Reaction to "The Big Picture"

The "Big Picture" a famous blog that relies on photojournalism to do the talking, posted 39 incredible pictures depicting the current volcanic eruptions in Indonesia.  Each photo served to visually amaze the viewer, as well as tell a story of the communities and landscapes affected by this natural disaster.

I have several favorites; it was very hard to pick which ones I thought worked the best.  They were all nearly unreal to look at and made it seem as though I were there witnessing this tragedy unfold before my own eyes.  Not only did the colors and the culture of the Indonesian people stand out, but so did the emotions and pain.  As I am in  photojournalism course now, i am learning many of the methods of not only taking an effective picture, but also ethics and values of the journalism field.  I was surprised that the photographer was able to get shots of burned victims who were rescued, as well as those who had not been so fortunate.  There were two photos hidden from automatic view (that the reader had to click a link to view).  Both of the photos were similar to what we know as war scenes; sprawled dead bodies that were damaged beyond recognition.

Three photos I really enjoyed were photo 8, 31 and 38 because I felt they could have told most of the story themselves, as also I like the photo techniques of the photographer.  Photo 8 showed a girl standing over her hospitalized sister who had been injured close to death in the ash of the eruption.  This photo shows the emotional impact this tragedy is having on the Indonesian people of the communities effected by the volcano, and shows their devotion to family.  

I chose 31 as it shows a group of people laying across clothes in a crowded shelter.  This not only explains the amount of natives effected by the eruption, but also the under development of the country's economy and its inability to comfortably shelter the victims who were evecuated.

Lastly, picture 38 shows a farmer walking through his field of ash-covered crops.  This represents the economic devastation the country is enduring and the fact that many will lose income and food because of the contaminating ash.