Motivation can be defined as the reason or purpose for doing something. James Nachtwey is a photojournalist and a war photographer who said he was motivated by the belief that public awareness is an essential change, and that war photography can interrupt peace. According to the article
James Nachtwey by the International Photography Hall of Fame Museum, "
Nachtwey has also dedicated his career to photographing social issues, like homelessness, drug addiction, poverty, industrial pollution, and global health issues." He participated in the previously mentioned, "Opioid Diaries" report in which he photographed and documented the effects opioids on random people. He showed the crisis from active addition, recovery, and death. Photojournalists like Nachtwey bring insight to the unfortunate social issues in America. Its shows people the reality of this epidemic and shows that opioids are killing many people. Xyza Cruz Bacan has similar motivations as Nachtwey. According to the article
World focus on domestic helper Xyza Cruz Bacani's photographs, Bacani states, "
If my images can help people, it makes me feel useful to society." Both Nachtwey and Bacani are driven by photographing and exposing issues to benefit others.
Another well known photojournalist is Tim Hetherington. According to an article,
Photographer Tim Hetherington Captured Life, Not War, Says Friend by Abc News, states "
Junger said that one of Hetherington's main motivations as a photographer was to bring light to the humanitarian suffering that accompanies war." He wanted to bring attention to the suffering that is provoked by war. In contrast to Nachtwey, Hetherington did not consider himself a war photographer although his photography brought him close to war. He did not try to capture the drama of war but provide a realistic insight to the suffering faced alongside war. He died at 40, and he risked his life to provide the world with the information necessary about war. Photojournalists who capture images of war or war related subjects must be brave because it is risky job. Hetherington lost his life while in Libya during a project about humanitarian issues during a time of war according to Abc News. According to the video
Lewis Hine-A progressive Reformer by Fiona Buhr states, "
Hine showed determination while documenting child labor by risking his physical health." This compares to how Tim Hetherington risked his life documenting the war in Libya which resulted in his death.
Lastly Another Photojournalist is Jocelyne Benzakin. Her fascination for photojournalism started from watching her father, who was a photographer himself, in his dark room. It was so intriguing to her. According to the article Jocelyne Benzakin by The Lucie Awards, "
Benzakin was employed at the age of 16 at Globe, an agency in New York, selling pictures to magazines. There, Ms. Benzakin fostered her passion for photojournalism, a field that she pursued for many years before landing in photo editing." Jocelyne pursued her passion at a young age after fleeing to New York during the revolution with her family. She wanted to help her family with financial difficulties. At 16 years old, not many teens would motivated enough to contribute and help their families. Many different circumstances motivate each photojournalist to pursue this demanding career. According to the video, Kenyan Photojournalist by VOA Africa, refers to Felix Masi and states,"
Through the struggle and determination he eventually turned to the lens as his portal for witnessing suffering. After his mother died, It helped motivate Felix Masi to pursue his career in photojournalism. Like Jocelyne, a family hardships was motivation to become successful.
Nachtwey has motivations most similar to my own in the sense that he would like to bring awareness to common issues in society. This is so important in order to initiate change as he believed. One of my biggest motivations in my life and nursing career is wanting to make a difference. The healthcare system is broken and needs nurses to help make it better and save lives. Similarly, Nachtwey wants to help people get the attention necessary for reform to happen and to make a difference in their life. Jocelyne Benzakin's motivation to pursue a career at 16 was driven by wanting to help her family. Family motivates me to pursue my career in Nursing. I want to be able to help my family when I have a good career. I want to take some of the financial pressure off of my mother. Tim Hetherington was motivated by wanted to raise awareness to humanitarian suffering from war. This is similar to my motivation to want to make a difference. As a nurse you help and care for people, as a photojournalist you can also help people by creating awareness to societal issues and hardships. My motivational map demonstrates all of the inspirations and things that drive me to be successful in my career and life.
Comments
Post a Comment