Visual Records of a Changing Nation

The Smithsonian American Art Museum produced two videos on photography and photojournalism as part of Welcome Home: A Portrait of East Baltimore, 1975-1980. Each video provides students with a deeper look into the meaning and complexity of photographs. 

A Close-Up Look at Photography with Curator John Jacob

John Jacob is the McEvoy Family Curator for Photography at the SAAM and in A Close-Up Look at Photographs with Curator John Jacob, he discusses photographer decision-making, how to read a photograph, and the value of capturing moments in the lives of everyday people. 

Baltimore in Focus: A Conversation with Photographer Shae McCoy

Elizabeth Dale-Deines of the Smithsonian American Art Museum sits down with Shae McCoy to learn how the West Baltimore photojournalist and author approaches her work in this video entitled Baltimore in Focus: A Conversation with Photographer Shae McCoy. The conversation about visual storytelling and how to approach documenting a community is designed to inform how students can apply these approaches when photographing places. 

Photographs From a Changing Nation

From 1976-1981, the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) sponsored a program of photographic surveys in 55 communities in 30 states across the United States to celebrate the bicentennial of the country’s founding. These surveys created a new visual record of a changing nation. Survey projects included preserving or working with historical collections; however, most were commissions of new work by an emerging generation of documentarians, many of whom became prominent figures of American photography. The Smithsonian American Art Museum holds 13 surveys in their permanent collection, presented below alphabetically by state. 

1. Los Angeles, CA 

2. Long Beach, CA 

3. Venice, CA 

4. Atlanta, GA 

5. Lawrence, KS 

6. Louisville, KY 

7. Whitesburg, KY 

8. Galveston, TX 

9. Baltimore, MD 

10. Mars Hill, NC 

11. Buffalo, NY 

12. Seattle, WA 

13. Cheyenne, WY 

A sequence of any of these individual activities will provide students opportunity to identify for themselves the value of asking critical questions such as “How has my community changed over time? How has it stayed the same?” and “Whose perspective is represented and whose is missing from the photographs analyzed and created?" 

CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RH.6-8.1. Cite specific textual evidence to support analysis of primary and secondary sources. 

CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RH.6-8.2. Determine the central ideas or information of a primary or secondary source; provide an accurate summary of the source distinct from prior knowledge or opinions. 

CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RH.6-8.5. Describe how a text presents information (e.g., sequentially, comparatively, causally). 

CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RH.9-10.1. Cite specific textual evidence to support analysis of primary and secondary sources, attending to such features as the date and origin of the information. 

 CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RH.9-10.2. Determine the central ideas or information of a primary or secondary source; provide an accurate summary of how key events or ideas develop over the course of the text. 

CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RH.9-10.6. Compare the point of view of two or more authors for how they treat the same or similar topics, including which details they include and emphasize in their respective accounts. 

CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RH.11-12.2. Determine the central ideas or information of a primary or secondary source; provide an accurate summary that makes clear the relationships among the key details and ideas. 

CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RH.11-12.3. Evaluate various explanations for actions or events and determine which explanation best accords with textual evidence, acknowledging where the text leaves matters uncertain. 

Each activity will require access to print or electronic reproductions of select images. Providing students with the skills and knowledge to conduct visual analyses of these photographs will equip them to go deeper into the inquiry.  

Visual analysis activities appear in the “Lesson Activities” section. Conducting just one of these with students will provide a foundation upon which your choice of more content-aligned “Lesson Extensions” might be successfully built. 

Review the introductions for each lesson activity. Having chosen your activity or activities, select 6-10 photographs from the survey of your choice. Look particularly for images that you think would resonate with your students and demonstrate the breadth of the survey. Below are links to Smithsonian Learning Lab collections that gather a cross-section of survey images for you. 

