Fotoğraf Aslında Neyin Belgesi Fotoğrafın Toplumsallığı ve Medya ve Gerçeklik Tartışmalarında Değişmeyen Rolü

During the course of modernization, photography expresses much more than simply keeping a record of the transformed life. It is one of the channels in which we find answers to the questions of how modern identities and belonging are defined, how aspects of life will be made visible and how they will be transferred to the memory of future generations. In this article photography is positioned as a tool of a sociological perspective. In the modernization of the 19 century, photography was perceived as the object of inquiry about the transformations spreading through the whole of social life. In this context, we propose the photograph was one of the ways of explaining capitalist economies that are taking shape and the functioning of social power. The debates on the social functions of images currently in progress arose in the early stages of image production. Questioning the technologies of image production of this period enables us to understand the new technologies coming together in the past. It nourishes our discussions on the social functions of distribution networks. In this context, we aim to make connections between the first examples of technically generated images and the debates continuing to the present day, by opening up the visual regime, rethinking the concepts of the observer subject. These links draw attention to the relationship between the unchanging images of the image market and the construction of social memory. Re-evaluating the meaning of photographic records as documents enables us to see continuities in their value of use. In particular, images of violence and wars, which obtain a large footprint in the media, have had a strong influence in the formation of social justice. In this context, this research aims to contribute to the on-going debates on the impact of images today by focusing upon images with strong social impact.