Emotive validity and the eye in the hand – Representing visual reality with digital technology

Smartphone photography and social media are central in our everyday lives, they have paved the way for extremely fast distribution sharing of digital photographic texts. The new technology has profound consequences pace at which conventionalisation practices can take place, and, consequently, this point history understanding visual manipulation is undergoing radical changes. This article explores semiotic concept validity presented by Kress van Leeuwen 3rd edition their influential book Reading Images, grammar design (2020) discusses what ways a fertile approach to comprehending analysing contemporary digitally manipulated reality vernacular photography. engagement with theory anchored author’s own experiences as practising photographer observations students’ practical theoretical work It argued that category represented reality, emotive coding orientation, needs be added encompass perspective photographs may not convey naturalistic fidelity how depicted situation ‘really looked’ time it was photographed, but rather an emotional felt’ photographer. proceeds pursue we share images bodily camera extension sensory motor apparatus, consequently part distributed cognitive system environment. photographetic empathy (derived from Abercrombie’s (1964) notion ‘phonetic empathy’) introduced elucidate smartphone enhances sensibility (more) experience caused empathetic reverberation through sensorimotor imitation.