let’s start with some basic introductions to the field — what visual sociology is, and how to start doing it.

1) john grady, “becoming a visual sociologist”
this is a handy, dandy 12-point list of how to become a visual sociologist. while the entire piece is well worth reading, the first 6 steps are most important (as the last 6 refer more to those who are already professional sociologists). even though 6 is half of 12, those first 6 do take up the bulk of the essay. “becoming a visual sociologist”

2) richard chalfin, “looking two ways”
this is a good introduction taking a somewhat different perspective than the above, playing off the dual meaning of “how people look”: “study of visual culture”

Leave a Reply