Repeat Photography, Part 2 of 2

Recap of The First Blog Post: Repeat photography is when individuals or organization use two or more images of the same thing - one of which is current, and the other(s) are from significant segments of time past, normally taken from archives - in order to visualize the change that has occurred in that space. The change that individual's look for can take a variety of different forms from urban spaces, vegetation, and landscape changes over time. To complicate the examination of repeat photography, Trudi Smith defines two different kinds of repeat photography: reflective repeat photography and interpretive repeat photography (192). Reflective repeat photography follows the definition given above, whereas interpretive repeat photography forces the viewer to confront the image captured and recaptured and contemplate the records as objects (192-194).

Glacier National Park (GNP) located in Northern Montana is known and named for its most famous feature: glaciers. However, due to climate change, the glaciers have begun to melt and disappear. According to U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), there were 150 glaciers present in the park in 1850 and still present in 1910, when the park was established, but in 2010, there were only 25 glaciers larger than 25 acres. Based on the rate of decline, it is predicted that by 2030 all of the glaciers in the park will be gone ("Retreat of Glaciers"). The visualization of this phenomenon is much more powerful than merely stating that is it occurring or giving facts. To this end, a project was started in 1997 by USGS using the techniques of repeat photography to show the loss of glaciers in the park ("USGS Repeat Photography"). The power of visualizing in these projects should not be underestimated as one can say that the glaciers are melting but to see it so powerfully in the images forces a type of confrontation with the reality of the situation. And reinforces the statement made about the status of the objects.

To support my claim, the following images are of Boulder Glacier Terminus in GNP taken in 1913 and 2012. The difference between the images is startling. One cannot see these images and deny the reality of the statement that the glaciers are melting ("Boulder Glacier Terminus").

1913
W. C. Alden Photo
USGS Photographic Library

2012
Kevin Jacks Photo
USGS

I also include a pair of photos that shows how the glaciers are slowly receding. These images are of the Red Eagle Glacier. The first picture is from 1914, and the second is from 2009. It should be noted that the repeat photograph does not exactly mimic the original, but the researches went ahead and published it as it does clearly show the change over time ("Red Eagle Glacier").

1914
EC Stebinger Photo
GNP Archives

 

2009
Lisa McKeon Photo
USGS

When these images are placed alongside one another, they powerfully capture the reality of the changes occurring in the park. However, the receding and disappearing glaciers are not the only change seen in the park and captured on film. The warming temperature also impacts the ecosystem of the park. Glaciers are by definition entities that are created when the winter snowfall exceeds the summer melt off, meaning that the left over snow and ice remaining after the summer starts is a glacier. The USGS claims that the glaciers act during the summer as a continual run-off producer for streams and rivers, and thus support the plants and animals that make that their homes. Without the glaciers pumping water into them, these delicate ecosystems are gone. The plant life outside of the water is also affected by the warming environment and provides another opportunity for the use of the repeat photography ("Retreat of Glaciers").

The following images show how the vegetation has changed the landscape and creep into the meadows. The warming climate changes not just the glacier's appearance or lack there of, but changes the ground enough that plants can grow where they could not before. The following images are of an area of land by the Piegan Glacier. The first one was captured in circa 1930, and the second one was taken in 2009 ("Piegan Glacier-Vegetation").   

circa 1930
George Ruhle Photo
Courtesy of GNP Archives

1998
Lisa McKeon Photo
USGS

When Smith differentiates between the two different types of repeat photography, I would argue that she is trying to articulate the different ways in which these pairs of photographs work together and how they are viewed as there is not just one way to think about these pairs of photos. The reflective repeat photography does just that- it causes the viewer to confront and reflect on what they are seeing. The visualization of the images together usually makes it difficult to ignore the change. The pairs together more effective articulate the change than the words, statistics, or anything else can. But Smith takes the capture of change a step further by identifying another way in which repeat photography is significant with interpretive repeat photography.

Interpretive repeat photography does recreate the historical position of the picture, but it wants to create "a new way of seeing that allows the viewer to know the world differently" (Smith 193). Smith uses the example of one of her repeat photographs that does not work, similar to the photograph pair of Red Eagle Glacier, which causes her to wonder if this image has value and then it brings about questions about "repeat photography, the constructed nature of archives, and photographic views" (194). The questioning of the photographic pairs turns into interpretive repeat photography, as it is not by definition exactly repeat photography. The impulse to apply meaning to those photos, which are not captured perfectly must be strong, and from the various studies read that use repeat photography, they usually always mention that one or more image did not work the way they intended. However, the complex ideas Smith grapples with in her identification of interpretive repeat photography is not limited to the mistakes or photos that fail to show change of some kind, and works with reflective repeat photography in order to confront issues present in the images.   

The photos above are able to accomplish both types of repeat photography. First, they accomplish the task of showing the change that has occurred in GNP. They very clearly display that from the time the original photo was taken to the time that the second photo is taken, the glaciers have melted. The visual evidence matches the definition that Smith provides for reflective repeat photography (192-194). However, the images simultaneously match the definition for interpretive repeat photography. The pairs together can cause one to think about the world differently and the construction of the view, photos themselves, and the archive. They do this through showing the change. Interpretive repeat photography, in this case, relies on reflective repeat photography showing that they are one in the same idea. The visual power of the pairs can change how an individual interacts with the objects by virtue of the change. The power of the visualization engages the viewer in questioning how it was done, where the older photo came from, and what they are seeing. The object itself then becomes the subject of the questions by proxy of its success as an example of interpretive repeat photography.

The photos are successful in their attempt to express change, and they are also successful in pushing their audience to question the role of photographs in this context, where they were housed, and how the images were taken. The confrontational nature of the images inspires the viewer to make the image itself an object for contemplation. Smith taps into that reaction with her splitting of repeat photography into two different types, but they can be seen as codependent on each other to accomplish their goals: to show change over time and engage the viewer in contemplation of what they are seeing.

Works Cited

"Boulder Glacier Terminus 1913-2012." USGS. U.S. Department of the Interior, 2013. Web. 16 Feb. 2014.

"Piegan Glacier-Vegetation." USGS. U.S. Department of the Interior, 2013. Web. 16 Feb. 2014.

"Red Eagle Glacier." USGS. U.S. Department of the Interior, 2013. Web. 16 Feb. 2014.

"Retreat of Glaciers in Glacier National Park." USGS. U.S. Department of the Interior, 2013. Web. 16 Feb. 2014.

Smith, Trudi. "Repeat Photography as a Method in Visual Photography." Visual Anthropology 20 (2007): 179-200. Print. 

"USGS Repeat Photography Project Documents Retreating Glaciers in Glacier National Park." USGS. U.S. Department of the Interior, 2013. Web. 16 Feb. 2014.