Sept 13, 1960 - July 27, 1994
Photo by, Unknown
(source)
So who is Kevin Carter? "Kevin Carter was born in 1960, descended from English immigrants and devoutly Roman Catholic parents, Jimmy and Roma, where they lived in Parkmore, a tree-lined Johannesburg suburb, in South Africa. Carter always insisted he loved his parents, but then he told his closest friends his childhood was unhappy. As a teenager, Kevin found thrills riding motorcycles and fantasized about one day becoming a race-car driver. After graduating from a Catholic boarding school in Pretoria in 1976, Carter studied pharmacy before dropping out with bad grades a year later. He was then drafted into the South African Defense Force, where he found upholding the apartheid regime disgusting. In 1980 he went absent without leave, rode a motorcycle to Durban and, calling himself David, became a disk jockey. He longed to see his family but felt too ashamed to return. One day after he lost his job, he swallowed scores of sleeping pills, pain-killers and rat poison. He survived. He returned to the S.A.D.F. to finish his service and was injured in 1983 while on guard duty at air force headquarters in Pretoria. A bomb attributed to the A.N.C. had exploded, killing 19 people. After leaving the service, Carter got a job at a camera supply shop and drifted into journalism." (source 1 2 3)
Who is Kevin? Carter, Kevin Carter is........................................
Kevin Carter, Photo'd by, Unknown
So who did Kevin Carter work for?
* 1983 - Started working as a weekend sports photographer for the Johannesburg Sunday Express.
* 1984 - The Johannesburg Star.
* 1990 - Began working with a group of photographers known as the "Bang-Bang Club".
* 1993 - Working for the weekly mail, Quit and became a full-time Free-lance photojournalist.
What Era did Kevin Carter work in?
Kevin Carter work as a photojournalist from 1983 until his death in 1994. (source)
and photojournalism was beginning to take on the role of a serious profession.
So what Motivated Kevin Carter?
The biggest Motivation for Kevin Carter was exposing the brutality of apartheid in South Africa.
The photos below were taking by Kevin Carter, they are evidence to what motivated him to get evolved and share with the world the tragedies what were taking place in the world.
The photo below is one Kevin took of the apartheid that was going on in South Africa. I believe the main subject of this photo is what looks to me like a casket. It is centered and takes up about half the photo, spanning across most of the photo. The black and white photo makes it seem more haunting by the lack of the colors and the expressions on the peoples faces just intensify the photo. When you look at this photo you feel the anger and pain they feel.
The next photo Kevin took below is a good example of the rule of thirds. The man standing far left swinging a large stick like object, following to the middle of empty space and the last third of the burning car. I feel the empty space in between the car and the man is a symbolic way of showing a lack of hope and emptiness. The empty space of this photo to me is the most powerful, it is in this third of the picture I feel the frustration and the pain. The depth of field Kevin kept in this photo is great, keeping the man and car up front and the people behind just out of focus, leading all your attention to the main subject.
This last photo shown by Kevin Carter is heartbreaking. It is a perfect rule of thirds with the 3 different individuals photographed. The focus is a bit off but is effective because it proves how confusing this situation truly was. The picture is very simple, not action just a few children sitting around while a few grown people stand and stare. The feelings that come over me when looking at this photo is disbelieve. I cant imagine seeing this in real life, I cant think about how much suffering these people do. It is truly heartbreaking....
Photo by, Kevin Carter
How did Kevin Carter capture these Image's and what technology did he use to do so?
According to sources, (1),(2). "The one he used quite often and was one of his favorites was his leica M3" (image),(wikipediaLeicaM3). "The Leica M3 is a 35 mm rangefinder camera by Ernst Leitz it was introduced in 1954. The M3 introduced several features to the Leica, among them the combination of viewfinder and rangefinder in one bright window and a bayonet lens mount. It was the most successful model of the M series, with over 220,000 units sold by the time production of the M3 model ended in 1966." (source).
"Before the introduction of the portable 35mm camera, hauling large, heavy plate cameras and tripods from one location to another took a lot of muscle and an incredible amount of patience and endurance." (source) Can you image Carter having to carry around the old style cameras or having to set up the process of wet plate photography. He was a go getter, always moving looking for the next shot, he was light on his feet and needed a piece of equipment that was convienant for his work. the new light weight Leica was just that. "The 35mm Leica revolutionized the picture-taking profession, and laid the foundation for photojournalism unfettered by problems of versatility, portability, speed, or lighting. Photojournalism, which depends on capturing news whenever and wherever it happens, had finally been given the tools to do the job as quickly, simply, and effectively as possible." (source)
Did Kevin Carter have any dilemmas with photojournalist ethics?
For all of you who already know who Kevin Carter is then you know this is a silly question. March 1993, in the Sudan, he took a unforgettable photo shown below, of a Vulture and a famine stricken child. After this photo went public Kevin Carter was attacked by every type of media and criticism known to man. Was it wrong? Was it right? Why didn't he choose to help? Why? Why? Why? Is what was asked over and over again.
" This was not a mob executing someone. This was not a situation where he had to stay back for his own life and all he could do was take pictures and pray. This was a little girl, crumpled on the ground in starvation, and he sat and watched her and a vulture for twenty minutes, hoping the bird would spread its wings and make a more dramatic photograph." - Source
"No excusing it, in my eyes. I'm not sure of the impression or effect it was supposed to have, but my initial thoughts were if I'd been there to see him stop and take this pic, the next pic on his reel of film would have been one of him screaming in agony with his fingers bent backwards." - source
"I don't think you can judge a man without being in the shit with him, and not in this case at all. This was a famine and a civil war that went on until what... 2000 something? I even know of the guys who worked in the PMC's that took part in that conflict. Judge all you want I guess, I wouldn't want you not to. But I don't think he did anything wrong. Human life isn't worth much in a lot of places on this earth. You deal with that your own way or you take the easy way out." - source
So you were wondering if there were dilemma's in his work ethic's, did his work bring on any type of impact and what were some viewpoints on his work.? You decide........
The haunting photo of a vulture stalking an emaciated Sudanese girl who collapsed on her way to a feeding station won photographer Kevin Carter a Pulitzer Prize in 1994....... (source)
MY major at A.I.C is social sciences, it is a mixture of Psychology, Sociology and philosophy. How can the work of Kevin Carter not touch on my major in every dimension. The psychological effects that his work took on him was devastating. The horror, the pain and the suffering this man saw was unbearable for any human to be witness too. I cannot imagine walking through his foot steps on a daily basis. His works are evidence to the destruction that we can case in any society, his work shows everyone what is going on all around us and the issues he has shown will be talked about, examined and discussed for many more years to come........ I applaud him for his work, for walking the steps he did and allowing us all to see the world through his lens.
Kevin Carter
Sept 13, 1960 - July 27, 1994
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