PHOTOGRAPHS
Pictures are not self-explanatory.
What we should ask:
Who? What? How? What for? What do you see?
Members of the German Army and the SS photograph an execution, Oryol, 1941/42
Many German army soldiers and SS men have their own camera and take photos for private purposes. In this picture suspected partisans are being hanged. Soviet prisoners of war are likewise a motif that frequently appears in private photos.
Propaganda-troop photographer: Koll, 101I-287-0872-28A, Federal Archive, Coblenz
Photo: not known, Zeithain Memorial Grove, Zeithain
WHO?
Shadow of a photographer taking pictures of Soviet prisoners of war, Jaslo, September 21, 1941
The pictures of Soviet prisoners of war that up to the present time shape our visual memory come in most cases from the side of the perpetrators: usually from the photographers of the German Armed Forces propaganda troops or German soldiers who had their own cameras. Sometimes German civilians also took photographs.
Photo: not known, 146-1982-077-1, Federal Archive, Coblenz
WHAT?
Soviet prisoners of war, Minsk, July 2, 1941
Some subjects are very common in pictures of Soviet prisoners of war. These include long columns or large masses of prisoners, but also the act of capture itself, the situation in the camps, and smaller groups and individual portraits.
Photo: not known, MBK, Berlin
HOW?
Soviet prisoners of war at a collection point, occupied Soviet territories, date unknown
Photos are always an interpretation of reality. Photographers select the subject, the detail and the point of view. They thereby deliberately influence the picture’s effect. A distant and raised standpoint lets prisoners appear as an anonymous mass. Such pictures are usually intended to visualise military superiority and confidence in victory.
MBK, Berlin
WHAT FOR?
Photo of a Soviet prisoner of war on the title page of Berliner Illustrierte Zeitung, July 3, 1941
Photographs serve various purposes. Selected photos taken by propaganda troops are annotated and published. Photo albums are intended to document ones own activities or help preserve private memories. Some photo series from the camps are also reproduced and traded.
Eyes assess uniquely!
What do you see?
We perceive pictures differently as individuals. Visual traditions, cultural imprinting, personal experience, and prior thematic knowledge all play a role. That is also an important aspect of dealing with photography and photographs.