Browsing through Getty Images of pictures from the Olympics, Metro.us found some interesting relationships between gender and camera angle. Notably, women are photographed in ways that emphasize the parts of their bodies that are commonly used to sell beer, while the focus on men is facial expressions and action.
The site then asked the question, what if men were photographed in the same way that women were? The results are a depressing -if wholly unsurprising – realization that even in sports photography at the most elite athletic competition in the world, women are sexually objectified rather than appreciated for their stunning athletic ability. What makes all of this objectification even more depressing is that it is still happening even as all of the countries participating in the Olympics allow women to compete for the first time.
Of course, the Olympic photographs are really just reflective of an event that seems, despite some amazing advances for women, mired in sexism. Between public outrage over female waterpolo players having breasts to snarking history-making gold medalist Gabby Douglas’s hair, it’s clear that there’s a long way to go before the reporting of the games are rid of sexism.
Check out the original article here for some tantalizing photography of male athletes photographed in ways usually reserved for females.