Hi David,

 

Great photos! Looks like a really interesting project too, I know basically nothing about the Neolithic in Africa.

 

I think Strephon’s already answered your query about archaeological photography really well; I worked as a professional archaeologist in the commercial sector until about ten years ago so I had a bit to say about it myself, but to be honest I reckon he’s covered everything I was going to say better than how I was going to say it! Obviously his experience is up-to-date too. In my recollection the drawings of an archaeological feature on site were considered part of the primary interpretation of the site in a way that photos generally weren’t, even though every feature and significant find was photographed, mainly for the reasons that Strephon mentioned. I’d probably add that 99% of photos on 99% of sites back then were taken under serious time pressure by young archaeologists with limited photographic knowledge/experience in usually sub-optimal conditions, so often the images weren’t very good. Archaeology units are usually pretty strapped for cash, so back when I was working equipment was very basic, no digital SLRs or anything, and very little training was offered in how to improve the quality of photographs. Most of us looked at photography as something we were required to do and we would get it done as quickly as possible without worrying too much about the results.

 

What Strephon says about perspective, lighting and lack of ambiguity apply equally well to site features as to objects, and combine to make drawing a really invaluable tool for interpretation. Equipment for drawing is a lot cheaper than for photography, and skilled photographers are generally more expensive than archaeologists, so there’s also a cost element. Having said all that, the most recent archaeological project I worked on was in 2009. Obviously the world has changed a great deal in that time, particularly as regards how we capture, handle and think about images, so it’s entirely possible that everything is different now. I kind of hope so, to be honest, because really you need both types of image to tell the best story,

 

Cheers,

 

Kieron.

 

 

 

Hi Will, 

 

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