Picture or place? A multiple sorting study of landscape

Previous research has often used photographs as a tool for examining preference for landscape and in clarifying an understanding of what is aesthetically pleasing. Implicit in their use is the assumption that they will be regarded by the participants as representing the places shown. The present study demonstrates that there is a theoretical and empirical distinction between evaluations of pictures and evaluations of the places they represent, and thus future research needs to distinguish between evaluating the content of the photograph and the places represented in them. Using a sorting task, 41 participants sorted 20 photographs of local places, which they knew, in a free sort and a directed sort. The directed short instructed the participants to think about the places in the photographs, and to sort the items according to their knowledge of those place. Analysis of the first sort showed that items were grouped according to the content of the photograph, focusing on land form and the presence of water. The second sort showed that the items were grouped according to memories and sense experiences other than just the visual information presented in the photographs. The results showed that the participants conceptualise photographs differently according to whether they are asked to evaluate the photograph or the place represented by the photograph. Landscape evaluation research therefore needs to be clear about what is being evaluated, picture or place. (C) 1997 Academic Press Limited.