Question

    There was a time when an event would not begin without a photographer. “I remember the days when event organisers would even delay a show if the photographer was running late,” says Balachandra Raju, a photographer of Sathyam studio, a still surviving photo studio in India’s southern city of Chennai.

Photo studios are facing extinction in the digital age. But as they struggle to continue doing the business, one research project is looking at ways to preserve their legacy (遗产) by digitising archival (档案的) pictures.

The project, funded by the British Library, visited around 100 photo studios across the south Indian state of Tamil Nadu and digitised 10,000 prints. Many of the photos were taken between1880-1980, and they ranged from pictures of families and famous stars to weddings and funerals. “The digital archive will be an asset (有用之物) for those interested in history,” said Zoe E Headley, one of the researchers. Ramesh Kumar, another researcher on the project, called it a “gold mine” for photographers. “The research we’ve done also highlights production techniques used before digital photography arrived in our cities and towns,” he said.

However, the researchers would often find old photos stacked (难叠) on top of one another in the storage room of a studio. “No one had bothered to clean them,” Kumar said, adding that many photos had been damaged due to the hot and wet weather in Tamil Nadu.

The owner of Nallapillai studio in central Tamil Nadu said he spends about 20,000 rupees (￡230; $310) each month to run the studio that was founded by his great grandfather almost 150 years ago. To survive in this digital age has been a struggle. “Many customers don’t book us for special events anymore,” he said, adding that they have all got smartphones to do the job. “I’m not sure if photo studios will exist five years from now,” he said. But this is why, according to Mr Raju, this archival project is so important. “When the researchers spent hours in my studio, I saw them get excited over all of these old photos, and it was like they had given these pictures a second chance,” Raju said.

1.What can be inferred from Paragraph 1?

A.Photographers were lazy.

B.Photography was valued.

C.Expert photographers were few.

D.Event organisers were the most important.

2.How might the project preserve photo studios legacy?

A.Photo studios can attract many visitors.

B.Photographers can have a good working place.

C.Photographers get to learn about old photography techniques.

D.Photo studios have the chance to take pictures of famous stars.

3.What has the researchers found?

A.Some photo studios are doing well.

B.Photo studios are booked for special events.

C.Some photo studios suffer from bad weather.

D.Photo studios give old pictures little protection.

4.What is Raju’s attitude towards the project?

A.Hopeful. B.Anxious

C.Disapproving. D.Opposed.

Answer

1.B

2.C

3.D

4.A

【解析】

本文是议论文。论述了如今的数码时代，用智能手机拍照风行，旧时的照相馆是否还有存在的必要的论题。

1.推理判断题。根据第一段中的I remember the days when event organisers would even delay a show if the photographer was running late可知，如果摄影师迟到，活动组织者甚至会推迟演出。由此可知，曾经摄影师的地位很高，摄影备受尊崇。故选B项。

2.细节理解题。根据第三段中的Ramesh Kumar, another researcher on the project, called it a “gold mine” for photographers. “The research we’ve done also highlights production techniques used before digital photography arrived in our cities and towns,” he said.可知，得益于该项目，如今的摄影师们有机会了解旧时的摄影技术，这对保护这些照相馆的遗产大有裨益。故选C项。

3.细节理解题。根据第四段中的However, the researchers would often find old photos stacked (难叠) on top of one another in the storage room of a studio. “No one had bothered to clean them,” Kumar said, adding that many photos had been damaged due to the hot and wet weather in Tamil Nadu.可知，在研究过程中，研究人员经常碰到的场景是：照相馆里的老照片被随意地堆放在一起，无人愿意清理它们，由于Tamil Nadu的天气又湿又热，很多照片甚至被损坏了。由此可推知，照相馆对于老照片的保护力度不够。故选D项。

4.推理判断题。根据最后一段中的But this is why, according to Mr Raju, this archival project is so important. “When the researchers spent hours in my studio, I saw them get excited over all of these old photos, and it was like they had given these pictures a second chance,” Raju said.可知，Raju认为这个项目很重要，研究人员对这些照片都很兴奋。由此推知，Raju对这个项目充满了希望。故选A项。