Photographers > Ernest Brooks
(247) C.1868 - First time round
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| First World War 'Official Photographs' > Photographers > Ernest Brooks > (247) C.1868 - First time round |
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| Permanent URL | https://digital.nls.uk/74546872 |
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| Description | The event is being held in a flat grassy field, bordered on the far side by a thin line of trees. Two long, dense lines of soldiers cross the picture at right angles to the trees in the background. On the far side men have straggled away from the lines to form little huddles which stretch out across the field. The soldiers are mostly wearing uniforms and they are all tense and agitated with excitement. The horse riders are all bare-chested and sitting upright on their horses. The previous caption in the sequence reads, 'shot of riders racing away - going to the post'. Sport days were an important way of reinforcing comradeship and relaxing away from the horrors of trench life and warfare. [Original reads: 'OFFICIAL PHOTOGRAPH TAKEN ON THE BRITISH WESTERN FRONT IN FRANCE - Divisional Sports. The first time round.'] |
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| Description | Ernest Brooks was the first British official war photographer to be assigned to the Western Front in 1916. Previously a 'Daily Mirror' photographer, he was given the honorary rank of Second Lieutenant. His remit was to take as many photographs as possible, with as much variety as possible. Using his inconspicuous hand-held camera Brooks was free to wander, sometimes capturing his subjects unawares. Many of the images taken by Brooks were used to fuel the propaganda machine at home and abroad. Despite this Brooks, who was very aware of composition and light, produced some very artistic and thought-provoking images. |
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| Description | Photographs by named photographers. |
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| Description | Black-and-white photographs mainly of the Western Front during the First World War. Official British war photographers took many of them for propaganda purposes. Unless otherwise stated, titles are the photographs' original captions. From the papers of Field Marshal (Earl) Haig (1861-1928). The Haig Papers also contain Douglas Haig’s diaries. |
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| Shelfmark | Acc.3155 |
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