B_P_2015_04_

Better PhotograPhy

When photographing

his subjects, Roger does

not preconceptualise

final image. He says,

“How do plan for all the

thousands of elements

that go into making a

great photograph? I just

show up and do my best

to create something

of meaning.”

great masters

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Better photography

great masters

102

Better photography

great masters

april 2015

black inhabitants. Under Nelson Mandela,

the African National Congress came to

power in 1994, abolishing this legislation.

This led to insecurity amongst the

white community. The people who Roger

photographed at that time, lived on the

fringes of South African society and were

unsure of their ability to survive without the

privileges of Apartheid.

“It was a transitional period, while society

tried to come to a status quo. You can see

that in many of the subjects. They weren’t

confident in their demeanour.”

However, in his books, Ballen writes that

he is not concerned with documenting the

decline of colonist ideas of supremacy or

even depicting the plight of the marginalised

white minority. For him, his subjects are

protagonists in a theatrical drama.

A Psychological Take

Despite his work being deeply rooted

in the political history of South Africa,

Roger says he isn’t a socio-political

photographer. “I was always trying to

deal with more psychological and human

issues through my images.” He has a degree

in psychology and often refers to Karl

Jung when discussing certain aspects of

his images. However, he did face a lot of