For images, the first level of analysis, denotation, involves describing the people, places, and things we see in the image. The second level of analysis, connotation, involves asking what meanings, ideas, and values are communicated through the description.

Three Steps to Deconstructing Images

• 1. Look closely, look long.
• 2. Ask probing questions and detect photographic elements that shape meaning.
• 3. Put it together. What’s the purpose? Who is the audience? Think deeply!

Text Type Conventions

1. Composition:

• Where does your eye settle when first looking at the image? Why?
• Where does your eye move next? What are the planes/regions of the image?
• Consider the rule of thirds, leading lines, vectors, etc.

2. Focus:

• What is foregrounded in the image? What is backgrounded in the image?
• What is sharply in focus? What is blurry or out of focus?
• What details are emphasized or obscured by these techniques?

3. Light:

• What is light and dark in the image?
• What is significant about what is light and dark?
• How do these light values draw attention or obscure details in the image?

4. Color and Shading:

• How do colors construct meaning?
• Are the colors warm or cold?
• How does color contrast (or lack thereof) shape meaning?

5. People and Place:

• What do you see in the image? Are there people, places, or things?
• Describe them (in terms of race, class, gender, occupation, etc). What are they doing?
• How do they feel, based on their facial expressions, position, or interaction with others?

6. Gaze:

• Where are the people in the photograph looking?
• Do they seem aware of the camera? If so, what is their attitude towards it?
• Is there anything significant about what the person is not looking at?

7. Framing and Cropping:

• How closely is the photograph cropped to the subject?
• Is there lots of background or almost no background?
• Does it feel crowded or spacious? What might lie outside the frame?