera from his grandfather. Hoepker studied art history and archaeology from 1956. In 1964 he began working as a photojournalist for Stern magazine. In 1970 he also worked as a cameraman for German TV. PROFILE

 The colours explain a lot of things for example the greenery of the trees the bright blue sea it all looks relaxed until you focus on the sky and you see the disaster it ruins the whole image. There are three people who are sitting back relaxed and two that are getting in to a conversation but the main thing is nobody is looking at the camera which makes the audience think everything is normal and they are carrying on with their life. Also the body language also shows how relaxed these people are no one is focusing on the building there all in their own world as if nothing has happened. The lady in the middle appears as if she id sun baving and hasn’t got a clue of what is going on behind her. Whereas the others seem to be having a conversation between themselves. The smoke shows juxtaposition it splits the image up because the top half is covered in smoke whereas the bottom half shows a more peaceful and calm atmosphere especially the colours the blue sea just makes everything look so tranquil.

RESEARCH

Thomas Hoepker was born on the 10^th June 1936 he was a German photographer and a photojournalist. When he was young he received a glass plated camera from his grandfather. He began working for Stern magazine in 1964 aswell as a cameraman for German TV. He also studied art history and archaeology. Thomas Hoepker has travelled the world documenting people’s lives and issues for magazines.

He was a member of Magnum photos know for a stylish colour photo features. For most of his career he used Leica cameras. However in 1970 he started to use single lens reflex cameras for wide angle shots. In 2002 he started using SLR’s. Hoepker developed a retrospective exhibition of his life in photography—after combing through literally hundreds of thousands of images. The exhibition led to a book, which in turn led to unexpected calls from collectors. Magnum Photos first began distributing Hoepker's photographs in 1964. Hoepker became a full member in 1989. He served as Magnum President from 2003 to 2006. For much of his career Hoepker used Leica cameras. In the 1970s he began to also use Single-lens reflex cameras alongside his Leica, using Leicas for wide angle shots and Nikon or Canon cameras with zoom lenses. In 2002 he began using digital SLRs. A true journalist at heart, he never altered an image, but he used the colour calibration features to bring out nuances of the images traditional photo processing would miss.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thomas_Hoepker

http://www.magnumphotos.com/C.aspx?VP3=CMS3&VF=MAGO31_10_VForm&ERID=24KL5351FG

The photo journalist travelled the entire world, contracted by various magazines and able to work under superb conditions, with a generous expense account and plenty of time. Back then, in the golden age of photo journalism, he always had the room to manoeuvre which he needed to work freely -- one reason why he always also took his own photographs alongside those which had been commissioned. Hoepker calls these more personal photographs his "marginal pictures."

One of Hoepker's best-known photographs has a distinctly disturbing quality. It was taken on Sept. 11, 2001. The day before, the world-famous photo agency Magnum, which Hoepker belongs to, had held a meeting in New York. On the morning of the terrorist attacks, Hoepker received a phone call at his home on the Upper East Side, telling him the World Trade Centre was in flames.

After it was published, the photo sparked polemical discussion in the United States. Hoepker was the target of criticism from the political right, who branded his photo a banalization of terror. But he knew how to defend himself. "This image is situated in the nowhere land of realities," he says. "It's dazzling, and everyone sees something else."

Nothing in Hoepker's pictures looks like it has been retouched, even though the truth is sometimes tough and cruel. "I am and always have been an advocate of spontaneous and realistic photo journalism," he says. "I photograph what's there."