1. Los Angeles, CA 

2. Long Beach, CA 

3. Venice, CA (digital reproductions unavailable) 

4. Atlanta, GA 

5. Lawrence, KS 

6. Louisville, KY 

7. Whitesburg, KY  

8. Galveston, TX 

9. Baltimore, MD 

10. Mars Hill, NC 

11. Buffalo, NY 

12. Seattle, WA 

13. Cheyenne, WY (digital reproductions unavailable)

EDSITEment also offers Analyzing Photographs from Across a Changing Nation that includes methods for developing analytical literacy skills for working with photographs and project ideas for capturing photographs to tell the stories and history of your own area. 

Activity One. Observation and Interpretation 

This introductory activity builds basic visual literacy skills that may be used with any image. The Photograph Rhetorical Analysis handout to support students’ exploration is available below for this activity. Present the students with a single photograph and after each step, bring students back together to discuss their discoveries and the questions they have developed about the photographs and their historical context.

1. Model: Offer students a set of 2-3 photographs and pose one or more of the questions below to start. Then conduct further visual analysis of the photograph that garners the most student attention.
   • Of the photographs presented, which one do you find to be the most interesting?  
   • Which photograph is the most difficult to look at?
   • What questions would you ask the photographer about the photo they captured?
2. Observe: Spend 30 seconds looking at every part of the photograph. Then make a list of what you see. List only what you can point to in the artwork; this is a list of observations. 
3. Interpret: Based on what you see, write a description of what’s going on in the photograph. This might be a mini-narrative or an informative writing.  
4. Pair: Share your interpretation with a classmate. What did you see that made each of you tell the story that you told? 
5. Share: Share your discoveries with the class. What have you discovered about observations and interpretations?  

Formative Assessment: Step Four acts as a formative assessment before moving on to either an Extended Analysis or other Extension Activities. Most essential is students’ ability to distinguish between things they see (observations) and reasoning based on evidence (interpretation). 

Activity Two. Photographer’s Choices 

With its focus on the artistic process, this activity serves to deepen visual analysis and as an introduction to the strategies a photographer may deploy when taking a picture or editing it.  

Students select 6-10 photographs from a series they may analyze in small groups. After each step, bring students back together to discuss their discoveries and the questions they have developed about the photographs and their historical context.

1. Warm Up: Think about taking a photograph with your phone, camera, or other device. What decisions do you make? Make a list of 3-4 choices you make.  

2. Compare: Look closely at each of the photographs in the analysis set. Group or categorize the photographs based on things that are visually similar. Regroup them a few times. If you get stuck, consider not just the subject of the photo but also the strategies you listed in the Warm Up (lighting, filters, etc.).  
3. Connect: Review the list of strategies below to familiarize yourself with them. Of the strategies listed below, which one(s) did you list during the Warm Up? 
   • Framing: Who or what is of central importance in the photograph? Where did the photographer stand in relation to the subject (near/far, above/below, etc.)? What’s between the photographer and the subject? 
   • Cropping: What extends beyond the frame? What is cropped out? 
   • Light: Which parts of the photograph are darkest? Lightest? What is the light source? 
   • Contrast: Compare the areas of darkness to the areas of light. Are they very different (high contrast) or quite similar (low contrast)? Which unlike colors, patterns, or textures appear nearby one another (high contrast)? Which similar colors, patterns, or textures appear nearby one another (low contrast)? 
   • Depth of Field: How far away do the farthest-away parts of the photograph seem? Has the photographer created a deep or shallow space? 
4. Categorize: Look closely at each of the photographs in the analysis set again. Categorize the photographs based on the strategies the photographer used, such as:​​​​​
   • Closely cropped, wide angle
   • High contrast, low contrast
   • Deep field, shallow field

If students get stuck, provide an example from the Uncover Complexity PowerPoint available below to model this activity to the whole group. Then turn the task back over to small groups. 

 5. Observe: Working with your small group, choose one photograph that catches your eye. Look at each part of it closely. What do you see? What can you point to and name? Make as long an inventory as you can, collecting input from every member of your group. Refrain from interpreting or telling a story yet. 

6. Reflect: How have the photographer’s choices guided your attention? To whom or what? Which of the strategies from Step Three most influenced your thinking? 

