            Photographs can be much more than just snapshots of a point in time. Effective use of creative techniques allows one to tell powerful, moving stories and, in turn, clearly prove that a picture is indeed worth a thousand words. The photograph taken by Phillip Levine is an excellent example of such techniques. The tragic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki were often photographed, allowing people to reflect on the negative impact the explosion had on the Japanese people. The sorrow and hardships they faced are remembered today by all who see these pictures and grieve for their losses.  The photos show the many different aspects of how Hiroshima and Nagasaki were affected. This particular photo contains multiple qualities that contribute to the portrayal of the devastation and destruction. Many different aspects of the picture, including the contrast in colors, lines, and texture, combine to portray how badly Japan and its people were affected by the bombing.

            Phillip's photograph conveys the physical and emotional devastation done by the atomic bombings in Japan.  He uses several creative techniques to draw the viewer's attention to the elements he wants to emphasize. One technique employed is the use of color to focus the viewer's attention on the sadness, despair and hopelessness of the people. The limited number of colors used, along with the blue tinting, accentuate the dreariness and somber mood of this period. The dimness gives the picture a gloomy eeriness. These techniques connect viewers emotionally and cause them to reflect on the sorrow and hardships from the aftermath of the bombing. Everything that the Japanese had held dear was almost instantly turned into rubble and all that was light became dark.

In addition to the tint and dimness of colors, lines run vertically down the picture that contribute to the photograph's vintage look. The image was taken by an older camera, which makes the photo look aged, and is also the reason the photograph is so dark and gloomy. Phillip uses this image because of the mood the lines and color project to viewers.  He wants the bombing of Nagasaki and Hiroshima to be seen as devastating and dreary because that is how the Japanese felt when they saw their homes and all their belongings burned and destroyed. The vintage look created by the lines and color set the mood of the photograph before someone even has the chance to view the content of the picture more thoroughly. Viewers instantly notice the eeriness of the picture because of the aged lines and dimmed, tinted colors. They connect with how the Japanese felt after the bombing because the mood the viewers grasp after looking at this photograph is sorrow and despair. 

       Altering the darkness and lightness of color is another technique photographers use to depict how close or far away objects are.  Objects in the foreground and background of a picture are darker than those in the middle, and Phillip effectively employs this technique by contrasting the brightness of the colors of the foreground and background from the middle. The darkness depicted by the rubble and the mountains represent how the people felt trapped and hopeless; everything was destroyed and the mountains surrounding them kept them from escaping.  At the same time, the sky and rubble in the middle are both lightly colored, symbolizing freedom and hope for the future. After the Japanese recover from the horrific destruction, they can look up at the sky and see the light of their futures. The contrast between the light and dark colors symbolize the differences in the peoples' outlooks of the devastating effects the bombings had on the people of Hiroshima and Nagasaki.

To depict the total destruction caused by the bombing, Phillip includes lines in the image. The variation of lines also symbolizes and contrasts the darkness from hope lost in the abundance of rubble and the hope found in the clear, light sky. There are many lines, especially exemplified in the rubble in the foreground of the photo.  Small, multi-directional lines that fill the foreground make the amount of rubble from the explosion seem infinite. The more rubble, the worse the effects look.  People feel even more remorse for the hardships and destruction because of what seems like an endless amount of damage.  In contrast, there are barely any lines at the top, in the sky. The abundant amount of lines at the bottom contradict from the few lines at the top that depict the clouds. The busyness of the bottom represents the chaos of the struggles that were caused by the bombing, but the clouds symbolize the hope that all the chaos can be diminished, eventually. 

Because this is a photograph, viewers know it is authentic.  It proves to people that the devastation and destruction were real. People may not be aware of how awful the whole occurrence was, but after seeing this photo, people are faced the stark reality of how real and horrific the bombing was. Not only can viewers see how much was destroyed, they can also feel how emotionally devastated the Japanese people must have been by such a tragic event.

This photo contains all the qualities that show the destruction and devastation of the bombing. The lines, colors, and texture combine to paint a vivid portrait of indescribable emotional pain, loss, and hopelessness. The destruction depicted helps viewers imagine how horrific it must have been for people to actually experience the bombing.  It enables viewers to sympathize with those who faced the tragedy and makes viewers feel remorse for the struggles and hardships the Japanese had to face to overcome such a horrific event. They lost their homes, their friends and their families their lives. It is no wonder that it took them so long to recover from this tragic event. The photograph not only accurately depicts how horrific the damages were, but also shows how much pain the Japanese people must have felt and how difficult it must have been for them to recover.

