This, and other exercises in this section on Narrative and Illustration on the OCA’s Art of Photography module, require a clear understanding of the use of signs and symbols in photography. Maria Short in her book (reviewed here) Context and Narrative devotes one chapter to understanding signs and symbols in photographic art. She introduces Semiotics, the study of signs and symbols, and, in introducing the work of de Saussure and Sanders (the orginators of semiotic models) and draws the distinction between the form which the symbol takes (the signifier) and the concept it represents (the signified). This distinction has arisen in a previous exercise where the representational aspect of symbols was explored; essentially a symbol is something that represents something else. Closely related, although different, to the concept of a symbol is the concept of the icon. In the case of an icon the signifier is perceived as imitating the signified (e.g. a scale model or cartoon of the real form).
This exercise deals with indexical signifiers; symbols that can be causally liked or inferred. For example smoke to symbolise fire, or footprints indicating footsteps. In this exercise the brief is to make an image that will be used to illustrate the cover of a magazine that deals with rain. We are asked to avoid settling for obvious images such as rain swept streets yet leave the viewer in no doubt about the subject of the magazine. In other words the symbolism in the magazine cover must be closely linked to the subject without necessarily being obvious or cliched.
In the image below I show a range of symbols associated with rain without at any stage showing rain drops specifically; umbrella, reflections in a puddle and the effect of rain drops on the puddle itself.
Rain
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