//On Photography

"Photography, with its devices of slow motion and enlargement, reveals the secret." (Page 59)

An abstract of the thought presented in the context of Walter Benjamin's "A Short History of Photography" (1931), this statement summarizes the wonderful field of photography. Unlike any other art form, capturing an instantaneous perspective of an environment is both a treat and an additional triviality. Composing a shot is only half the battle, as photography is always a time-based art. One slice of a lengthy shoot, sometimes as short as 1/250th of a second is the key to a successful photo – if the shutter is open too long, not at the right time, or focus isn't dead on, the opportunity is lost. However, should the stars align to produce the desired image, the detail in both time and space is an inexhaustible amount of information for exploration afterwards. Having taken and stitched together several 360° panoramas recently, I have found more pleasure in discovering their hidden personalities and oddities than in actually capturing the image. In the same way, portraits reveal a great deal about one's expression between their intended pose – a trace of a grimace may surface, or a longing in the eyes, or perhaps even irritation with the demands of the photographer. Nothing can hide from a camera.

"The amateur who returns home with great piles of artistic shots is in fact no more appealing a figure than the hunter who comes back with quantities of game of no use to anyone but the dealer." (Page 63)

Nope. Since when is investigation and trial and error a scar on the face of art? The opinion Benjamin presents as fact is, to say the least, narrow-minded. There is no better way to become familiar with a medium than to experiment, and often capturing or producing a plethora of images is key to finding a technique or style that fits especially well within that medium. After acquiring a digital single lens reflex camera, I've put over 30,000 actuations on the shutter and have yet to nail down my shooting preferences. Perhaps this is a result of a constantly evolving idea of an attractive image, or even something as natural as the changing seasons demanding different approaches to lighting, color and subject matter. No matter, claiming that quantity sacrifices worth is absolutely the antithesis of photography. Unless you are Annie Leibowitz, of course.

Santogold - Say A-Ha! (TEPR Remix)