Research Symposium

BIO

Julie Adams is a second-year student from Melbourne, Florida, in the Theater department, specializing in lighting and theater tech. They wants to work on theater productions, designing and choreographing innovative lighting for a wide range of shows. In their spare time, they like reading poetry and playing with their Dalmatian, Milo.

Sky of the Beholder: Stylistic Differences in Photography of a Solar Eclipse

Abstract

Two scientists--Henrietta Swope and Clyde Fisher--were both present on an expedition to Kazakhstan to view and gather data about a solar eclipse in June 1936. They carried personal cameras, and the photographs each of them took offer insights into their respective interpretations of the eclipse expedition, as well as the people living in the small Siberian town near their eclipse encampment. They were physically in the same place, but what each chose to record was distinct. These different perspectives are visible in the composition, framing, and subjects of their photographs. I place these differences in conversation with other documents from the expedition, including books, news articles, and personal manuscripts, in order to compare and contrast Swope and Fisher’s approaches to image construction and photography. I find significant differences between their expedition photographs, as well as their written descriptions of events they experienced. These differences are particularly pronounced with respect to the objects of their focus--be they people, actions, or events. I find that Swope’s photography centered on candid human interactions witnessed during the expedition, while Fisher tended to photograph scientific processes and the challenges of data collection

Keywords: Photographs, astronomy, Swope, Fisher