photo vs. painting in magical world

[Kirstini]

No: HPFGUIDX 80541

Zinaida:
>>I wonder why there should be such a difference between the arts of 
photography and painting in the magical world.  Both people in 
photographs and people in pictures move and get in and out of their 
frames, but people in paintings can also talk and seem to be aware of 
what goes on, while people in photographs don't talk and don't seem 
to be aware of later events <snip> photographs' sitters are more 
like images frozen in time.  It seems important to me, for otherwise 
Harry could have communicated with Sirius as well as his parents.>>

Now, this is something that bothers me. Until OoP, I was quite happy 
to think within these terms of reference. Until that bit where Sirius 
throws out all the Black family photos, and the photos *squeal*. 
Which implies a capacity for at least wordless noise. And they aren't 
frozen in time, either. They should be, if that blooming woman ever 
stuck to the laws of probability she herself creates, but they 
aren't. Why does Penelope Clearwater duck beneath the frame to hide 
her blotchy nose? Why does Percy walk out of a family photo taken 
before he was angry with his family? How do the Black photos know 
that they are being thrown away in order to register their distress 
in screams? And if they can scream, *why* can't Harry communicate 
with J/L/S? ("Two squeals for yes and a screech for no, mum.")
Oh, she infuriates me, that JKR. And all this is without going into 
philosophical speculation about whether or not a painted 
representation of a person is an accurate representation of that 
person as they are, or whether they are more like the painter's 
conception of them (Dobby's portrait of Harry, for example, I would 
expect to behave rather more like my own dear MC!James than a sulky 
teenager). Oh yes, one more thing: is there only ever one possible 
portrait? Does one image of Dumbledore spend its time magically to-
ing and fro-ing between all the Choclate Frog cards and portraits of 
him in the WW? Could JKR herself please come on line and answer all 
of this to stop my head hurting and so I can throttle her for 
distracting me from my thesis, please?

Kirstini, reflecting miserably that this was only supposed to be a 
three liner.