 7. Interpret: What’s going on in this photograph? What story or message does it convey? What makes you say that? Which of the strategies from Step Three most influenced your thinking? 

 8. Whole Class Synthesis: Discuss the process of looking closely at first a group of photographs and then a single photograph. How did looking at that photograph individually rather than in a set change your thinking about it? When else might it be important to slow down and look carefully at a single part rather than a large group?  

Formative Assessments: Steps Six and Seven provide two formative assessment points. Check that students are using the terms from Step Three correctly and with increasing facility. Check also that students articulate a distinction between things they see (observations) and what they think about the things they see (interpretation). 

These Lesson Extensions may function as guided practice or independent practice. By presenting your students with photographs connected thematically or historically with content under study, you are providing them with opportunities to interact with knowledge and apply it to new situations. In doing so, they are able to take that knowledge apart, use it, and become more familiar with it. Working in small groups or pairs empowers students to use their knowledge and cultivate independence. 

Extension One: Rhetorical Analysis 

With its focus on truth and beauty, this activity initiates a conversation about researcher bias while also building media literacy. Consider whether your students might benefit from a refresher on bias in writing in order to reactivate this content knowledge and prepare them to apply that concept to visual texts like photographs. 

After completing a Visual Analysis, focus students’ attention onto a subset of five photographs and conduct the protocol below. Consider selecting images that represent multiple facets of each community such as work, celebration, home, behind-the-scenes, and local flavor. Exemplar subsets from three different surveys include: 

Provide small groups of students with the Photograph Rhetorical Analysis worksheet provided below and, after each step, bring students back together so that they may share their discoveries and you can check their understanding. 

1. Preview & Warm Up: Working individually or with small groups, look at the graphic organizer to get a sense of how it is laid out and complete three warm-up questions: 

• What makes something true? 
• What makes something beautiful? 
• What tools or strategies might a writer use to influence their readers’ opinions? 

2. Choose and Label: Working in small groups or individually, choose three of the photographs that seem most unlike each other. Label them 1 through 3. 

3. Compare: Working in small groups or individually, compare the photographs to one another, then consider: 

• Arrange the photographs along a scale of the one you like the most to the one you like the least. If working with a small group, decide on a final arrangement by group consensus. What makes a photograph appealing to you? Make notes in the graphic organizer. 
• Arrange the photographs along a scale of most to least beautiful. Why have you ordered them in this way? What do you notice about your sense of beauty? How does it compare with your classmates’? Make notes in the graphic organizer. 
• Arrange the photographs along a scale of most to least true. Why have you ordered them in this way? What do you notice about your sense of truth? How does it compare with your classmates’? Make notes in the graphic organizer. 

4. Reflect: Working individually, reflect on the ideas of beauty and truth. Do you think beauty conceals or reveals truth? Might truth reveal or conceal beauty? Make notes in the graphic organizer. Return to your answers from Step One. Add any new ideas that have come up for you. 

5. Whole Class Synthesis: Why might it be important that we, as readers or historians, are aware of our own preferences? Why might it be important that we are aware of rhetorical strategies? 

Note to Teacher: In preparation for Step Three, consider asking students to pause and consider the difference between things that are appealing to them and things they find beautiful. This will help clarify the distinction between Tasks A and B in this step.  

Formative Assessment: Steps Five offers a point of formative assessment. Consider introducing the rhetorical concepts of Ethos (attempts to persuade) and Pathos (attempts to induce emotion). EDSITEment offers a related lesson entitled Introducing the Essay: Twain, Douglass, and American Non-fiction.   

Check their understanding of this content by challenging students to draw connections between these new ideas and those that they have explored with the photographs.  

Summative Assessment: In order to assess students’ understanding of rhetoric, present students with an excerpted article or speech whose topic connects thematically to the photographs they analyzed. Challenge them to first identify beautiful turns of phrase as well as points of truth. Then, invite them to write a short paragraph analyzing the influence of these two components on their response to the text. In a second paragraph, challenge students to describe a 3-5-point process by which they might critically assess other such texts in order to surface the influence of the writer on the reader.