Exploratory Findings:Poverty, Social Exclusion and Homelessness

Maria Mc Cabe

The following photos were taken as part of research

into poverty, social exclusion and homelessness in

Ireland. The observation point here is from within

the car. The location is a popular gathering spot for

Derrys street drinkers.

These next photos were taken as part of a concept

shoot. I wanted to demonstrate a differnt side

of homelessness; the hidden homeless, by using

a young female character. I shot the photos at

night so I could take full advantage of artificial

lighting effetcs and exposure experimentation.

On a recent trip to Dublin, I witnessed quite a few

people begging on the streets. The descriptions of

these characters were complex ranging from young to

old, male to female and Irish to foreign. By altering the

shutter speed with these shots I was able to achieve

some interesting photo dynamics that captured the

citys fast paced lifestyle.

I shot another concept idea which I decided to use

in the advertising for Crisis. I implemented a reverse

psychology approach by presenting the well-off as

homeless characters. I set up three stereotype scenes;

begging, eating lunch from a bin and rough sleeping. I

placed my two characters in these scenarios in public

so we could reap natural, shocked reactions from on-

lookers. I have tweaked the fill lights, the blacks and

the colour balance of these photographs to give them

an eye-catching advertising look.

I ventured down to Dublin again to photograph these

scenes outside the Capuchin Monks Day Centre for

the poor and homeless. Every Wednesday morning

free food parcels are handed out from 10 oclock.

The queue here lasted for 2 hours and stretched

all the way from Bow St. to up around the corner

at Smithfields. When talking to another on-looker,

she said that the queues never used to be as long

and only consisted of the very needy. But because

of the current economic crisis, people out of work

and desperate are turning up in the hundreds.

Maria Mc CabeBDes Communicat ions

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