A Photo at 3 A.M

When I flipped my "How the Other Half Lives" book, by Jacob Riis, open, the first thing I saw was a picture titled "In the Sun Office, 3 a.m." This picture really captured my attention for several reasons.
The first thing that caught my eye were the boys sleeping on the ground. They are all piled on top of each other, but they look rather comfortable. This is surprising for me because the floor they are on looks rigid and uncomfortable. The next think I noticed was the two older men behind a chain-link fence. This aspect of the picture kind of throws me off though. It seems that they are watching over the boys, but I don't really understand why they are behind a fence. Is this an area the boys aren't allowed in? Is it a work area? I do notice that there is some sort of material underneath the men which could potentially be a clue. The next thing about the picture that really stood out was the condition of the wall.  It looks very beat up. The paint looks like it's chipping. This could also be a hint as to where the boys are. Could they have been in a factory of some sort and decided to sleep?

I would love to know more about these pictures. I am really interested in photography myself so the stories behind photographs are extremely interesting to me. I like photos that have meaning. Photos that have a meaning let you almost create a story of your own that goes along with it. This photo creates a similar a similar set up. There are a few things you notice and that really stand out, but you are left with a few unanswered questions. This set up lets you think of answers to those questions. They may not necessarily be correct, but it gives you a sense of what is going on. I find the pictures in this book to be really interesting and I can't wait to take a closer look at them.

More Ethnography

I feel like I've made some pretty good progress with my essay so far. I've gone from a pretty small list, to about a page. I'm glad I picked music over photography because it has had more an influence on my life than photography. It's a really easy thing to write about for me. The fact that I based my post about senses off of music has helped a lot. It
I haven't had too many struggles yet. I think talking about it in class a little more would be beneficial. I'm also not really sure if I'm making it too personal, or if I need to make it even more personal. It's tricky because I am so used to not even being able to use the word "I" in a paper.
After some input, I feel like I'll be off to a pretty good essay!

Ethnography

I think I have decided to write about music rather than photography for my essay. When I was brainstorming ideas for the essay in class on Wednesday, I was able to come up with a lot more ideas for the music category. I think the fact that my four senses post revolved around music helped. I had a lot of ideas already out because of that. I think the only thing I'm worried about for this essay is actually making the reader feel like they are in the story and they understand what I'm writing about. Other than that, I'm pretty excited to keep working

Heres a quick list of some of the ideas I have so far.

• My main group of friends all have the same taste in music - like the same bands, etc
• Paramore- first real concerts with one of my best friends. kind of scary at first but it was an amazing experience, kind of began the obsession
• Six Flags, New Jersey. Soundtrack of Your Summer Tour. Saw my now favorite Band.
• I live pretty close to a concert venue, so that has some influence on it.
• My friend's uncle works there; can get us in first and get us to meet people sometimes.
• Meet new people while in line before we get to go in
• People get brought together by the fact that we like the same music.
• It's a pretty small place, so sometimes the bands will hang out after and you get to meet them.
• Thrilling experience getting to see the bands you love live.
• When I start to like a band, I dont really think about the fact that I might see them live, but when I do it is such an unforgetable experience.
• The Maine - favorite band, seen them live 5(?) times, met them 4 times.
• Northernlights
• Warped Tour