William Eggleston

This is a photograph by photographer William Eggleston who was born in Memphis and raised in Sumner. My first initial reaction to this image was that it looked very retro and vintage. I think this image has a meaning behind it as the tricycle is the main subject of the image therefore it must have some sort of significance. My first initial thought was that a child may of fallen off and the camera is from the child's point of view who is on the floor looking up at it, the sky is very grey and dull which could indicate a negative meaning which relates back to the child falling off. My second initial thought was that Eggleston was aiming at showing how significant the tricycle was a few years ago and it was a big part of everyones life growing up. Another thought that came to mind after analysing the image was that the tricycle has been left there for many years as there is a lot of rust on it. The people from this time of year could have passed away and this was all that was left.

The photograph is captured from a low angle and is a close up of a tricycle. This is a good choice of technique as it makes the audience concentrate on one specific part of the image which is most important. The background also plays a significant role in this photograph as it sets the scene and helps to understand what the meaning behind it is. The low houses and style of car you can see in the background make it obvious this picture was taken or meant to appear as if it was in the 70's. I admire the vintage look of the photograph as it feels like a sort of memory. The overall arrangement of the image is appealing and well put together as it sticks with the content and the angle used is very effective. To me it looks very pleasing.

I think the photograph looks spontaneous as there is not much to plan out in the image and you could easily find a tricycle on the pavement in front of a house. The angle and meaning behind it is not spontaneous as he could of just casually captured a normal photograph of this tricycle, but it looks like he has put thought into the time of day he captured it also to set the right kind of scene and feel. I think he has used a digital camera but has edited it and used a vintage effect and played around the contrast and the brightness.

This image creates a kind of reminiscent effect and brings back memories of pictures I've seen from my parents growing up. I think that the artist was trying to bring the audience back and make us have a feel of what his past was like and how he grew up. This piece had an effect on me and made me feel like I have a sense of what it was like in the 70's and what kind of things children use to do as they were growing up.